Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here... highlighting the big storyline. Because there's nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
And it was with what O'Neal would call his "soft bedroom voice" that he approached referee Zach Zarba for an explanation about the personal foul he had received trying to haul in a rebound over Knicks rookie Timofey Mozgov...
Zarba instructed O'Neal to walk away. The veteran of 14 NBA seasons said he then simply asked whether he could have a conversation about the call and received a technical foul for his troubles, setting off fireworks that resulted in Kevin Garnett's getting tagged with a pair of technicals by second-year referee Kane Fitzgerald farther down the court, earning KG an automatic ejection with 4:39 to play in the first half.
"I asked, 'I can't talk right now?'" O'Neal said, mimicking his gentle tone and demeanor. "Just like that, the soft bedroom voice …
"But he gave me a tech. That's too fast. That's way too fast. That's telling guys that they can't ask refs what they did. You're basically taking emotions out of the game."
The NBA can't take this new approach into the regular season, can it? The plan must be to have referees strictly enforce the new technical foul policy in the preseason to scare the players straight, but then ease up a bit in the regular season.
Paul Pierce hit a game winner to beat the Knicks in MSG last night and what are we talking about this morning? The officiating.
Yahoo! Sports Adrian Wojnarowski rips David Stern and the new policy:
The fans wanted this, the NBA emperor tells everyone. David Stern tosses out some vague claim of market research to demand of his players what the commissioner has never demanded of himself: a control of his temper, the grace to react instantly to the incompetence of his officials with a robotic restraint.
...
Yes, referees should give techs to players who overreact. But now you get a technical for reacting. That’s an immense difference, and there’s no majority of NBA fans anywhere who ever demanded these changes from the league. This way, the league never has to address the putrid nature of its officiating. If players aren’t reacting to bad calls, they must not have been bad calls.
For a less verbose criticism, we turn to Tommy Heinsohn:
"This is stupid! Believe me this is gonna happen during the regular season.. NBA... it's stupid!!
On Page 2, Delonte West's back injury isn't getting better.
In addition to Wednesday night's game, West isn't expected to play at Toronto on Friday. And coach Doc Rivers said West is questionable for Saturday's game in Hartford, Conn. against the New York Knicks.
His absence may not seem like that big a deal, especially when you consider he's suspended for the first 10 games of the season.
Delonte has a bad back. He had issues during his first stint in Boston. We just gotta hope it doesn't evolve into anything more than spasms.
The rest of the links:
Globe - They're getting a techs message | Glossy finish on Pierce | Herald - Winning makes Boston place to play | New rules on complaining an adjustment | Icing on Paul Pierce's cake | CSNNE - Celtics edge Knicks without KG | Robinson has come long way from NYC | Reacting to the NBA's new tech policy | Liking the look of Cs bench | Jermaine O'Neal doing the dirty work | ESPN Boston - Pierce can't be late | NESN - Shaq uses nude photo excuse |