The NBA suspended referee Joey Crawford indefinitely on Tuesday after he ejected Tim Duncan on Sunday in the Spurs' game against the Mavericks.

Crawford's suspension will at least cover the rest of the regular season and the playoffs.

"Joey Crawford's handling of this situation failed to meet the standards of professionalism and game management we expect of NBA referees," NBA commissioner David Stern said. "Especially in light of similar prior acts by this official, a significant suspension is warranted. Although Joey is consistently rated as one of our top referees, he must be held accountable for his actions on the floor, and we will have further discussions with him following the season to be sure he understands his responsibilities."

Crawford hit Duncan with two technical fouls just 1:16 apart late in the third quarter of San Antonio's 91-86 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday. The second came while Duncan was laughing on the bench and meant an automatic ejection, just the second of his nine-year career.

"He looked at me and said, 'Do you want to fight? Do you want to fight?' " Duncan said. "If he wants to fight, we can fight. I don't have any problem with him, but we can do it if he wants to. I have no reason why in the middle of a game he would yell at me, 'Do you want to fight?' "

The Spurs sorely missed their top player against Dallas down the stretch, failing to score a basket over the last 6:32 while allowing a 9-0 run to end the game. The loss ended their hopes of catching Phoenix for the No. 2 seed and home-court advantage if they meet in the second round.

While this was a thrilling game between Western Conference powers, the story of the day turned out to be Duncan vs. Crawford.

"He came into the game with a personal vendetta against me," said Duncan, who had 16 points, seven rebounds, six assists and two blocks in his limited action. "It had to be because I didn't do anything the entire game. I said three words to him and the three words were, 'I got fouled' on a shot. ... That's all I said to him the entire game."

Crawford disagreed, saying that "[Duncan] was complaining the whole game."

"And then he went over to the bench and he was over there doing the same stuff behind our back," Crawford said. "I hit him with one (technical) and he kept going over there, and I look over there and he's still complaining. So I threw him out."

Crawford spoke to a pool reporter before Duncan spoke to the media. Asked about Duncan not thinking he deserved to be tossed, Crawford said: "That's his opinion. He said nothing when he was walking off the court and he called me a piece of [expletive]. Is that nothing?"

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2840587

Good deal. The NBA needs to corral these stiffs, as they have too much co ntrol over a game anyway.

I don't understand the "Do you want to fight" stuff. That seems rediculous.

damn, proof that the nba will flip flop waffle for its golden boys. the guys who gave sheed techs for the same thing more than once lost no time. weak sauce garbage double standard.

Even though I understood about half of what you said there Gutz, I'm pretty sure I agree with it 100%.

Less Joe Crawford in playoffs = More Dan Crawford in playoffs

Ugh.

yeah exactly. this should've been doen with some of the techs sheed got. but it is the right move and i would favor firing the guy. i don't care how well he 'grades out' in other instances.

On PTI with Kornheiser today, Stern strongly hinted that crawford is DONE as an NBA referee.

weak sauce

Fuckin' right.

So Joey Crawford destroyed his career as a ref giving duncan a Tech. Wow, sheed gets the rawest deal since the last CBA(in which the players union got royally bent over).

On PTI with Kornheiser today, Stern strongly hinted that crawford is DONE as an NBA referee.

I heard a quote last night from Crawford saying he'd make the same call again if given the chance and that if the NBA doesn't want him to make those calls then he doesn't want to ref for them.

That's not word for word, but pretty close. I could see him retiring.

It also seems that he has a problem with Dick Bavetta. Not really sure where that came from.


Have you ever seen such a response to a ref hinting at retirement?

I agree with everything mentioned here. Check it check it...

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/6700790




Of course.

How could it have turned out otherwise?

The little martinet David Stern ordered his cops to crack down. Zero tolerance, he said. You, the refs, are the bosses. The fans may pay exorbitant prices to see their favorite players play, but you are hereby empowered to T up a superstar if he dares so much as toss his headband toward his own bench.

You shall rule through fear. Whistle as nightstick. Make examples of some guys and the others will step into line.

They will become obedient automatons. You can break them. Never let them forget who is in charge. If they see weakness, they will exploit it. You own that court. Now go knock heads.

Wally Szczerbiak waves his hand in a dismissive manner after a terrible foul call? T him up. Steve Nash turns his palms to the heavens in a plea for a call after playing through three fouls? T him up. Tim Duncan laughs incredulously on the bench after a foul call on a teammate? T him up. Toss him. Toss 'em all!

And then this. Joey Crawford is suspended indefinitely for having zero tolerance.

What? Joey Crawford stepped over the line? We're shocked, simply shocked that one of our enforcers, I mean, officials went too far. He will be dealt with harshly!

David Stern will now hang Crawford out to dry and pretend his zero tolerance policy had nothing to do with creating this problem in the first place. Crawford is the fall guy, the NBA's Scooter Libby. Stern, meanwhile, is now as big a hypocrite as he is an autocrat.

Make no mistake, I think Crawford can be a petty, grudge-holding thug and I've screamed at him by name courtside in L.A. and Phoenix. (Though he's always highly rated, I don't think he's that great an official either. He's basically a less-talented Steve Javie, who at least earns his quick trigger by being one of the league's best.) But Crawford's pugnacity, grating as it may be, was emboldened by Stern's ill-conceived zero tolerance policy.

The problem was Crawford really bought in. He was a true believer. He thought he was the boss. Until Stern reminded him who was really in charge.

Stern's "no complaining" edict was the dumbest directive to come out of a league office since baseball decided it was high time to start enforcing the balk rule according to the letter of the law in 1988.

A veteran player like Tim Duncan should be able to have a spirited disagreement with a veteran official like Crawford without it resulting in banishment. Just as a player should be able to slap the floor in disappointment after sacrificing his body to draw a charge only to get whistled for a block. Just as a player should be allowed to throw his headband into his bench. Or give a "get outta here" wave on a dubious call. Or react passionately to a call that genuinely surprises him.

Because if there are two things that are definitely not Fan-Tastic, it's watching superstars get banished to the showers and watching players shoot technical free throws.

Is Duncan, his choirboy rep notwithstanding, an inveterate whiner who deservedly earns most of his technicals? Sure. Does the hot-headed Crawford need to be reined in a bit? No doubt.

But you can't tell your employees to have zero tolerance and then have zero tolerance for them having zero tolerance.

It's been reported that Crawford asked Duncan if he wanted to fight, which is fairly comical if you take a second to think about it. Stern reacted as if Crawford sucker-punched Duncan.

It makes zero sense.