Kevin Garnett's Foul

You know me . . . I couldn't care less about basketball, and especially NBA basketball.  The only exception being the NCAA Tournament and following Gonzaga.  And the only reason I even know what's going on is because it tends to be the lead story this time of year (especially since hockey gets slighted, but that's another topic).

On ESPN this morning I was following the recent ranting about the foul called on Kevin Garnett,.  With something like 6 seconds left in the game, KG got called for a moving screen -- sliding into an opposing player, making contact, and keeping him from guarding KG's teammate.

Was it flagrant?  No. 

Was it obvious?  Yes.

But all the talking heads were screaming that the official shouldn't have made that call at that point in the game.  The number one reason given was that, "The players should decide the game, not the officials."

Okay, fine.  But in this case, the player did decide the game:  KG decided to foul.

Apparently "letting the players decide the game" means, "Let the players do whatever they want."

Um . . . no.  Players can choose to play legally or illegally.  And I can guarantee you that had the covering official let the play go, and the shot was made that probably would've allowed the Celtics to win, all of the coaches, players and fans of the 76ers would have been screaming about the "special treatment" given to KG because of his superstar status.

The official made the right call, at the right time, and he's being vilified by a bunch of people who don't have the guts to put on a referee's uniform and call a game.