By Mike Baldwin

    Some fans like to accuse referees of having a bias against their team. Savvy sports fans realize it's usually sour grapes. Blaming a loss on an official/umpire/referee is a cop out.

    On the other hand it's understandable why an NBA referee that has had heated exchanges with players over the years would have a hard time giving that player a call that could go either way. But that's what referees are supposed to do. The goal should be to officiate every game the same regardless of who is playing and what's happened in the past.

     Possible referee bias, to me, was the most interesting revelation from Larry Pedowitz's 133-page report on what was supposed to an investigation into whether an NBA referee other Tim Donaghy was involved in illegal gambling activities.

    I'm the last person to blame officials. I tell my 14-year-old son all the time excuses are for losers, winners make plays. I tell him to never blame a loss on an official, umpire or referee.

   But the NBA hiring a statistical computer whiz to research referees' track records with specific teams AND commissioner David Stern hiring a 32-year Army veteran to oversee referees are signs some teams perceive there is a "referee bias" problem in the NBA.