The Final Whistle: Donaghy Pleads Guilty

As we all expected, Tim Donaghy has taken the fall for his actions. Citing that he has been seeing a psychiatrist for his gambling addiction while also being on several medications, Donaghy told of the dark side of betting he was involved with the mob.

Donaghy had unparalleled access to the games themselves, the types of things bookies drool over--he knew of the officiating teams for the games and their tendencies, he knew of which players got along better with the officials, he knew of the real physical issues that surrounded certain players. He would tell these things to his "cohorts" and then if the games were correct, he'd get paid 5,000 for each game.

He faces 25 years in prison, 500K in fines, and 30K in restitution. The real scary issue is that Donaghy was amongst the elite in terms of referees--respected and in the "top" of all zebras. If he was there and we see what has come of this, what's to say of those that aren't so "regarded"? One thing is for sure--he has tainted the game and it will take a long time for David Stern to rebuild faith in the fans. It's hard telling how long it will be until the outcries from fans over questionable calls don't come raining down with accusations of what Donaghy tarnished the league by his own accounts. Sad, just sad....

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The Final Whistle: Donaghy Pleads Guilty

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