Officiating in the Playoffs: Some Numbers by Series
by PDXBuckeye on Apr 26, 2011 3:09 AM PDT
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PrintQuick disclaimer, please make sure to read all the way to the bottom of this post if you are looking for some interesting data, I open with some general opinion I have about our series with the Mavs, but make sure to check the numbers out, they are fascinating and, well, some are a bit surprising.
One thing has dominated the talk here on Mavs Money Ball and here on Blazer's Edge on 3 games out of 5 in this series. We were piqued in game one by the 19 - 2 free throw discrepancy in the 4th quarter. Mavs fans were apoplectic when we got 23 attempts to their 10 in game 4. And now game 5 we bemoan the huge imbalance in the first half and then we got muscled in the second half, even though we gained ground in calls at that point, going from 1 attempt in the first half to 19 for the game.
I do believe that officiating influences the outcomes of games. I do agree that officiating in the NBA is inconsistent at best and downright bad/unfair at times. That said, I do believe how teams respond to those issues reveal how they are likely to fair deep into the playoffs (or if they are destined for an early exit).
The Trailblazers do not respond well to bad calls in general. In tonight's game for example, after Roy was shoved to the ground Nate drew a technical, but that was the wrong move, Dallas smelled our annoyance and simply got more physical. Nate drawing a technical in the first might have helped sway te officials approach to the game with half time to cool down, but really that guy got pissed and gave us no calls even as Dallas got rougher with us.
What would likely have been more effective would have been a good hard foul on Dirk, one that put him on the ground possibly. Not necessarily anything flagrant, but a good dose of body to go along with a hard swipe across the arms as he went up for a shot. Instead we just got more and more tentative with him. Remember what happened to Blake after Andre torpedoed him, next play he dribbled the ball out of bounds and the rest of the game he was far less effective than he was. I am not saying do what Andre did, but, at the same time really go after their star player, get in their heads.
OK, OK on to the numbers I promised. I calculated the total points scored, total free throws attempted and the total made across all series and fond some interesting things. First I will post the by series numbers (organized by fewest free throw attempts per game) followed with a general summation of all the series to combined. Afterward I wll make some observations.
Foul Data by Series
Dallas 3 - Portland 2 (surprise surprise there have been fewer foul shots per game (41.4) than any other series)
Dallas Numbers
- 457 Points Scored
- 103 Free Throws Made
- 111 Free Throws Attempted
- 92.8% Free Throw Percentage
- 22.5% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Portland Numbers
- 433 Points Scored
- 84 Free Throws Made
- 96 Free Throws Attempted
- 87.5% Free Throw Percentage
- 19.4% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Comparisons
7.6 Points per Game has been the average margin of victory with a 7.8 point Free Throw Advantage favoring the winner of each game on average. So it can be argued in this series that the average margin of victory has been supplied in the difference in free throws made.
Boston 4 - New York 0 (These guys averaged 43.5 attempts per game)
Boston Numbers
- 397 Points Scored
- 57 Free Throws Made
- 75 Free Throws Attempted
- 76.0% Free Throw Percentage
- 14.4% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
New York Numbers
Comparisons
- 363 Points Scored
- 74 Free Throws Made
- 99 Free Throws Attempted
- 74.7% Free Throw Percentage
- 20.4% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
8.5 Points per Game has been the average margin of victory with a -4.25 point Free Throw Advantage favoring the winner of each game on average. So it can not be argued in this series that the average margin of victory has been supplied in the difference in free throws made.
Miami 3 - Philadelphia 1 (47.25 attempts per game)
Miami Numbers
- 373 Points Scored
- 95 Free Throws Made
- 119 Free Throws Attempted
- 79.8% Free Throw Percentage
- 25.5% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Philadelphia Numbers
Comparisons
- 342 Points Scored
- 52 Free Throws Made
- 70 Free Throws Attempted
- 74.3% Free Throw Percentage
- 15.2% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
9.75 Points per Game has been the average margin of victory with a 9.25 point Free Throw Advantage favoring the winner of each game on average. So it can be argued in this series that the average margin of victory has been supplied in the difference in free throws made.
