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Allegations that referees subjectively called or didn't call fouls to extend playoff series casts a shadow on classic NBA playoff matchups, like the one between Kobe Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers and Mike Bibby's Sacramento Kings in 2002.

I don't believe that you should dismiss Donaghy's allegations simply because he is a "convicted felon" any more than I believe a certain pro sports commissioner should destroy physical evidence and then just tell us, "Oh, that? Nothing worth seeing." Both David Stern and his NFL counterpart, Roger Goodell, have come across as more concerned with muffling the controversies than they have with determining the truth.

Stern's "convicted felon" line was patronizing, but no more so than Goodell's decision to destroy the Spygate tapes as if they were taking up room in his cubby hole.

Were there horrible calls in that contest between the Lakers and Kings, when the visitors from Sacramento were whistled for 27 fourth-quarter fouls? Of course there were, but then NBA officials did not call a charge against Shaquille O'Neal until 2005.

Is it possible that certain refs were on the take? Or that the NBA mandated such an outcome? Possible? Yes, but then after I saw Will Smith hoist that blue whale 200 yards out to sea, I believe anything is possible.

However, is there any physical evidence out there, any corroboration, to what Donaghy alleges, offering irrefutable proof? Or even guilt beyond a reasonable doubt? A study of this year's NBA playoffs, undertaken by yours truly, revealed that in more than 70 percent of the games the home team was whistled for fewer fouls than the visitor. More than 70 percent. That is no Obama-Clinton disparity. That's Obama-Kucinich, at least.

What does that tell you? Referees are human. Again, that 70 percent number points not to the team that is more popular, or favored, but to the home team.

For me, NBA refs call fouls in tight games the way kids answer questions on a Ouija board. They may think they are being objective, but their subconscious often creeps into their decision-making capability. Recall, for example, Kobe Bryant's reach-in steal against Paul Pierce in the crucial moments of Game 5 of the NBA Finals. No foul was called against the league MVP, the Lakers made the steal, and Bryant converted it to a breakaway dunk.

If Sasha Vujacic makes that same play, a foul is called. You know it, Doc Rivers knows it, and Phil "Let me pick my beard some more as my team falls behind by 35 points" Jackson knows it. Joey Crawford may be the only one who does not know it.

The NBA referee situation is fraught with problems, chief among them the hiring process (when three of the 62 referees attended the same high school, you have to wonder about meritocracy issues). Also, there's no reason we need to see the same faces over and over again in the conference finals and Finals. Seniority has no role in those venues -- a first-year ref could have blown the non-call on Brent Barry's 3-pointer just as well as Joey Crawford did.

Did the Sacramento Kings get jobbed in Game 6 in 2002? You bet. Was it due to a conspiracy hatched from the highest level or simply referees intimidated by their surroundings, by Shaquille O'Neal's star power, or Jack Nicholson's?

At this point, we do not know. Stern owes it to fans to investigate further, but that opens up this question: If Stern is investigating, what exactly is he looking for? If the mandate to manipulate did not come from the commish, then who ordered the referees to fix Game 6? And if Tim Donaghy cannot provide that name, who can?

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