Donaghy Spills Beans On Fixed NBA Games

The letter alleging referees altered games mentions only the year 2005, but the circumstances make it apparent that it is referring to the Rockets-Mavs series.

"Team 3 lost the first two games in the series and Team 3's owner complained to NBA officials," the letter says. "Team 3's owner alleged that referees were letting a Team 4 player get away with illegal screens. NBA Executive Y told Referee Supervisor Z that the referees for that game were to enforce the screening rules strictly against that Team 4 player. Referee Supervisor Z informed the referees about his instructions. As an alternate referee for that game, Tim also received these instructions."
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The letter also details an incident in the 2002 playoffs in which Donaghy alleges that two referees, who were known as NBA "company men," wanted to extend a series to seven games. "Team 5" could have wrapped up the series in Game 6 but saw two players foul out, lost the game and ultimately the series.

Only one series went to seven games in the 2002 playoffs: Los Angeles Lakers against Sacramento Kings.

In Game 6, the Lakers made 34-of-40 free throws to 18-of-25 for the Kings. In the fourth quarter alone, Los Angeles hit 21-of-27 from the line while Sacramento made 7-of-9. After that game, a 106-102 Lakers win, Kings coach Rick Adelman expressed his frustration with the officiating.

"Our big guys get 20 fouls tonight and [Shaquille O'Neal] gets four? You tell me how the game went," Adelman said. "It's just the way it is. Obviously, they got the game called the way they wanted to get it called."

Donaghy also alleges that team executives conspired with the league to prevent star players from being called for too many fouls or being ejected. He claimed that league officials told referees that doing so would "hurt ticket sales and television ratings."

According to the letter, when an official did eject a star player in the first quarter of a game in 2000, he was privately reprimanded.