Orlando 1 - Atlanta 3 (50.25 Free throws per game)
Orlando Numbers
- 350 Points Scored
- 83 Free Throws Made
- 116 Free Throws Attempted
- 71.6% Free Throw Percentage
- 23.7% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Atlanta Numbers
Comparisons
- 361 Points Scored
- 58 Free Throws Made
- 85 Free Throws Attempted
- 68.2% Free Throw Percentage
- 16.1% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
5.75 Points per Game has been the average margin of victory with a 2.75 point Free Throw Advantage favoring the winner of each game on average. So it can not be argued in this series that the average margin of victory has been supplied in the difference in free throws made. The Numbers are skewed quite a bit since in Orlando's win the had 18 more free throw makes than did Atlanta while the remainder of the games were between -2 and 4 for the winner.
Chicago 3 - Indiana 1 (53.25 free throws per game)
Chicago Numbers
- 372 Points Scored
- 95 Free Throws Made
- 117 Free Throws Attempted
- 81.2% Free Throw Percentage
- 25.5% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Indiana Numbers
Comparisons
- 362 Points Scored
- 70 Free Throws Made
- 96 Free Throws Attempted
- 72.9% Free Throw Percentage
- 19.3% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
5 Points per Game has been the average margin of victory with a 7.75 point Free Throw Advantage favoring the winner of each game on average. So it can be argued in this series that the average margin of victory has been supplied in the difference in free throws made. One huge caveat here, Indiana could well be ahead in this series if they hit there free throws at a similar percentage as the Bulls have ( at the least tied instead of down 1-3).
Los Angeles 2 - New Orleans 2
Los Angeles Numbers
- 375 Points Scored
- 82 Free Throws Made
- 109 Free Throws Attempted
- 75.2% Free Throw Percentage
- 21.9% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
New Orleans Numbers
Comparisons
- 366 Points Scored
- 84 Free Throws Made
- 116 Free Throws Attempted
- 70.9% Free Throw Percentage
- 23.0% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
9.25 Points per Game has been the average margin of victory with a -1.5 point Free Throw Advantage favoring the winner of each game on average. So it can not be argued in this series that the average margin of victory has been supplied in the difference in free throws made.
San Antonio 1 - Memphis 3
San Antonio Numbers
- 365 Points Scored
- 93 Free Throws Made
- 125 Free Throws Attempted
- 74.4% Free Throw Percentage
- 25.5% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Memphis Numbers
Comparisons
- 383 Points Scored
- 73 Free Throws Made
- 103 Free Throws Attempted
- 70.9% Free Throw Percentage
- 19.1% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
7.5 Points per Game has been the average margin of victory with a -1 point Free Throw Advantage favoring the winner of each game on average. So it can not be argued in this series that the average margin of victory has been supplied in the difference in free throws made.
Oklahoma City 3 - Denver 1 (check this out 75.25 free throw makes per game between these two teams)
Oklahoma City Numbers
- 411 Points Scored
- 103 Free Throws Made
- 130 Free Throws Attempted
- 79.2% Free Throw Percentage
- 25.1% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Denver Numbers
Comparisons
- 390 Points Scored
- 110 Free Throws Made
- 159 Free Throws Attempted
- 69.2% Free Throw Percentage
- 28.2% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
6.75 Points per Game has been the average margin of victory with a 1.75 point Free Throw Advantage favoring the winner of each game on average. So it can not be argued in this series that the average margin of victory has been supplied in the difference in free throws made. Wow, if Denver would hit its free throws this series would be flipped on its head for sure.
Some Overall Data
Overall Playoff Numbers
- 6100 Points Scored
- 1316 Free Throws Made
- 1726 Free Throws Attempted
- 76.2% Free Throw Percentage
- 21.6% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Some Other Interesting Numbers for all 33 playoff games to date
- Winning teams enjoy a +2.97 Free Throw Makes Per Game
- Winning Teams also enjoy +2.97 Free Throw Attempts per Game
- The Higher Seed has an advantage of +3.21 Free Throws Made
- The Higher Seed is only averaging +2.36 more Attempts per game
- The Home Court team has an advantage of +3.21 Free Throws Made as well
- The Home Court Team however averages +3.45 attempts per game.
