Doobie Doo
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Amazing how you can be an a$$hole and still be portrayed as a victim 
Joey Crawford: David Stern ordered me to get therapy after ejecting Tim Duncan for laughing
Dan Devine
Yahoo SportsAug 23, 2018, 5:05 PM
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Back in 2007, the incident that led to Joey Crawford’s indefinite suspension seemed like the low point of his career. Now, he credits the moment with saving it. (Getty)
The Duncan incident was in 2007. Duncan was sitting on the bench laughing. And I threw him. That laugh bothered me. I thought it was incredibly disrespectful. But I knew the minute it happened I was gonna be in trouble.
[The suspension] was a big deal. It really shook me. That’s when I realized, ‘I gotta do something about this.’ I had to talk to a professional to help me deal with all the anger.
Stern suspended me for the rest of the season. I thought there was a good chance my career might be over. Stern orders me to go see a Park Avenue psychiatrist. He tells me to go twice — two hours each session. This guy is going to make a determination on whether I’m crazy or not. I go up, and I’m scared to death. I’ve already been fined $100,000. I’m in a suit, and I’ve got sweat all the way down to my belt. So, this psychiatrist didn’t know a basketball from a volleyball. After two hours, he says, ‘OK, we’re all done.’ I said, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! I’m supposed to come another day for another couple of hours. Have you already decided I’m crazy?’ He said, ‘You’re not nuts.’ I said, ‘Well, what am I? What’s my problem?’ He said, ‘You’re overly passionate about your job.’ I thought, ‘OK, I can live with that diagnosis!’
View photos
Tim Duncan looks toward the court after being ejected by referee Joey Crawford as he sat on the bench during the second half of a Spurs-Mavericks game on April 15, 2007. (AP)
He would tell me, ‘Joe, if you feel [the anger] coming on, just do something with your hands. Put them by your side or behind your back.’ He told me, ‘Keep reminding yourself, calm down, calm down. If somebody was getting on me about a bad call, he’d remind me, ‘Slow your breathing down. Remind yourself you’re a good ref.’ Those things helped me get through my last 10 years in the NBA.
can find them with some help, some hard work … and, sometimes, a didn’t-know-you-needed-it-until-you-got-it push from someone else." data-reactid="69" style="margin-bottom: 1em;">“Those things” aren’t always easy to find, especially if you’ve already built up a lifetime of bad habits and worse responses to them. But Crawford’s story offers a reminder that even the most hard-boiled and leather-lunged sort can find them with some help, some hard work … and, sometimes, a didn’t-know-you-needed-it-until-you-got-it push from someone else.
On one hand, it’s kind of a shame that the Duncan incident is the first thing many people will always think about when Crawford’s name comes up. On the other, though, if it led Stern to prompt him to seek the help that allowed him to begin dealing with his anger issues, extended his career and improved his overall quality of life … well, maybe that’s not such a shame, after all.
Yahoo is now part of Oath

Joey Crawford: David Stern ordered me to get therapy after ejecting Tim Duncan for laughing

Dan Devine
Yahoo SportsAug 23, 2018, 5:05 PM
View photos
Back in 2007, the incident that led to Joey Crawford’s indefinite suspension seemed like the low point of his career. Now, he credits the moment with saving it. (Getty)
The Duncan incident was in 2007. Duncan was sitting on the bench laughing. And I threw him. That laugh bothered me. I thought it was incredibly disrespectful. But I knew the minute it happened I was gonna be in trouble.
[The suspension] was a big deal. It really shook me. That’s when I realized, ‘I gotta do something about this.’ I had to talk to a professional to help me deal with all the anger.
Stern suspended me for the rest of the season. I thought there was a good chance my career might be over. Stern orders me to go see a Park Avenue psychiatrist. He tells me to go twice — two hours each session. This guy is going to make a determination on whether I’m crazy or not. I go up, and I’m scared to death. I’ve already been fined $100,000. I’m in a suit, and I’ve got sweat all the way down to my belt. So, this psychiatrist didn’t know a basketball from a volleyball. After two hours, he says, ‘OK, we’re all done.’ I said, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! I’m supposed to come another day for another couple of hours. Have you already decided I’m crazy?’ He said, ‘You’re not nuts.’ I said, ‘Well, what am I? What’s my problem?’ He said, ‘You’re overly passionate about your job.’ I thought, ‘OK, I can live with that diagnosis!’
View photos
Tim Duncan looks toward the court after being ejected by referee Joey Crawford as he sat on the bench during the second half of a Spurs-Mavericks game on April 15, 2007. (AP)
He would tell me, ‘Joe, if you feel [the anger] coming on, just do something with your hands. Put them by your side or behind your back.’ He told me, ‘Keep reminding yourself, calm down, calm down. If somebody was getting on me about a bad call, he’d remind me, ‘Slow your breathing down. Remind yourself you’re a good ref.’ Those things helped me get through my last 10 years in the NBA.
can find them with some help, some hard work … and, sometimes, a didn’t-know-you-needed-it-until-you-got-it push from someone else." data-reactid="69" style="margin-bottom: 1em;">“Those things” aren’t always easy to find, especially if you’ve already built up a lifetime of bad habits and worse responses to them. But Crawford’s story offers a reminder that even the most hard-boiled and leather-lunged sort can find them with some help, some hard work … and, sometimes, a didn’t-know-you-needed-it-until-you-got-it push from someone else.
On one hand, it’s kind of a shame that the Duncan incident is the first thing many people will always think about when Crawford’s name comes up. On the other, though, if it led Stern to prompt him to seek the help that allowed him to begin dealing with his anger issues, extended his career and improved his overall quality of life … well, maybe that’s not such a shame, after all.
Yahoo is now part of Oath