Year after year we all see the stars like Kobe, Wade, and Lebron getting away with traveling, carries, and cheap fouls. It can sometimes be blatant, but usually just subtle enough for the other teams fans to notice it and the home fans ignore it. The big question is...why? I'd like to think it isn't the refs actively giving certian players an unfair advantage, and I believe I have an alternative explanation.
There's a reason rookies don't get calls, and it isn't because they need to go through an initiation process or anything. It's because the refs haven't seen them play before. Every player has little tendencies that sometimes are legal and sometimes aren't, like subtley hooking an arm or taking an extra half-step. When a ref sees a rookie do it for the first time it just looks like an infraction and the rookie gets called. Then, when reviewing game tape the ref realizes that no infraction really occured (over time) and begin to let the player get away with it.
The reason stars can do illegal moves more often than regular vets is that the stars know how to toe the line better. A vet will be on the illegal side of the line more often, so when the ref watches game tape he will see his foul/carry/travel call is right and still call it on the regular vet. The star will be on the right side of the line more often and the ref will see he blew a call from time to time.
I realize this is just one possible explanation, and maybe it is just to reassure myself, but I'd hate to think that the refs are consciously giving certain players an advantage, especially when those players already have an advantage by being more talented.
Jarah Mariano
Danica Patrck
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