This brown guy isn't a conspiracy theorist. Logically speaking, I think there's way too many people involved and too much money riding on this system for it to be corrupt.
The NBA is considered one of the premiere sports leagues in the world from an executive and athletic standpoint. Players and coaches build their whole lives and careers around it. Maybe the prospect of millions of dollars in salary may sway a small handful of players, coaches, or refs to stay quiet buy into a corrupt system, but not 1000s of athletes over the years. Not in front of an international stage. Not in the day of the athlete-slash-businessman where credibility and integrity extends beyond the basketball court.
This being said, I can understand how "rigging" can be perceived. A few bad calls, a lop-sided trade, maybe the release of a prominent executive from a team's front office - these things happen and surely fuel suspicions of conspiracy. Sure, it's become apparent over the last few weeks that the refs have NO IDEA what a flagrant foul is, but I don't think it's a matter of corruption. The definitions of flagrant fouls in the NBA's rule book are ambiguous and insufficient, and because of that the refs are open to interpret it as they see fit. The NBA has recognized that, and whether they have to rewrite the rule book or take all the refs back to school, something WILL be done about it at the end of the season.
If the NBA was rigged, the league would have toppled years ago.
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