Cuban: "Your league is rigged!''

[spUrpenguin3000]

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald...s/14856564.htm

Official coverup? Conspiracy theories no excuse for Dallas
gcote@MiamiHerald.com

There could not be a more perfect locale than Dallas for these NBA Finals to resume tonight. Just a few miles from the basketball arena is the infamous grassy knoll, national Mecca of conspiracy theorists. We presume that when the Mavericks' owner, coach and players talk these days about looking at film, it might not be game film but rather Abraham Zapruder's grainy home movie.

The question now: Is commissioner David Stern acting alone in manipulating to steal Dallas' championship trophy and give it to the Miami Heat? If so, then what of the blurred, shadowy figures on the knoll who appear to be wearing vertically striped shirts?

A delicious, volatile cauldron presents itself for Game 6 tonight in the wake of Sunday's home Heat victory in overtime and the Mavericks' belief the referees helped fashion Miami's 3-2 series lead. Desperation and paranoia is a cocktail more dangerous than Molotov's, and Dallas owner Mark Cuban warring with the officials is something like a match mad at a stick of dynamite.

It is unlikely Miami has been a part of playoff combustion like this since the bad old Knicks-rivalry years, when suspensions rocked a series and your snapshot was New York coach Jeff Van Gundy poodled onto Alonzo Mourning's pistoning leg in an on-court melee.

Here, the Mavs say they'll play with ''anger'' as the hostility of all North Texas funnels into one arena. Not sure in what role Dwyane Wade might find Shaquille O'Neal more useful tonight: Center. Or bodyguard.

''We Wuz Robbed!'' has long been the handiest excuse of teams that cannot find a decent reason for their collapse that doesn't involve the ignominy of a mirror. The convenience of alleging bad calls, or even willfully biased officiating (you'll recall the Seattle Seahawks conducted a remarkable seminar in early February), also is the blame-dodge of choice among teams that cannot bear to properly credit the opponent.

And so there it was for all to see past midnight Sunday in Miami's downtown bayfront arena: the sourest, saddest, sorriest display by a losing team that you'd ever wish to witness.

Not the loss itself; that was rather valiant. The reaction to it.

There was Cuban, whose billions can buy just about anything but a mortal slump by D-Wade, careening onto the court in a blue Jerry Stackhouse jersey after the final buzzer, screaming profanely at referee Joe DeRosa.

Cuban then turned to Stern and other NBA officials who were seated at the scorer's table and was overheard to shout venomously in the jubilant din, ``[Bleep] you! [Bleep] you! Your league is rigged!''

MAVS COME UNHINGED

That was just after The Incredible Shrinking Dirk Nowitzki -- who began the series as a 7-foot superstar but has seen the series turn him into his own bobblehead doll -- punted the basketball up into the 300-level seats after the buzzer and marauded off the court, slamming a water cooler and kicking a stationary bicycle in the hallway en route to the visitors' dressing room.

A bit after that is when coach Avery Johnson conducted a news conference that, if it were any stranger, might have seen him restrained and fitted with a straitjacket by men in White Hot coats.

A reporter asked what he thought of the foul call that turned into Wade's game-winning free throws with 1.9 seconds left in overtime.

''You tell me. What was your impression?'' Johnson replied.

The question was essentially repeated four more times; so was the coach's increasingly testy reply.

''No I want you to give everybody an honest answer,'' Johnson demanded, finally. ``We have people from Israel and Minnesota, Chicago, all over Dallas Germany.''

Johnson's performance seemed applicable to the phrase ''cracking under pressure'' to a degree that left you worried the coach was going to suddenly split in two, like a coconut that met a machete. This was the perfect spokesman for a team that seemed to be coming apart before our eyes.

Dallas' once-commanding 2-0 lead in this series seems as long ago now as NBA short-shorts. Three straight home victories by Miami have put control of the championship trophy in Heat hands entering tonight; the only question is how the seismic shift happened.

Wade's 121 points in the past three games is a pretty strong opening argument.