To Sum It All Up
While I tend to agree officiating does affect the outcomes of games, however, in general it does not have the power we attribute to it. The number one thing that jumps out at me is the following fact:
The ONLY team to advance to the 2nd round so far is the team that lost the free throw battle in 3 of their 4 victories. That team is Boston. They do not let foul discrepancies stand in their way, and in fact this fact will definitely make me reconsider their prospects for making the Finals this year.
The other thing that jumps out at me is that in two cases it is clear that if the team trailing in the series just shot a better percentage they would be either tied or winning their series. The biggest surprises for me was that 5 series did not really support the idea that foul attempts in a game made the difference. In fact the team with fewer attempts are ahead in 3 series.
The data does show definite influence of the free throw line, unfortunately our series being one of them where it is a big factor.
And while the higher seed enjoys an advantage it is negligible in th grand scheme of things. Of course the home court team has an advantage as well. Nothing surprising in either event. My actual problem with both of these facts is it is my guess that the league looks at these aggregate numbers and says "I don't have any idea what the fans are whining about, these advantages are
negligible". While everything seems to average out, that does not mean that there is not a problem with NBA officiating.
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Comments
Well Done.
I concur, it is a touchy subject. Veteran teams overcome the imbalance, but when the balance is as close as these two teams are, it can create the separation needed. I do not think it intentional, but was certainly concerned when the game played out as i suspected it would in the second half.
you can just feel it can't you
the sensation started creeping in on me at half time actually…
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
I agree with your idea about fouling Dirk or Jason Terry etc...nice and HARD after
a non-call like the one that occurred when Brandon was run over…
I have the definite feeling that the Blazers give up when they see the officiating allowing one team to maul while the other is called for touch fouls.
And HELLO…of COURSE the team that is allowed whatever…is going to become the aggressor!!!!!!!
Also Chandler has played about 3 minutes in this series until last night…he is going to be nice and well rested. Unlike LMA who has played too many minutes.
ALSO…I cannot STAND Scott Foster...have the Blazers EVER won a game where he is the lead official? I think this may have something to do with the Blazers "lackadaisica"l attitude in the 2nd half also…
by Natsthecat on Apr 26, 2011 10:14 AM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
Juwan Howard
would be blessing to have right now. He knows the game and would have taken it upon himself to hit someone and make the officials blow the whistle. His timing for knowing when a hard foul is needed is truly missed this season.
Joel
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
Agree completely!
i didn’t mention Joel because he is injured and wouldn’t be playing, even if Cha made the playoffs.
This is a key in this series at least for the games in Dallas
Blazers get fouls in the vicinity of Dirk and so they hesitate around him giving him easier looks. Meanwhile the Blazersw are getting whacked without calls allowing Dallas to play more aggressive D without penalty. This influece becomes more apparent the later into the game we get; our D gets softer and softer as we become worried about fouls. In Portland the opposite was true.
Now to get to Dave’s ongoing point. Early into the game we need to intentionally use our fouls very hard. That will get the refs to play at a more physical level at the latter stages of the game. This is the only way we will win in Dallas.
And here's the crux of it all:
“… but really that guy got pissed and gave us no calls even as Dallas got rougher with us.”
Referees are supposed to be objective, not get “pissed”. That ref got the (non)-call wrong when Roy was shoved and he didn’t like the fact that it was pointed out to him. For him to then lose his objectivity (if he had any to start with) is, at best, unprofessional. The refs can – and do – determine the outcomes of games. Anyone remember Jake O’Donnell. I’m sure Clyde does.
Duct tape makes you smart.
meh
it is intensely emotional out there, people who consider themselves to be “professional” probably take pride in what they do, and finally they are human.
Objectivity in that environment does have its limits.
