Refs Ruining the Playoffs?

John Hollinger wrote this article a few days ago mentioning how most NBA fans have been complaining about how the referees' excessive whistle-blowing has ruined the fluidity of the playoff games. As he mentions, the number of blown whistles has gone up proportionally in the playoffs compared to the regular season, as it has in recent years. Thus, he argues that fans should not be complaining.

What he doesn't realize is that fans, like myself, are not complaining about the number of calls; we are complaining about the accuracy of the calls. As we all know, Nike and Vitamin Water have been plugging the dream Kobe vs. Lebron matchup for weeks, and obviously the NBA wants a piece of that lucrative pie. By having such bad calls (I have plenty to choose from) as Pietrus' phantom foul on Lebron in the waning seconds of regulation in Game 4 (as Tim Cowlishaw points out, if that was Ben Gordon or someone of that caliber, we all know that call wouldn't have been made, and it would have just been his "slipping" on the floor), the accuracy of the game is in question, since now many fans are skeptical about the motives of the NBA front office. Do they want an accurate product or do they want the money?

Why we even have to discuss this is a shame. Since the refs are already stopping the game by calling an inordinate number of fouls (according to Hollinger), why don't they stop the game to review the bad or controversial calls? Thanks to the Magic's being on the verge of beating the Cavs, maybe the league isn't rigged after all, and integrity is returning to the game. However, as long as Tim Donaghy's name continues to be uttered, the refs will continue to be scrutinized. I have no problem with that. I think I speak for a lot of fans when I say, "All we want is consistency."