We kick things off by finding out why Donaghy decided to write his book, rather than merely fade into obscurity. For the folks unfamiliar with Tim Donaghty, we then go over a thumbnail of his story from the last five years or so. We find out how the NBA actually investigated his gambling habits years the story broke, but let him off with no serious reprimand.

Next we tackle the issue of fixing games v. what Donaghy says he did, which is use inside information to make informed picks and he details what constituted the inside information. Along those lines, we talk about how the refs' opinions on who will win the night's game often turn into self fulfilling prophecies. Additionally, we talk about the culture of the NBA where the superstar players seem to get favorable calls from the referees. We then extend this line of thinking to the major cities which host NBA teams and, he says, also get favorable calls. We also find out if this culture of bias was openly discussed amongst referees and league officials or if it was more of an unspoken way of life.

Covering some of the people discussed in the book, we talk about Dick Bavetta, one of Donaghy's fellow referees, who he uses as an example of the culture of bias. We also tackle the issue of Donaghy "naming names" in his book. We then talk about what is perhaps the most cited controversial game: the LA Lakers v. Sacramento Kings of the 2002 Western Conference Finals and Donaghy talks about what he thinks went down there. Donaghy also talks about how certain biases against players, owners, and teams end up accumulating as a referee's career extends.

Talking about some of Donaghy's personal experiences, we discuss some of his good relationship with players that developed over the years. We then talk about Donaghy's after-game parking lot run-in with Rasheed Wallace in 20xx. Donaghy then tells us what the interaction is like between the players and the referees during games. This leads to some discussion on the nature of some coaches, like George Karl and Jerry Sloan, and how they 'work' the referees during the games. Donaghey also addresses "make up calls" and talks about they are fairly commonplace, despite the NBA's claim to the contrary.

We look at how the NBA differs from other sports as far as how rule enforcement takes place. Donaghy also talks about how the NBA monitors the coverage of national TV games and will send messages to the announcers if they don't like the direction of the discussion. We find out about the structure of oversight with the referees and how involved David Stern is in all of it. We then trace back and find out when Donaghy thinks this culture of bias in the NBA first developed. Donaghy tells us about some of the "games within the game" that the referees would play amongst themselves.

Turning a rhetorical question from Donaghy's book around on him, we get his opinion on whether favoring teams constitutes cheating. Donaghy also reflects on how, due to his scandal, the spotlight is now on referees more than ever. Looking at another of Donaghy's former colleagues, we find out about Joey Crawford and his particularly predictable style of refereeing.

Donaghy talks about the infamous "Malice at the Palace" game in Detroit on November 19th, 2004, in which he was a referee for the game. We go on to find out if he has heard from anyone in the NBA after he wrote his book and how the NBA refereeing system seems to have a culture of "failing upwards." Tackling another loose end from the story, we talk about what became of some of his fellow gamblers that he bet with in the book. We also have Donaghy extrapolate on his recommendation that Mark Cuban would be a good NBA Commissioner.

Getting Donaghy's opinion on some of the other famous NBA conspiracy theories, we find out if the Michael Jordan suspension/baseball conspiracy theory was discussed by the other referees and what Donaghy thinks of it. We also cover the Knicks 1985 draft lottery conspiracy. We also have Donaghy weigh in on this year's NBA Finals.

We then look at some of the superstars that Donaghy worked alongside and start with Shaquille O'Neil. Donaghy also shares a hilarious story about Charles Barkley. We find out about Kobe Bryant's style of interaction with the referees. We also find out about LeBron James, how he dealt with refs, and what Donaghy thinks of LeBron's move from Cleveland to Miami. We also have him speculate on how the Miami Heat may be taking advantage of the star treatment culture of the NBA. Talking about another NBA personality discussed in the book, we get Donaghy's take on LA Lakers coach Phil Jackson. We also have Donaghy share another story from the book where there was some inside information that got out into the press but got covered up by the NBA.

Digging into some of the finer details of his book, we talk about how the FBI did find some other suspect individuals inside the NBA, but chose not to pursue them and we get Donaghy opinion on why that happened. We also cover the backstory on how the NBA ended up with female referees. This leads to some discussion on why the NBA has a hard time bringing college referees into the professional game.

Heading towards the close, we find out what made Donaghy decide to "play ball" with the FBI as he found out they were investigating him. He also get his reaction to the media circus that exploded when his story broke. Donaghy shares the difficult tale of telling his father about the scandal right before the news broke. We also revisit the attack on Donaghy in prison and find out what might have motivated that.

Wrapping things up, we get Donaghy's opinion on what needs to be done in the NBA to make sure that the game is held on a level playing field. We also find out about the efforts by the NBA to squash Donaghy's book and what sort of restitution Donaghy owes to the NBA as a result of his crimes. We get Donaghy's opinion on the idea that the referees should be a wholly independent organization apart from the NBA oversight. This leads to some discussion on how the referees disregarded some rules because they felt it hurt the flow of the game. We find out what sort of things people should look for as far as signs that the "game within the game" is being played and Donaghy's take on instant replay being used in the NBA. Closing out the conversation, we find out what's been going on with Tim Donaghy since he got out of jail and wrote his book and what's next for him.

Tim Donaghy is a former professional basketball referee who worked in the NBA for 13 seasons, from 1994 to 2007. During his career in the NBA, Donaghy officiated in 772 regular season games and 20 playoff games. Donaghy resigned from the league on July 9, 2007 before reports of an investigation by the FBI for allegations that he bet on games that he officiated during his last two seasons and that he made calls affecting the point spread in those games. On August 15, 2007, Donaghy plead guilty to two federal charges related to the investigation. However, he could face more charges at the state level if it is determined that he deliberately miscalled individual games. Donaghy was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison on July 29, 2008. Ultimately, he served over a year in federal prison for his crimes.

In December of 2009, he wrote the book Personal Foul: A First-Person Account of the Scandal That Rocked the NBA.

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1 Hr 40 Min
8.14.10
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Tim Donaghy