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
Interesting
Yeah, Portland definitely wilts when they feel like the refs are giving them the short end of the stick. Do you blame the refs for that, or the team? As a Blazer fan, the officiating last night looked terrible. However, as a Blazer fan, I also have to admit that the BLAZERS looked terrible…the game was well within reach until the fourth quarter. They just couldn’t make a shot. That’s not on the refs…that’s on Portland. Credit Dallas for some excellent defense, but when Aldridge can’t hit anything and the role players are coming up empty, this team is just bad. You could argue that they were deflated because they weren’t getting calls, but you have to make your shots either way. Let’s hope they can put this one behind them and come out strong on Thursday.
Dallas did get in our heads
basically bullying us around. We ned to go back at them. We did it at home, Aldrdige going after Chandler, Dre taking Dirk down after they each were respectively pushed/tossed around by Dallas…
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
I think they will.
Portland seems to be incredibly good at correcting mistakes game by game. But I agree, we got hosed last night. How do the Mavs almost shoot 40 free throws by the third quarter and we’ve only had 10??
And I guarantee you someone will get ejected if we foul Dirk hard. There’s already been cases where hard fouls were committed on superstars, and they got called for flagrants.
Blazers fan since '91
REST IN PEACE MAURICE LUCAS 1952-2010 R.I.P #20
"B.Roy, he play like Brandon Roy. That's it." - Nicolas Batum
"We're family. We're family because of this stupid, stinkin' team." - Dave
by rise_stand_resist on Apr 26, 2011 9:37 AM PDT reply actions
Then Wesley gets ejectd
Just stay away from the head and you will probably be ok…
If Mariona plowing over Roy does not qualify as a hard foul on a star, we can find the right moment to get Dirk on his back
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
Or game 4 in the first half Roy got leveled landing hard on his elbow.
Dallas was saying we are going to play you hard. That set the bar for what is a foul against our star. We need to level Dirk early to set our bar for what is a foul when the Blazers play D.
However, Dallas is almost scoring 25% of their points at the free throw line.
That’s absolutely ridiculous.
Blazers fan since '91
REST IN PEACE MAURICE LUCAS 1952-2010 R.I.P #20
"B.Roy, he play like Brandon Roy. That's it." - Nicolas Batum
"We're family. We're family because of this stupid, stinkin' team." - Dave
by rise_stand_resist on Apr 26, 2011 9:40 AM PDT reply actions
It is not really that big an outlier though
since the average playoff wide is just over 21%. It is Denvers 28.2% that jumps out…
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
Refs typically reward the style of play and bigger name star over lesser
When it comes to drawing fouls their top players are more likely to get a playoff foul called than ours. Dirk is SOO much better at drawing fouls than LA, Chandler>Camby, Terry>Wes, Roy 2.0, Batum, Rudy..Andre is doing his part to play strong but GW should be our biggest foul recipient and he is playing out of sync to get the calls. Either out of control, out of position or somewhat passive. I had hoped we would get better as the series went on. LEARNING how to compete in PLAYOFF basketball. Game five we mostly retreated. Somewhere the switch has to flip for our guys to man up.
by LicketyBrindleDowntheMiddle on Apr 26, 2011 9:57 AM PDT reply actions
Boston has 4 big name stars
yet they lost the foul shooting game.
OKC has two stars shining far more brilliantly in the cosmos and yet Denver is slaughtering them in attempts.
We do need to stop worrying about foul calls on the offensive end. Dre was mauled a few times in there, Wallace was knocked off his game. That is why you have to be tougher, you are going to be called for hte foul anyway, might as well earn it.
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
I am more tired of the fouls on the defensive end
but I suspect that the reason we are losing is the non calls on the offensive end. All the “touchs” on out shooters and picks add up
Me: "I heard the BCS just bought March Madness.......the vote should be out tomorrow and we will see Duke and Kansas in the championship game"
by 92wastheyear on Apr 26, 2011 12:45 PM PDT up reply actions
I really think it needs to be broken down home/road. Home teams get calls. Portland sure did in game 4. Dallas sure did in games 1 and 5.
long live the jd.