You start with Miami's young Flash asserting himself as the Finals MVP-in-waiting and doing it with a dominance that conjures images of Michael Jordan. And you contrast that with Nowitzki too often playing like David Hasselhoff sings, in the biggest collapse associated with Germany since the Berlin Wall.

Yet Dallas would cite the officiating, as if that was why the Mavs blew a 13-point, mid-fourth-quarter lead in crucial Game 3 -- a collapse that left the entire Dallas team writhing on the court in need a of a group Heimlich maneuver.

CUBAN'S SOUR GRAPES

Again Sunday night, responsibility for the loss was not accepted by the Mavericks. Class was not in session. So, in the wake of the 101-100 defeat, they blamed the refs.

Said that Wade, with the ball and 9.1 seconds left, committed a backcourt violation that was not called.

''That's a backcourt violation, at least to most high-schoolers,'' Cuban groused.

Then they said Wade committed a foul on Jason Terry en route to the basket that wasn't called.

''He pushed him. I guess that's not a foul,'' Cuban groused.

''Pushed off, like, three guys,'' Nowitzki claimed.

Then they said Wade was not fouled at all on the final drive that froze the clock at 1.9 and set up his winning free throws. Half right on that. Nowitzki was called but was not the fouler. However, replays clearly show Devin Harris grabbed Wade's inside right elbow, an obvious foul on anybody's court.

Finally, Dallas claimed it wanted to use its last timeout after Wade's second free throw but that the referee mistakenly awarded it after the first one -- even though the mistake clearly appeared to be on the part of timeout-signaler Josh Howard.

Speaking of whom, evidently Howard escapes blame for his two missed free throws with 54 seconds left. Evidently Nowitzki does, too, for another of his late missed foul shots. Maybe a ref hissed, ``Miss it!''

A LACK OF GRACE

Yes, let the Mavericks not accept blame for their third straight Finals loss or entertain the absurd idea Miami might be a worthy opponent.

No.

Let's instead put a telescope on the grassy knoll and imagine Stern there -- is he grinning? -- exacting some sort of vendetta against Cuban over the fact he is the most outspoken critic of NBA officiating. A conspiracy! Yes. That's it. Stern's Revenge!

''It's just ridiculous,'' Cuban summarized before climbing onto his team's bus.

He meant the officiating late in Sunday's game.

He might better have meant his team's response to the loss in the absence of any sort of grace.

[zipper-boy]

Originally Posted by Quadzilla99

Stern could make the ultimate punishment; institute an NBA owner dress code policy of suit and tie attire. Then Cubes will still have to stop dressing like a 9 year old slob. Also you're a Billionaire Mark stop getting you hair cut at Supercuts.

NBA refs don't wear strips!

[spUrpenguin3000]

I just saw on ESPNEWS that Cuban would consider selling the Mavs if the league won't consider changing the officiating...

God I hope the Heat win tonight!

Let's get this season over with.

[coyotes_geek]

Originally Posted by spUrpenguin3000

I just saw on ESPNEWS that Cuban would consider selling the Mavs if the league won't consider changing the officiating...

Here's to hoping this is true...........and that David Stern does nothing.

[edinscot08]

Originally Posted by spUrpenguin3000

I just saw on ESPNEWS that Cuban would consider selling the Mavs if the league won't consider changing the officiating...

The delusions of grandeur this guy has are staggering. He honestly believes he's on a campaign to change the NBA and its rules. Of course, it's not like he'll fade into the sunset if he sells the Mavs. He'll just pop up somewhere else annoying, like a case of bad teenage acne.

[coyotes_geek]

At the end of the day officials will ALWAYS be human, and as such will ALWAYS make mistakes, some of which will occur at inopportune times. Thus this whole issue will NEVER go away. Some team is going to get jobbed every year and their fans/players/coaches/owners are going to cry about it.

Damn the Mav's are in the freaking finals.... oh wait.... yeah he's right... it's rigged.

[spUrpenguin3000]

Originally Posted by MomBear

God I hope the Heat win tonight!

Let's get this season over with.

so your shooting at that idea, making it be not ture?

[captainlate]

No class--no ring. No return to the finals for the Wah-Wah mavs.
Boycott the FINALS 06.
Thank heaven, the spurs back to win the finals in 07.....

