One of the most important qualities a sports referee needs is complete neutrality. Personal feelings — whether you like or dislike a team or player — should never influence decisions during a game. Just as importantly, these feelings should stay private. Even the impression of bias can harm trust in fair play.
However, this principle was reportedly tested early in the 2001–02 NBA season. Around a year later, Hall of Fame coach Pat Riley claimed that, back then, longtime referee Steve Javie had made a remark about the Miami Heat that raised doubts about his neutrality.
Riley vs. Javie
At that time, the Heat‘s season had gotten off to a terrible start, with a disappointing 2–14 record and a 12-game losing streak just one month in. But for Riley, a three-time Coach of the Year, that wasn’t the only problem.
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Off the court, another issue was building up involving referee Javie. Reports say tensions between the two came to a head after a game in Cleveland during that rough stretch. Looking at Miami’s schedule, it was probably their overtime loss against the Cavaliers in late November 2001.
What was said between them only became clear much later, namely after another Heat loss — this time against the New York Knicks in December 2002.
After that game, “The Godfather” — who was later fined $50,000 — claimed that NBA referees had disliked him for years. To support his point, the New York native named Javie, saying he allowed this bias to affect his decision-making and shared details of their confrontation in “The Land.”
“It all started, I think, last year,” said “Riles,” per ESPN. “I think I sort of sensed something changing last year when Steve Javie, in Cleveland — and to his delight, obviously, absolute delight, as we were getting beat, and going through a real tough time — came to my face, after we were having a discussion, and said, ‘It’s giving us absolute delight to watch you and your team die.'”
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“Riles” had even more arguments with officials
The incident mentioned above was clearly not handled the way you’d expect from a referee. The league, led at the time by the late David Stern, saw it the same way and decided to hand out a penalty, though it wasn’t as severe as some might have thought.
Back then, NBA Vice President of Operations Stu Jackson didn’t comment, sticking to the league’s rule of keeping referee matters private. Still, not long after, the league fined Javie $1,000 for his part in the altercation with Riley.
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As for “The Godfather,” he wasn’t done clashing with referees. Just before the 2003 NBA All-Star break, during a February game between the Heat and the Portland Trail Blazers, he got into another argument — this time with referee Derrick Stafford. The exchange was heated, and Stafford apparently told him, “It’s not about you. Go on TV and cry about it.”
Riles, clearly upset, didn’t hold back in front of the media after the game. He strongly criticized the referees, accusing them of bad calls and bias. The response was quick: Riley was fined $20,000 for his public criticism, while Stafford was suspended for two games for his part in the incident.