On average it is not as bad as you'd think
Some Other Interesting Numbers for all 33 playoff games to date
•Winning teams enjoy a +2.97 Free Throw Makes Per Game
•Winning Teams also enjoy +2.97 Free Throw Attempts per Game
•The Higher Seed has an advantage of +3.21 Free Throws Made
•The Higher Seed is only averaging +2.36 more Attempts per game
•The Home Court team has an advantage of +3.21 Free Throws Made as well
•The Home Court Team however averages +3.45 attempts per game.
two points, again, Boston lost the free throw battle in 3 out of their 4 games and I do think the league looks at these averages and questions why people complain although averages may not be the most telling statistic.
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
It's never "as bad as it seems"
because NBA refs are notorious for tacking on touch fouls at the end of decided games, at the end of quarters, and in situations where it is generally not as advantagous as “other fouls”.
Case in point: yesterdays game.
They called THREE fouls on Dallas in the 1st half. That allowed Dallas to stay in a game that, by all accounts, they should have been down by about 10 points. Then, call timely fouls on the Blazes, away from the basket, that don’t really affect much, to make up the difference in the 3rd and 4th quarters, while ignorning blatant fouls that affect shots and possession of the ball.
It’s a tactic that they have used for decades and will continue to use, as it allows them to say “seee, we only called 3 more fouls on this team than that team” and then say something indefinable like “and, they were the more aggressive team, so they deserved it” which we all know is BS.
In this series we have been FAR more aggressive and have gotten the ball inside consistently, yet, somehow the FT disparity is typically against us or slighlty in our favor. Yet, Dallas has been continuously “fouled” on jump shots, calls which the Blazers have routinely not been given.
So, while the numbers are interesting to look at, they don’t mean much as far as how the game was actually officiated.
I would be very curious to see a flow chart/graph of total fouls over the course of a game and see it compared to the overall score of the game.
My hunch says that when a game is either decided, or close to being decided, the foul disparity “magically” disappears, and the final numbers look much more even then they were over the course of the game while the outcome was still in the balance.
by thevolv on Apr 26, 2011 10:50 AM PDT up reply actions 3 recs
I rec this
This feel exactly right. I thought jumper shooters weren’t supposed to draw many fouls….yet look
Me: "I heard the BCS just bought March Madness.......the vote should be out tomorrow and we will see Duke and Kansas in the championship game"
by 92wastheyear on Apr 26, 2011 12:48 PM PDT up reply actions
Your numbers are not right
I took a look at the numbers for Dallas-Portland and they are incorrect. Here are the actual numbers:
Dallas Numbers
464 Points Scored
93 Free Throws Made
123 Free Throws Attempted
75.6% Free Throw Percentage
20.0% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Portland Numbers
426 Points Scored
80 Free Throws Made
103 Free Throws Attempted
77.6% Free Throw Percentage
18.8% of Points Scored were Free Throws Made
Average free throw shots per game – 45.2
Average winning margin – 7.6
Average free throw advantage – 3.2
I did not check your numbers on the other series, so I can’t comment on them. I pulled my numbers from the box scores on ESPN.com. Not sure how it affects your point because I stopped reading when I realized your numbers were wrong.
i will double check tonight
I could have screwed something up with the extra game for the blazers though
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
from the looks of the difference I am betting I recorded 1 game twice and left one out
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
I have double checked the numbers
and mine are correct, you must have made an error somewhere.
Dallas scores
89
101
92
82
93
Total 457
Portland scores
81
89
97
84
82
Total 433
So thanks for killing the credibility of the hours of work I put in!
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
PDX...
I think he might have been confusing post season point totals w/ regular season point totals – http://stats.oregonlive.com/nba/teamstats.asp?teamno=22&type=schedule. Anyway, your credibility is not ruined and any true fan of the PTBs already double-checked your stats, so chill out about the flak you receive from people who have their statistics in a bumble. No offense to tac847 either, I made the same mistake when I read the point totals for the series.
P.S. Everybody needs to just shut up and root for our team.
