NBA Referees OK New Contract

There is labor peace in the NBA after the referees accepted a two-year contract, ending a lockout that lasted more than a month.

Refs report finds only Donaghy committed crimes

By BRIAN MAHONEY

NEW YORK (AP) — A review of the NBA's officiating program found no evidence of illegal activity by any referee other than Tim Donaghy, though it recommended significant changes for monitoring gambling and game integrity. The report, compiled over 14 months by former federal prosecutor Lawrence Pedowitz and released Thursday, called for the creation of a "culture of compliance" and closer monitoring of games for suspicious activity.

Pedowitz made three key recommendations to the league: create a hot line to anonymously raise questions about gambling and game integrity issues; make available any complaints the league receives about refs — beginning in the 2008-09 playoffs — to both teams to avoid suspicions of bias; provide more access to referees for both fans and media.

The report also suggests mandatory gambling education for players. "We believe that gambling can expose the players and the League to significant risks, and therefore it is important that players be educated regarding those risks," the report says.

Refs report finds only Donaghy committed crimes....

Donaghy Sentenced to 15 Months in Prison for Betting Scandal

By Robin Shulman and Michael Lee
Washington Post Staff Writers

Tim Donaghy the former NBA referee who was in the middle of a betting scandal was sentenced to 15 months in prison today. U.S. District Judge Carol Bagley Amon of the Eastern District of New York said she took Donaghy's gambling addiction into account, as well as his cooperation with the government's investigation. Donaghy, 41, was expected to receive between 27 and 33 months in prison for his role in a betting scandal that rocked the NBA last summer and continues to reverberate.

"I'm very sorry for the acts that have brought me before you, your honor," Donaghy said. He added, voice shaking, "I've brought shame on myself, my family and the profession I love."

Donaghy Sentenced to 15 Months in Prison for Betting Scandal....

Disgraced NBA ref described as compulsive gambler

By TOM HAYS

NEW YORK (AP) — Disgraced NBA referee Tim Donaghy was a compulsive gambler whose road to professional and personal ruin began on the golf course, where he bet up to $500 a hole, according to an evaluation filed on the eve of his sentencing.

"In short, he could not stop himself from gambling," wrote Stephen Block, a longtime New York-based gambling treatment counselor.

Donaghy, 41, faces up to 33 months in prison at his sentencing Tuesday in federal court in Brooklyn after pleading guilty last year to taking thousands of dollars in payoffs from a professional gambler for inside betting tips. The evaluation was filed by his defense attorney, John Lauro, in a bid for leniency.

"In my professional opinion, Mr. Donaghy would never have committed these offenses if he was not a pathological gambler," Block concluded.

Block, who interviewed Donaghy in January, traced his problem to 1994, when he started betting up to $500 a hole and playing card games at various golf clubs in his home state of Pennsylvania. He was introduced to the world of professional sports gambling, where he bet on football and baseball before becoming embroiled in the NBA scheme.

Disgraced NBA ref described as compulsive gambler....

NBA hires Army Maj. Gen. Johnson to oversee refs

The Associated Press

NEW YORK: The NBA hired Army Maj. Gen. Ronald L. Johnson on Tuesday as senior vice president of referee operations, a newly created position to help strengthen the league's officiating programs following the Tim Donaghy scandal.

The move splits executive vice president of basketball operations Stu Jackson's role into two positions, a plan commissioner David Stern announced last fall. Johnson will oversee all aspects of officiating, while Jackson will continue to handle all other domestic and international basketball matters.

Johnson recently retired after 32 years of service as a combat engineer. He was commanding general of the Army Corps of Engineers, Gulf Region division, from 2003-04, responsible for overseeing $18 billion of reconstruction in Iraq.

NBA hires Army Maj. Gen. Johnson to oversee refs....

NY prosecutors: Ref 'central' to NBA bet scandal

By TOM HAYS

NEW YORK (AP) — Disgraced NBA referee Tim Donaghy has exaggerated his cooperation in a gambling investigation in hopes of lessening his prison term and avoiding paying hefty restitution, prosecutors said in court papers filed Friday.

He also has minimized his own role in the scheme, according to the filing in Brooklyn federal court.

Prosecutors rebuffed defense arguments that Donaghy should get a break on his sentence for voluntarily coming forward and giving prosecutors inside dirt about alleged game-fixing and other misconduct by other referees and league officials.

In the court papers, prosecutors said that by the time Donaghy decided to cooperate last year, "the government had a clear understanding of the criminal conspiracy, and who was involved." Though he deserves credit for giving investigators information on his two co-defendants, his claims of other internal NBA corruption "did not lead to evidence of prosecutable federal offenses," the papers added.

Defense attorney John Lauro declined comment Friday.

NY prosecutors: Ref 'central' to NBA bet scandal....