Do Donaghy’s Actions Tarnish the NBA Brand?
The Tim Donaghy game-fixing/betting situation brings a dark cloud over the National Basketball Association and its commissioner David Stern during an extremely tumultuous time in professional sports.
I believe Stern should be applauded for the adept way he’s handled the issue. He identified the Donaghy situation as an isolated incident, launched an internal investigation and subsequently turned it over to the FBI. His increasingly robust leadership is exactly the kind of courage and integrity a Commission or CEO needs to express in times of crisis and uncertainty. Instead of judging, we should all give him time to make his next move, as he’s made all the right moves so far.
Some think Stern ’should have’ known. But even sports handicapper Jimmy Boyd admits that “If a guy were to space out a bunch of games over two seasons it’s not going to be easily detectable.”
That said, it now seems that the NBA and other professional sports will have to track and analyze their ref’s calls in the same way that Vegas keeps tabs on bettors. If the odds don’t add up, that’s the league’s cue to begin an investigation; otherwise, they’ll wake up to the same credibility nightmare professional cycling is facing.
One thing is for certain: This situation cannot happen again among referees. Even a player involved in gambling on NBA games, ala Pete Rose, will dampen the NBA’s brand. Commissioner Stern needs to continue to make the league’s ‘no tolerance’ stance very clear. I believe that he will.
Where money lies, corruption follows. As long as the Donaghy situation is the isolated incident Stern asserts it is, fans will forgive, players will play and the NBA should weather the credibility storm.
September 23rd, 2007 at 12:28 am
Bear in mind that the Donaghy conviction appears to have been only the third time in the history of the USA that a sports official has been convicted of gambling offenses involving games the official worked. Would that other professions have such an extraordinary track record.