NBA Finals Game 5 – “The Fix Is In”

NBA
2 years ago

NBA Finals Game 5 – “The Fix Is In”

The Warriors went into Game 4 in Cleveland expected to complete the sweep, and finishing with a perfect 16-0 record in the playoffs. Instead the Cavs scored an NBA playoff record 49 points in the first quarter, and 86 points in the first half. This is great news for the NBA, and it’s television partners who stood to lose hundreds of millions of dollars if the series ended in four games.

Not everybody is happy about Cleveland’s historic victory though, and a lot of people believe that the officials directly influenced the result of the game. Nobody was more upset than Draymond Green’s mama, who tweeted: These OFFICIALS HAVE BEEN OFFICIALLY PAID! #. She wasn’t alone though, as the list of high profile tweets critical of the officials included: Dick Vitale, Jason Whitlock and Clay Travis and numerous current and former NBA players.

None of those people know as much about fixing games as former NBA referee Tim Donaghy, who served time in prison for his role in fixing games for profit. Donaghy has admitted to fixing the 2002 Western Conference Finals between the Sacramento Kings and the LA Lakers. That series went to seven games, and the Lakers advanced with the help of the officials.

Donaghy says there is no doubt in his mind that Game 4 was fixed, and he warns that he believes Game 5 will go the same way. He says that if Draymond Green picks up a couple of early fouls on questionable calls, it will be a clear sign that “the fix is in”.

Of course this all might sound a bit like a wild conspiracy theory, but when you consider that it has happened in the past, it’s not such a stretch that it could happen again.