[DizzG]

F Cuban

sell the team

you are the most annoying owner in pro sports right now. The world doesnt revolve around your 3 year old tantrums

[bo spur]

Wow, the Mavericks are really looking like a horrible bunch of spoiled brats. From the Owner to the coach to the players to thier fans, thier whole organization is showing that they are total azzes in front of the entire world.

They seriously are making themselves look like the most unprofessional NBA team in the entire league. Its one thing when fans blame the refs and give no credit what-so-ever to the other team, its entirely different when the team is doing that.

And this is just after one game where they feel like the refs made bad calls down the stretch that made them lose. That happened 3 times to the Spurs in one damn series and they kept thier cool, even they were the current champs and were getting the kind of respect a first time playoff appearance team gets. Wow I'm starting to respect the Spurs more and more for the way they win, and lose.

These guys are complaining when they have won so many games this year in the playoffs on questionable calls putting them at the line with seconds left in the game and them having a chance to determine the outcome of the game from the free throw line. Its called Karma.

And to Cuban who seems to forget that it was the Mavs getting all the whistle and favorable calls that even got them into the Finals in the first place. I wonder how much Stern is going to want to see you there again next season. I would bet money that the Mavs won't be getting all those favorable and questionable calls next year thanks to the crying they are all doing right now.

[spUrpenguin3000]

and Avery said he's starting to crack...

[kyleo]

I can't believe Cuban said that about selling the team. Portrays himself as this "man of the people" in Dallas, doesn't get his way, then says he's going to abandon them! Seriously, Mavs' fans, this is your owner, a freaking man-child.

[coyotes_geek]

Originally Posted by DizzG

The world doesnt revolve around your 3 year old tantrums

The perfect summary of Cuban and his antics.

[diehardfan]

Please!----------Mark sell the team!

[SpursErie]

I see a season long suspension coming for Mr. Cuban which won't be announced until this series is over- "Your league is rigged" is way over the line. Ron Artest was at least provoked by a beer in the face but he was sent home for the balance of the season.

[yankeespur]

A LACK OF GRACE

Yes, let the Mavericks not accept blame for their third straight Finals loss or entertain the absurd idea Miami might be a worthy opponent.

No.

Let's instead put a telescope on the grassy knoll and imagine Stern there -- is he grinning? -- exacting some sort of vendetta against Cuban over the fact he is the most outspoken critic of NBA officiating. A conspiracy! Yes. That's it. Stern's Revenge!

''It's just ridiculous,'' Cuban summarized before climbing onto his team's bus.

He meant the officiating late in Sunday's game.

He might better have meant his team's response to the loss in the absence of any sort of grace.

That's it in a nutshell. It's all good when the calls go your way. A true test of character is when they don't. The Mavs aren't ready to be champions.

[sabugguy]

In the span of 48 minutes the officials, of which there are only 3 officiating 10 players, are going to miss fouls and make mistakes. If the Mavs want to lay blame...start with the 44 missed shots, 4 missed free throws and the 14 turnovers.

[evenstar]

please sell the team mark! i'm so sick of your childish antics!

and shut up about the finals being rigged. if you want a real officiating debacle, take a look back at game 6 of the 2002 WCF. now THAT was the worse officiating i have EVER seen. at least your team made it to the finals....

shut your pie hole!

[Buzzsaw]

And we all used to think Avery was a good character guy. They all keep losing their cool.

[NecioVato]

Originally Posted by sabugguy

In the span of 48 minutes the officials, of which there are only 3 officiating 10 players, are going to miss fouls and make mistakes. If the Mavs want to lay blame...start with the 44 missed shots, 4 missed free throws and the 14 turnovers.

I agree with you as far as calls will be mised and mistakes will happen. I think we all want consistency. if it's consistent on both sides; then it makes it a fair game. Unfortunatley, the playoffs haven't even been close to it; thus allowing the Mavs to make it to the finals bc of blown calls.

