Originally posted on 05/27/2014:

One of the problems with people who espouse the "pro sports is rigged" theory is that nobody can really seem to agree on how or why it's rigged. Everyone is all over the place. Nobody has really expressed a clear, concise postulation as to the actual mechanics of rigging a game, how often it occurs, and who is the beneficiary of such a bold, risky endeavor. Basically you guys hold a bunch of different theories within a broader theory. How do you expect to sell that as truth? Your case is a mess. You guys need a head coach to crystallize whatever it is you believe.

Some of you claim that it's rigged for Vegas, to fleece the betting public when the action becomes too lopsided. But that doesn't account for all the times that Vegas bites the big one when the public team cashes, and if you don't believe that it's relatively balanced, then you're not viewing things with an objective eye. I know someone who swears by fading the public and he's still waiting for this infallible get-rich-quick scheme to produce the amazing results he had in mind. He's just another gambler who foolishly thought he'd cracked the code.

Some of you claim it's rigged to produce the best storylines to garner viewer interest and maximize television revenue. "Stretch the series out for more money" they say, or manufacture a compelling plot. But again, if you take an objective view to the games you'll see that the results don't support the claim.

For instance, in last year's playoffs, there were 15 series played (from the 1st round to the Finals). Of those 15 series, only three went the distance (seven games). That's it? They have the advantage of scripting events to their liking, but only three series go seven? By comparison, the exact same number of series (three) resulted in sweeps, including a ho-hum 4-0 dismantling of Memphis by San Antonio in the Western Conference Finals.

Look at the NBA Finals just two years ago when you had Miami and Oklahoma City. Arguably the two best basketball players on the planet (James and Durant) took center stage in what figured to be an epic battle. It was the public darling versus the public enemy who vowed to "take his talents to South Beach." Sounds like a recipe for a dramatic seven game series right? WRONG... Apparently the players/officials/whoever didn't get the memo and the Miami Heat ended it in five.

And nobody really bothered to address my earlier post in this thread about how the LA Clippers winning it all would have been the ultimate win for the NBA. If it's all about plots, ratings, and major markets, why in the hell were they sent home early? How often is the NBA going to get an opportunity to cash in on a storyline like Sterling and the Clippers? Realistically? Probably never. Too good to pass up and yet, it was passed up.

So is it about storylines or public action? It certainly can't be both. Too often one would contradict the other. Who decides? Maybe they trade off? Vegas gets Mon-Wed-Fri and NBA gets Sun-Tue-Thu-Sat? I've already pointed out examples of series failing to reach their max-game potential, and thus leaving all kinds of money on the table. I've pointed out compelling storylines that never got off the ground. I could probably fill several pages of examples of big public teams (70% or more) cashing. What more do you want?

Then you have the issue of who's all involved in the conspiracy. Is it just the officials? Or are players taking the dive too? "timc021" seems to think that Duncan and Parker were lobbing up softballs the other night just so Ibaka could swat them and fulfill some storyline. To say the officials can tilt the balance of a game is one thing, but to imply that players are going full "WWE" and faking the action on the court is just beyond stupid... Seriously, there are fewer things in life I've heard that are more ridiculous than that.

What you're telling me to believe is that millionaire basketball players who've shed blood, sweat, and tears their whole lives to get to this point, are just going swallow their massive egos and risk their legacies, just because they get a note in their locker before the game that says... "I need you to not play as well as you can tonight. Maybe you get in the lane and let Ibaka embarrass you this game. That's what I need, ok pal?" ....Fvkkin obscene.

There's also the issue of frequency. How often are games rigged? Every night? Only big games? Only televised primetime games? Who the fvkk knows? Nobody in here can agree on it. If you read the posts around SBR, a game is rigged every time some mofo in here loses a bet. The bottom line is this, even if games are rigged, unless you're in with a very elite circle in sports, you have no idea which games are rigged, or for what particular bet the rigging favors (i.e. spread, total, 1H, prop, storyline). That being said, it renders the whole notion moot as far as you (the outsider looking in) are concerned right? So what's all the constant fussing about if you can't even reasonably expect to capitalize on a game that may or may not be fixed?