From the Frozen Envelope to lopsided trades like the deal that brought Pau Gasol to the Lakers for next to nothing, the NBA has long been accused of tampering with the goods in order to get the most desirable (and profitable) outcome. But thanks to an overabundance of botched calls and phantom whistles during this year’s playoffs, the conspiracy theorists have come out in droves. Besides the Muppet y Muppet, Kobe-LeBron Finals showdown that will never be, and the clutch-shooting, big-cahones fest that was the Boston-Chicago series, the major plot line of the 2009 Playoffs has been the shoddy officiating. Although Orlando’s bullying of the Cavs en route to their second Finals trip defuses a lot of the grumbling, there’s still a dossier full of proof that these playoffs have been the poorest stretch of officiating in any sport in recent memory. Roll the tape…

Exhibit A:
Rondo balled his mind out for the C’s in this year’s playoffs, averaging decimal points shy of a triple-double. But this foul on Brad Miller during the critical moments of Game 5 should’ve have been called a flagrant, which likely would’ve swung the game (and the series) in favor of the Bulls.

Exhibit B:
Quick, what’s one word to describe the refs treatment of LeBron? You guessed it, Jordanesque. Apparently, Cleveland’s version of Scottie Pippen (Mo Williams) also benefits from favorable officiating, through association.

If Rafer Alston threw the rock at LeBron, he would’ve gotten a flagrant 2 and been tossed faster than you can say And 1.

Exhibit C:
With Raja Bell wasting his life away on the Charlotte Bobcats, Denver’s Dahntay Jones has taken over the role as turd in Kobe’s playoff punchbowl. I say good for him; the former D-Leaguer found a niche that’ll keep him in the NBA for a few years (sure as hell ain’t because of his offense). But just like Bell, Jones was habitual-line crosser during the Lakers series, often resorting to dirty tactics after Kobe blew by him.

Both of these fouls should’ve resulted in a tech, and the first one featured on the link-where Jones blatantly trips Kobe during Game 4-should’ve prompted a flagrant 2 and a red card.

Similarly to the blown call at the end of Bulls-Celtics Game 5, the no-call involving Carmelo Anthony and Antoine Wright at the end of Nuggets-Mavericks was a major momentum shifter. Wright clearly fouled Melo when his team, the Mavs, were up by two and had a foul to give. Everybody in the building knew an intentional foul was coming. Instead, the referee Mark Wunderlich-who stood a few feet away from the action-failed to make the call and ended the Mavs season at least one game early.

Two hours after the game, Joel Litvin, NBA president of league and basketball operations issued this statement: “At the end of the Dallas-Denver game this evening, the officials missed an intentional foul committed by Antoine Wright on Carmelo Anthony, just prior to Anthony’s three-point basket.”

Would the Mavs have pulled out that series under any circumstances? Hell. To. The. No. But is being down 2-1 with another game on your home court a much different proposition than facing an insurmountable 3-0 lead? Indeed it is.

Besides the protection bestowed upon King James, the dreadful officiating has been spread fairly evenly. But the fact is, refs shouldn’t be sharing column space with Dwight Howard, J.R. Smith, Delonte West or any players that have had pivotal roles on their teams this postseason. David Stern and the league’s competition committee need to make drastic, visible changes to the way the games are called before their good product can truly be called amazing.