In 2020, NBA referees James Williams and Kane Fitzgerald set out to change the game for sports officials. Their brainchild? RefMasters—a social and educational app focused on rules-based training. Now, as the platform gains traction, even the NBA has taken notice, according to The Athletic’s Shakeia Taylor. By fall 2022, RefMasters rolled out its beta version, introducing tools like RuleIQ, RefExec, and RefMasters University. And now as the Warriors take on the Bucks, they have an perfect example to include to train new refs.
A late technical foul involving Jonathan Kuminga sparked a heated discussion among NBA broadcasters. The play in question unfolded as Kuminga navigated through the defense, allowing his teammate to move ahead while surveying his options. With Buddy Hield positioned in front of him, Kuminga saw an opening and made his move toward the basket. However, Taurean Prince appeared to pull him, leading to a foul call by referee Mark Lindsay.
Following the call Prince’s reaction immediately led to a technical foul, giving the Warriors an extra free throw. While discussing the initial foul, the broadcasters acknowledged that there was a legitimate reason for the call. “Did the contact create an advantage? If Kuminga lays it in, no, it was incidental or marginal contact. If the layup doesn’t go, that pull created a defensive advantage—that is a foul.” They emphasized that this is part of the art of officiating, where referees must judge whether the contact truly affects the outcome of a play.
However, the conversation took a turn when the topic of younger officials came up. “Mark Lindsay’s been doing this for 18 years,” the broadcast crew pointed out. “It’s young officials that want to blow the whistle all the time, and all the contact makes the game terrible, right?”
Their frustration highlighted a growing concern around the NBA—referees calling fouls too frequently, disrupting the natural flow of the game. While officiating requires balancing fairness with letting the players play, quick-trigger technical fouls and unnecessary whistles have become a major talking point among fans, players, and broadcasters alike.
This is a developing story…
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