I hope they lose tonight but I know they won't and I know in the end it will be Cuban and his stooges lifting the trophy in game 7. I just keep telling people here who are Mav fans that I can't believe that it will take 7 to beat Miami since they are such a 'cupcake' team to begin with. I mean, after Wade...who do they have? Anyway; like I said before I hope the Heat win and Cuban sells the team.

Originally Posted by spUrpenguin3000

so your shooting at that idea, making it be not ture?

no I'm shooting at the season not being over yet.

[Cash IZ Clay]

Mark Cuban is a JOKE!!! I would go into detail, but I think we all know the details already.

[Spurfan15]

This is the most disgraceful NBA playoffs in years, and its primarily because of the long run of Mark Cuban's team. Spurs fans should have NO sympathy for Cuban or the Mavs. When the Spurs got screwed, they laughed and laughed and criticized us for complaining. Well look where you are now jacka**es!!!! I hope this team loses in game 6. I wont be watching. I want this season to end right now.

[spUrpenguin3000]

Originally Posted by MomBear

no I'm shooting at the season not being over yet.

o

[curiousspirit]

And so there it was for all to see past midnight Sunday in Miami's downtown bayfront arena: the sourest, saddest, sorriest display by a losing team that you'd ever wish to witness.

Not the loss itself; that was rather valiant. The reaction to it...........

.......Johnson's performance seemed applicable to the phrase ''cracking under pressure'' to a degree that left you worried the coach was going to suddenly split in two, like a coconut that met a machete. This was the perfect spokesman for a team that seemed to be coming apart before our eyes..............

.........Yes, let the Mavericks not accept blame for their third straight Finals loss or entertain the absurd idea Miami might be a worthy opponent.

That is the MO for dallas. Play the victim. They don't lose games, only the refs lose the games for them. If they win with the ref's help, then the refs are just doing their job. If they lose, they find something and someone else to blame.

I find it hypocritical that Avery constantly says that his team does not complain. Yet, that is all they ever do, especially after a loss.

Avery says that his team has the mental toughness or they wouldn't be where they are now. Yea, well, thank the refs for that because it has nothing to do with mental toughness. They are cracking and it is showing.

If the refs call game 6 fairly, I imagine the mavs will completely implode and show the league and all viewers how unworthy they are to be there. That is the problem with refs influencing games. They get teams that are not ready to deal with the real "mental toughness" required to win a championship and instead, they get immature and childish behavior from their owner, coach and players for the world to see.

One other thing - the fans here (including me), may complain about the ref bias in our series but that is COMPLETELY different than the actual players, coach and owner doing it. Our organization is classy and has the mental fortitude to keep personal opinions behind closed doors.

[timdunkin2000]

If a neutral observer is trying to decide who to pull for, I don't know how they could pick the Mavs. They are such poor sports and their complaints are ironic considering some of the calls in our series.

[scheely]

DOWN WITH DALLAS

No reason for dirk to have more foul shots that MJ. _irk is SOFT

[Hairyhandedgent]

Originally Posted by spurssheriff

A new 'Bell' set to toll at Spurs arena
SBC/AT&T merger may prompt facility upgrades

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/10033522/#storyContinued

By W. Scott Bailey
San Antonio Business Journal
Updated: 7:00 p.m. ET Nov. 13, 2005
The San Antonio Spurs limped into the Alamo City as a rented American Basketball Association squad in the early 1970s, playing their games at an unassuming 10,000-seat arena named for a world's fair that had long since ended.

By next season -- if not sooner -- a current defending NBA champion Spurs team will suit up in a relatively new arena renamed for one of the world's most identifiable brands. And one of the team's top executives says that rebranding SBC to AT&T Inc. will likely include some facility upgrades -- particularly in the areas of fan interaction and new technology.

Late last month, the U.S. Department of Justice approved the merger of SBC Communications Inc. and AT&T Corp., inching the two giants one step closer to becoming a single San Antonio-based entity. Last week, the Federal Communications Commission signed off on the deal.

"After a tough but fair process, we are pleased to have reached this major milestone... ," says AT&T Executive Vice President and General Counsel Jim Cicconi. "We expect to ... secure approval from the remaining states and, after that, to close the merger as quickly as possible."

