Technical penalties fall like hail and the EuroLeague sighs

We had the postponements due to coronavirus, this double week two groups ended up with the host team coaches in the dressing room! George Bartzokas of Istanbul and Ergin Ataman of Barcelona were sent off with two technical penalties. It’s not the best for the tournament, even if we assume that the two coaches have crossed the line, so they rightfully went to the Ülker Arena and Palau Blaugrana dressing rooms.

But have they surpassed them?

• According to the Fener-Olympiacos match report, Bartzokas said nothing and made no offensive gesture towards the referees. He received the first technical penalty for not going to give instructions and look at the referees, and the second for going to the secretariat’s table.
• For his part, Ataman gave a whole show, initially refusing to leave the ground before walking with his fists raised and clenched, shouting to the Barça crowd “I won the cup”.

However, the two sackings are included in the list of coaches who have received the most technical penalties this year, although Bartzokas had only received a “T” as of Tuesday. In Istanbul he got two collected:

So what happens? Are there coaches marked for the referees to wait for in the corner? Do they all have the same dimensions and weights? Do all referees award penalties equally easily? Is it a game?

Technical punishment has long been a topic of conversation and friction. Other referees made it easy for themselves, for flea jumps, others were more condescending in dealing with the coaches. Coaches often step on the referee’s goal on purpose! It’s a coaching trick, a technical penalty, even to stop the opponents’ pace in case the game goes against everything and there is no other option than the bench…

Moaning from the first minute

Of course, the recommendation to tighten the code of conduct for referees and to punish them with a technical penalty in the event of deviations goes without saying. Yes, there are coaches who whine all the time, most notably Saronas Yassikevitsios, who as a player had the urge to whine about every decision at every stage. Saras doesn’t stop protesting in the coach’s suit, even stunning his players.

It is obvious that the screaming coaches are being labeled by the referees. The referees talk to each other, they know who is causing them and who has no problem asserting themselves on the field. On the other hand, there are referees who go beyond the limits of strictness. Spanish referees have that mentality, with the first and best being Miguel Perez, who sent Bartzokas into the dressing room on Tuesday night.

In order to prevent Andrea Trinkieri from entering the field and protesting, some referees allegedly attacked him on purpose without being able to verify it. Are you saying the Italy coach has had shoulder surgery?

Others, however, have no say in their protests. They yell, tighten their ties, “tell the referees,” but the referees finish off the Chinese, even though their orders are clear not to discriminate. The glamor of each team always plays a role, their perspective in the organization, the character of the coaches, the way they protest.

Some coaches are also playing on referee staying power now that we’re in the regular season. Yes, all games are important, but not like the playoffs, and especially the last four, which are the aspirations of the top referees. Records are tricky, refs know them better as teams (informally) have a reason in ref designating the top date and a game, whatever it is, is made from there.

On the other hand: even if Perez or Javor, who dismissed Bartzoka and Ataman, could not withstand the “challenges” of the coaches, the image of finishing two games without the coaches of the host team does not contribute to the team’s image at Euroleague. The referee must primarily apply the rules, but he must know when to act “diplomatically” for the economy of the game.

We would add that excessive power in the hands of certain referees is also detrimental to the Euroleague. If you look closely at each week’s definitions, you can see that the 18 required for the positions of the first two umpires are the same. The third referee simply changes, mostly to have … variety.