NBA Roundup

Tim Donaghy, former NBA referee, pleads guilty to felony charges
   by Angela Edwards

Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy pleaded guilty to two felony charges Wednesday for betting on the league's basketball games during his time working as an official. The charges came about during an investigation of the Gambino crime family in Brooklyn, New York. Donaghy, who had been making bets on the NBA games didn't hesitate to wager on the games he worked.

The FBI first contacted the NBA on June 20 to discuss one of the referees who had allegedly been gambling on the games. Donaghy resigned July 9 after 13 years as an NBA official. NBA commissioner David Stern said he would have fired Donaghy sooner, but was told that might affect the investigation. Stern also said that the NBA would "continue with our ongoing and thorough review of the league's officiating program to ensure that the best possible policies and procedures are in place to protect the integrity of our game."

Donaghy would speak in code during telephone conversations to tip off high stakes gamblers with information on the inside and gave them recommendations on which teams would be profitable bets. When Donaghy's picks hit, he was paid $5,000.

"By having this nonpublic information, I was in a unique position to predict the outcome of NBA games," Donaghy said to the judge in the Brooklyn courtroom on Wednesday. Donaghy was released on $250,000 bond. He faces a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison when he is sentenced November 9 for conspiracy to engage in wire fraud and transmitting betting information through interstate commerce. He also will be required to pay a $500,000 fine and at least $30,000 in restitution to the government.

According to court papers, Donaghy, who is 40 years old, began placing bets on NBA games in 2003. Last December, he began giving gambling associates sensitive, "inside" information, which included the crews who would officiate the games, and the ways that the players and the various officials interacted.

Donaghy's two alleged co-conspirators are James Battista, a professional gambler with the nicknames "Baba" and "Sheep" and Thomas Martino. The pair also appeared in court on Wednesday and were released on $250,000 bail after their arraignment on charges to defraud the NBA. None of the defendants in this case was charged with organized crime affiliation.

About this guest author:  Angela Edwards lives on Washington State's Coastline in the Great Northwest and tries to help out where she can to help people make more money? She offers legitimate ways to bring in more dough: http://angelasdiscountmarket.com/funds-making-money.html

Tim Donaghy Gambles Away His Life
  by Sayed Islam

Tim Donaghy gambles away is life with a serious crime. The ex-referee pleaded guilty to two criminal charges recently. These charges entail placing bets on NBA games he has officiated and utilized inside information to illegally earn money.

The punishment Donaghy could be facing is up to 25 years in prison and over $ 500,000 in fines. David Stern (NBA commissioner) stated that this was the "most serious situation and worst situation that I have ever experienced either as a fan of the NBA, a lawyer for the NBA or a commissioner of the NBA."Tim Donaghy is immensely asinine for his callous actions.

NBA officials make a respectable salary. Donaghy’s average salary is $ 200,000 a year, so what the hell was Tim thinking? I knew the San Antonio Spurs winning the NBA finals was a fluke. Maybe I can take Tim to Las Vegas, and he can manipulate the casinos to put me in a position to win. I know what Tim can do. He and Michael Vick can start their own gambling organization about dogs. They can call their company “Michael Vick and Tim Donaghy’s Octagon of Destruction.”

Michael already has the dogs, so Tim can officiate the dog fights. Better yet, Tim can place bets on the dog fights and give inside information or vice versa. Vick will train the dogs, and Tim will make sure Michael’s dogs win the matches. Why not take this one step further?

Michael and Tim should get Dick Chaney to host the event. Dick can also participate in killing the dogs along with Vick and Donaghy. It would be like killing two birds with one stone; or in this case, killing two dogs with one gun. I thought the Madden curse was dreadful, but Tim Donaghy is about to get pounded in all different directions in the jail cell

About this guest author:  Sayed Islam writes at http://wwwfunnyman.blogspot.com/

Information provided in NBA Roundup has been gathered from A.P. reports, ESPN.com, Sportsline.com, NBA.com and numerous other e-sources.