The refs are way better now than in the past and fans have way more access to the game than in the past at a rate that has out paced ref improvement. The fact that refs make mistakes--the human element--is something I like about the game. Perfectly capturing every call would make the basketball unwatchable and the randomness of made and missed calls adds drama. Unless it’s my Wizards getting the bad call, then it’s a problem (I kid)
Your comment made me realize something (although it doesn't pertain to techs, per se).
In the same ways that offenses have generally outpaced defensive capabilities, I think offenses have outpaced refereeing capabilities, particularly when it comes to charge/block calls. It's hard to see how refereeing could realistically be better while still being driven by humans, and it's only going to get more challenging for them.
Yeah, the lag between advances in different parts of the game is an interesting idea to think about. The Harden rule adjustments are probably the most obvious example of the NBA quickly identifying an “innovation” and adapting, but most changes in play don’t have giant beards to make whatever shift is made so obvious. On the tech front, I think the Luka issue you raised is really compelling. We’re getting toward the end of the regular season and the refs have had to deal with months of push back and complaining and the stress of not getting things right. Great piece!
Thank you! And yeah, I didn't dive into the history of the technical foul much. The league started suspending players after 16 techs to protect the refs, but I think it had sort of had the opposite effect. The players are still as aggressive as ever, but refs have to be a little more careful about not piling up techs on superstars.
Wish I had data to corroborate this. Thanks for the comment!
The refs are way better now than in the past and fans have way more access to the game than in the past at a rate that has out paced ref improvement. The fact that refs make mistakes--the human element--is something I like about the game. Perfectly capturing every call would make the basketball unwatchable and the randomness of made and missed calls adds drama. Unless it’s my Wizards getting the bad call, then it’s a problem (I kid)
Your comment made me realize something (although it doesn't pertain to techs, per se).
In the same ways that offenses have generally outpaced defensive capabilities, I think offenses have outpaced refereeing capabilities, particularly when it comes to charge/block calls. It's hard to see how refereeing could realistically be better while still being driven by humans, and it's only going to get more challenging for them.
Yeah, the lag between advances in different parts of the game is an interesting idea to think about. The Harden rule adjustments are probably the most obvious example of the NBA quickly identifying an “innovation” and adapting, but most changes in play don’t have giant beards to make whatever shift is made so obvious. On the tech front, I think the Luka issue you raised is really compelling. We’re getting toward the end of the regular season and the refs have had to deal with months of push back and complaining and the stress of not getting things right. Great piece!
Thank you! And yeah, I didn't dive into the history of the technical foul much. The league started suspending players after 16 techs to protect the refs, but I think it had sort of had the opposite effect. The players are still as aggressive as ever, but refs have to be a little more careful about not piling up techs on superstars.
Wish I had data to corroborate this. Thanks for the comment!