Tim Donaghy on 60 Minutes
InsideHoops.com NewsWire | Dec. 6, 2009
Dishonest, crooked NBA referee Tim Donaghy was a guest on CBS '60 Minutes' tonight. You can watch the Donaghy 60 Minutes video here on InsideHoops.com by scrolling to the bottom of this page.
NBA Commissioner David Stern has issued the following statement in response to tonight’s “60 Minutes” segment featuring disgraced former referee Tim Donaghy, who recently completed a 15-month prison term which was imposed by the New York Federal Court where he pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to transmit betting information:
“In an interview aired on ‘60 Minutes,’ Tim Donaghy repeated his allegations against his former colleagues, NBA referees, as well as the NBA. Those allegations have been fully investigated by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the government completed its investigation, finding that the only criminal conduct was that of Mr. Donaghy. In addition, the NBA appointed Lawrence B. Pedowitz, a former Chief of the Criminal Division in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York to lead a comprehensive independent review of the NBA’s officiating program. Mr. Pedowitz’ review revealed that the NBA’s core values of neutrality and accountability were not compromised by anyone other than Mr. Donaghy. All allegations with respect to the integrity of the NBA’s officiating program will continue to be referred to Mr. Pedowitz for his review.”
KEN BERGER OF CBS SPORTS WRITES:
While Donaghy reiterated that he was successful on between 70 and 80 percent of his picks -- a claim that matches the FBI's conclusions, according to the 60 Minutes piece -- he continued to maintain that his officiating was honest. But the most significant piece of news that emerged from the interview Sunday night was Donaghy's assertion that he did, in fact, manipulate calls that helped him win a bet on a game between the Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz on Jan. 6, 2007. This is the first time that Donaghy has publicly disclosed a particular game that he wagered on and described the actions he took -- coincidentally, he claims -- to win that bet... A bombshell -- until you watch the game.
CBS SPORTS CONTINUED:
If Donaghy was able to execute his plan, he did a better job concealing it than you could imagine. The Nuggets attempted 31 free throws to Utah's 17, and Iverson went to the free-throw line more than anyone else in the game; he was 11 for 12. But there's more, thanks to Synergy Sports Technology, which logs in-depth statistics, play outcomes and video clips of every NBA game. In the game in question, Iverson drove to the basket 12 times. I watched every one of those plays. Iverson made two driving layups, missed four, lost the ball once and drew five fouls -- three of which were called by Donaghy himself. He was called for two personal fouls and drew nine in the game.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS REPORTS:
Disgraced former NBA referee Tim Donaghy said he refused to make calls to affect games even if it meant he lost money and it angered the mob. In one game in which he bet on San Antonio, he ejected coach Gregg Popovich midway through the first quarter and the Spurs eventually lost. That drew the ire of the mob, which reportedly lost money using his tip. "I just told them that I wasn't making calls in games to influence the outcome," Donaghy said in an interview on 60 Minutes that aired last night on CBS. "And I'm not going to be able to obviously predict the winner every night, and they have to accept that's what's going to happen."
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