NBA Names Gen. Ronald Johnson Senior VP/Referee Operations

NBA Names Johnson Senior VP/Referee Operations

FIT TO SERVE: Mavericks Owner MARK CUBAN, a "frequent critic of the league's officiating, is glad to have Johnson in charge." Cuban: "I'm thrilled. I think it's the perfect hire. ... He has experience managing professionals in high stress situations" (AP, 7/1). AOL.com's Matt Watson wrote the NBA is "clearly hoping that the creation of a new office will convince everyone that officiating decisions are not being made by the same people whose job it is to ensure the game stays competitive and marketable." Johnson "admittedly has no basketball experience outside of being a fan, but no one can deny that someone with his resume has the ability to train, manage and lead large groups of people in mission critical projects" (AOL.com, 7/1). Denver Post columnist Woody Paige said of the hiring, “I salute it. I think it’s great. We’re talking about a West Point graduate that served in Bosnia and Iraq. He knows discipline. He knows leadership. He knows the Army way.” Dallas Morning News columnist Tim Cowlishaw: "It is a good idea to have a guy with no affiliation to any teams, no ties to any refs” (“Around The Horn,” ESPN, 7/1). ESPN The Magazine’s Chris Broussard: “This is a step in the right direction because it separates the basketball operations and the officiating. ... It’s not total independence because it’s still under the jurisdiction of the NBA, but it’s more independence than it was before." Broussard added people around the NBA "recognize ... that this gives at least the perception that the NBA is doing something significant” (“SportsCenter,” ESPN, 7/1). 

SOLVING THE PROBLEM? ESPN's Kevin Blackistone said, "We don’t need an invasion of the NBA by the military to make the calls right. … If (Stern) wants to get a general in there, get one that knows something about basketball” (“Around The Horn,” ESPN, 7/1). Chicago Sun-Times columnist Jay Mariotti: “I’m supposed to be impressed by a retired two-star general who says he doesn’t know much about basketball. He’s a fan. … I’d be more impressed if it were a former FBI guy" ("PTI," ESPN, 7/1). In Portland, John Canzano writes the NBA "solved exactly one-half of its problem Tuesday by acknowledging a credibility issue." But the league "didn't address the core issue: rank, and whether the man charged with cleaning up the league's officiating ... will answer" to NBA Commissioner DAVID STERN or "be allowed to act independently." As long as the "NBA -- read, Stern himself -- is still in charge of its officials, what's really changed?" The NBA "should be applauded for acknowledging that it has a problem. ... But until we learn whether [Johnson] will have total control, ... we can't say for sure that the NBA solved anything" (Portland OREGONIAN, 7/2).

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