Retiring ref Joey Crawford says Philly roots served him well in the NBA

THEY SAY that a referee is happiest when he can call a game and get out of the gym without anyone recognizing him.

That never really was the case with Joey Crawford. He often drew attention to himself, whether it was because of the two technical fouls he called on Tim Duncan in 2007 for laughing on the bench, or the time he sprinted from the baseline to the foul line to strip the ball from Kevin Durant just before a foul shot to get something straight at the scorer's table. It didn't help matters that it was Game 5 of a 2014 first-round playoff matchup between Oklahoma City and Memphis.

But there were only two reasons Crawford would ever really want attention thrust upon him. One was to protect his fellow referees and the other was to do whatever he needed to guard the integrity of the game.

Because of a right knee that has been shredded because of 39 years of running up and down NBA courts, the 64-year-old Crawford is headed to retirement. His 2,561 regular-season games is second only to Dick Bavetta's 2,635. He was one of the first of many referees from the Philly area to make it into the NBA, and became a mentor to many more from around here and all over the country.

"I'd be willing to say that half, or more, of all the technical fouls that Joey called were to protect his crewmates," said Philly native Steve Javie, an NBA referee for 25 years who retired in 2011. "If Joey thought a player or coach was being too hard on a younger ref, he would say something. He wanted the heat to come down on him rather than a young ref. That's why he's so beloved by all the referees."

Javie went on to tell a story about when the two of them had a game in Utah during Javie's second season.

"Utah fans are crazy, first off, so they ride the refs for the whole game," Javie said. "I had a play that I called which resulted in a couple of technical fouls. Then I had to give (Utah coach) Frank Layden one for arguing. As I'm making my way to the scorer's table to sort it all out, I hear Joey's whistle going and going and going. He comes over and tells everyone he's called a technical on Jimmy Les.

"Jimmy Les, along with Mark Price, were the two nicest guys in the league. We go into the locker room at halftime and I asked Joey why he called the tech on Les. He said, 'Because I wanted to get the attention off you and on me.' He saw a young ref getting killed by the fans and players and coaches and he went into protection mode. That is who Joey is."

Crawford was honored at the 76ers' game on Sunday, surrounded by NBA front-office types, current and former referees and many family and friends. He got a standing ovation from a group of about 50 at a local restaurant after the game. This was the kind of attention Crawford preferred, as opposed to being the story of a basketball game.

"Being from Philly has meant a lot," said Crawford, a Cardinal O'Hara grad. "It's just ingrained. There's that, 'I'm not backing down,' thing and then you get a little macho. I just think that it, especially when you're younger, it's the macho thing. When you age, you find out that that's not the answer. It's about refereeing the game, getting things right. These players and coaches are going to be here a long time so you have to figure out how to deal with them without aggression.

"I don't look back on that (controversial) stuff with a lot of fondness. I made my name that way, but I don't look back on it with fondness. I think there was a better way of doing it. I found that way. I was better my last 10 years in the league. When I look back on some of the stuff and some of the stuff I said, I wasn't real crazy about some of the stuff that I did. I respected the players and coaches immensely. That's a tough thing these guys do and I know how hard it is for those kids and those coaches. I respected all those guys. It was competition. If I hit somebody with a 'T' or ejected them, it was just competition, it wasn't anything personal. I saw Gary Payton two years ago. He was a very difficult guy to ref. He came up and gave me a big hug. I thought he was going to punch me in my face. It's all just about competition."

Crawford will now work with the NBA's referee management staff, a position that will allow him to continue his mentoring role.

"I remember I was reffing a league for college kids at Bailey Park in Havertown," recalled Mark Wunderlich, a former NBA ref who now is the director of referee performance and development for the NBA. "I had made some calls and guys wanted to fight me after a game. I told them they'd have to wait, because I was doing a doubleheader that night. As I turned around, there was Joey. He asked me if I wanted to talk. I asked him if he wanted to fight me, too. He said he'd been sitting in his house all summer and watching me. He said he had just called his boss and he wanted me to go to LA for an NBA tryout. I was 26 at the time and it just blew me away.

"I remember taking a tape of my work to him after a CBA camp. I was so excited, like showing someone the birth of your child or something. Joey just watched for a while without saying a word. Finally, he pointed out that all 10 heads of the players always looked at me when I called a foul. " 'Is that a bad thing?' I asked. He said, 'It ain't a good thing.' He was great that way. He didn't tell you what you wanted to hear, he told you exactly what you did wrong. And he had a way of doing it that would make you mad for about 10 minutes, but then made you realize how right he was."

Crawford, who oversaw 50 NBA Finals games, second most in league history, says he's not bitter about how he was forced to leave the profession he loves, and immediately goes to telling stories when there is a lull in the conversation.

"In the old days we weren't taught," he said. "I had to work the way Richie Powers worked. I had to work the way Earl Strom worked. Now there's a system and they teach the system and the guys are way ahead of the game. I didn't know what to do. Now there's a system that you have to adhere to and it makes it easier on everyone involved."

Which is exactly what Joey Crawford did for his fellow referees when he worked a game with them.

@BobCooney76

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