(California is the only state that must yet approve the deal. Regulators there are expected to make a ruling on the merger by the end of November.)

The merging of the two companies will impact a number of professional and collegiate sports facilities located across the United States -- including the Spurs' home arena. How and when the process of rebranding those venues with the new AT&T name unfolds is not yet certain according to Russ Bookbinder, executive vice president of business operations for the Spurs.

"We need to sit down with (company officials) and see what they want to do," he explains.

Opportunity knocks
Rick Pych, executive vice president of finance for the Spurs and chief development officer for SBC Center, says a change of name opens the door for other makeovers.

"As part of this process, there are going to be some opportunities to make some enhancements," Pych explains. "It's still too early, however, to identify them right now."

Pych says some of the possibilities could include an enhanced communications backbone for the building and a ramping up of a high-definition television infrastructure to accommodate both internal and external broadcasting.

"It's thrilling," says Bookbinder about the opportunity to address some areas of the arena. "Through the process, we're not just going to change out the three giant letters on the building.

"There's going to be things that we are going to try to do, to get the fans more integrated through technology," Bookbinder adds.

Technology has been a key part of the backbone of SBC Center from the get-go. Former SBC Center General Manager Steve Zito told the Business Journal back in 2002, before the arena opened, that there was a "commitment that this be a state-of-the-art arena."

Each new major sports facility erected since SBC Center opened has had access to ever-changing advancements in design and technology. The Spurs want to remain in a cutting-edge facility.

"This (name change) is an opportunity for both sides to sit back after three seasons and recognize that a lot of things have changed since we designed this (arena)," Bookbinder says. "This is a great time to reload, to relaunch and to look at what else we can do for the fans. That's going to be part of our discussions and our relaunch."

Technology was the buzz word in Charlotte when the NBA's Bobcats christened their new $265 million arena recently.

Among the landmark amenities is a massive 80,000-pound scoreboard featuring a three-dimensional scaled replica of the downtown Charlotte skyline and four 16-by-28-foot video screens.

Barry Silberman, who helped develop the new arena, told North Carolina reporters recently: "We wanted the building to be a technological wow for everybody that comes through those doors."

Value added
As for the rebranding of SBC Center to something carrying the century-old AT&T moniker, Bookbinder says it provides a statement that San Antonio is a city on the move.

"All of this is a great opportunity for us, for San Antonio," he says. "This is tremendous for us when you think about having that company based in San Antonio. It can only help us long-term with growth and having other companies based in San Antonio."

The Spurs worked a naming-rights deal with SBC back in 2000, long before their nearly 19,000-seat arena opened. The deal runs for 20 years and, according to research provided by sister publication SportsBusiness Daily, is valued at roughly $41 million.

It's a deal that is equivalent to what the Indiana Pacers struck with Conseco Inc. for their arena. But it is substantially less than the $95 million, 20-year arrangement the Houston Rockets reportedly secured from Toyota for its newer venue.

Among the entities waiting to learn what the new name of their facility will be are the San Francisco Giants, who currently play at SBC Park. That five-year-old stadium opened as PacBell Park and underwent a name change a couple of years ago.

Says Bookbinder, "We're thrilled to have AT&T headquartered in San Antonio. And we're thrilled to be able to have the AT&T name on the building. It's one of the most recognized global brands period."

There has been talk of Cuban buying an MLB franchise ... Can you picture him whinning about balls and strikes 162 games a year? While on the subject of Cuban has anyone else noticed that for a guy who has a very large ownership stake in Lions Gate Films he ever seems to have a female with him at the game ... and he just desparately seems to want to be one of the guys as far as the team is concerned... maybe it is all rigged because the league doesn't feel ready for a seemingly gay owner to reach the pinnacle of the sport...

[highplainsspur]

Originally Posted by sabugguy

In the span of 48 minutes the officials, of which there are only 3 officiating 10 players, are going to miss fouls and make mistakes. If the Mavs want to lay blame...start with the 44 missed shots, 4 missed free throws and the 14 turnovers.

i'd start with letting wade go off for 40+

[KAD]

Unbelievable lack of class and Avery too!