Phil Jackson wants to complain about calls?
Published: April 15, 2010 by Jenni Carlson
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Phil Jackson suggesting that Kevin Durant gets to the free-throw line because of preferential treatment by NBA referees is like Lindsay Lohan complaining that Paris Hilton got off easy with authorities.
Those starlets, you’ll recall, have been in trouble with the law but only served a smidgen of their sentences. They got off easy.
So do Jackson and his Lakers.
Listen, Los Angeles is a fantastic team. Oklahoma City is going to see just how good when the Thunder and Lakers open their playoff series this weekend. The Lakers are talented, disciplined and skilled. They are the defending NBA champs. They are likely to win the whole thing again.
But for Jackson to say what he said earlier this week about Durant, it’s laughable. No team gets as many 50-50 calls as the Lakers. If it’s close, it’s going their way. If it’s questionable, it’s going their way.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that. Great teams build up that kind of respect, and whether officials do it consciously or unconsciously, they give the edge to those storied franchises.
Does Durant get some 50-50 calls to go his way? Sure. Like those great teams, great players develop that respect with the officials.
by Jenni Carlson
Columnist
Jenni Carlson, a sports columnist at The Oklahoman since 1999, came by her love of sports honestly. She grew up in a sports-loving family in Kansas. Her dad coached baseball and did color commentary on the radio for the high school football...
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