You are correct
I did have the incorrect point total numbers. Your point totals are correct, but your free throw numbers are way off. Dallas made 93 of 123 attempts for 75.6% and Portland made 80 of 103 attempts for 77.6%. This changes the percentages of points off free throws to 20.4 for Dallas and 18.5 for Portland.
I understand you put a lot of work into this, but I noticed the problem as soon as I saw the free throw percentages you listed. Dallas missed 9 free throws just in game 5. Brendan Haywood has missed 12 free throws all by himself in this series (why doesn’t Portland play hack-a-Haywood?).
I would much rather see
a list/video accompaniment of calls that are just wrong. I love watching Jason Kidd magically stop after backpedaling full speed to draw a charge on a Batum layup, but sorry folks, there’s no way that’s a charge. Calls like these that TAKE AWAY possessions and points, i think, are way more influential on game outcomes than free throws awarded.
well then do it
geeesh
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
Yeah....non calls are way tougher to track
but i too feel like they are story of the series. They really set the tone of the series and dictate what Dallas can do on defense
Me: "I heard the BCS just bought March Madness.......the vote should be out tomorrow and we will see Duke and Kansas in the championship game"
by 92wastheyear on Apr 26, 2011 12:51 PM PDT up reply actions
it was more the guys subject line
not, how to say it, very tactful…
If you don’t like looking at the numbers or feel they are useless do yoiu really need to post that on a page where someone spent some time on it. Not horribly respectful is all.
He is just too lazy to do his own work…
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
Absolutely ...(and good job with that too btw)
Besides what he asking for is a practical impossibly.
Me: "I heard the BCS just bought March Madness.......the vote should be out tomorrow and we will see Duke and Kansas in the championship game"
by 92wastheyear on Apr 26, 2011 1:01 PM PDT up reply actions
care to point me in the direction of game video?
sorry you’re so touchy about my comment, it wasn’t meant to be “this post sucks, you should do this instead.”
i was more making the point that i feel like these are the reasons teams get demoralized or lose games, not free throw disparity.
At least the refs should be back on our side for game 6
Home team has had the advantage from the zebras all series long. As long as the good version of the blazers shows up, they should win the game and force a game 7 where the refs will step back and let the teams decide the series.
\\\oo///
Puts it in perspective
when you see teams that are winning their series getting less free throw attempts then their opponents… I guess we shouldn’t whine so much and should focus on just winning.
my point in much more succinct form...
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
I don't really understand why home teams regularly get more calls and shoot more FT's.
I guess it makes some sense that the home team might thrive off of the crowd noise and could play more aggressively as a result. However, this seems to be somewhat of a stretch.
Instead, I think that refs are more influenced by the crowd noise than the players are. The 4th quarter in Game 1 and the first half of Game 5 were blatant examples of the refs calling the game differently on both ends of the court.
The conspiracy theorist in me believes that this is the NBA’s way of pushing good series towards 7 games, but I’m probably just being extreme.
All I know is that it better even out again in Game 6. I don’t want to lose this series watching the Mavs shoot free throws.
"Nicolas! You're the strongest boy in the world!"
The recent book “Scorecasting,” which I’ve mentioned in a number of threads, presents data that agrees with you— that its the refs that are influenced by crowd noise, not the fans. They basically contend that home field/court advantage, which exists in all sports, is mostly due to reffing, and that advantage gets bigger the larger the crowd is and the closer they are to the action.
In this series, the refs have helped the home team in games 1, 4 and 5. In the cases of games 1 and 4 I think they possibly did so by enough to affect the outcome. I don’t think that’s the case with game 5.
long live the jd.
end of the first sentence should read
the ref are influenced by crowd noise, not the players. The reason they suspect the noise doesn’t affect the players much is that things like ft%, shootout % in hockey and soccer, etc. are pretty much the same home versus road. Not the case with number of whistles. The book isn’t 100% convincing, but they make a pretty good case.
long live the jd.
makes sense to me
refs are human beings after all…
It could also be when calls go against the home team dramatically the home crowd makes sure the refs know about so they are more attentive and the discrepancy does not grow as big, while if the advantage is for the home team, those missed calls on the opponents are not highlighted by the home team.
"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"
— Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man)
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