The NBA revealed the referee assignments for Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals between the OKC Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs. Marc Davis will be the crew chief for the decisive game, with John Goble as the referee and Josh Tiven as the umpire. Mitchell Ervin will serve as the alternative on the crew.
On Saturday, Spurs reporter Dusty Garza shared the news with fans on X.
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“With a trip to the NBA Finals on the line, the league is deploying an incredibly experienced, veteran crew to manage the chaos. Expect this group to establish strict control over the physical play and pace right from the opening tip,” he wrote.
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Fans swarmed the post’s comments section with their thoughts on the officials working the game.
“OKC screwed without Brothers,” one fan commented.
“So SGA will be flopping all over the place!” another fan said.
“I see no Tony Brothers!! I can live with this👍🏼👍🏼GO SPURS GO!!!!” another fan commented.
Here are more reactions:
“No Tony Brothers, no Scott Foster…..looks decent to me!” one fan commented.
“Anyone but Tony Brothers, the worst official for the Spurs, especially for the critical Game 7,” another fan commented.
“No Foster, no Gucci, no Brothers. 👏 Let’s play some ball,” another fan said.
NBA official Marc Davis has previously officiated in this WCF series. He was the crew chief for Game 3, which the Thunder won 123-108.
Spurs reporter tells NBA fans to feel better about Marc Davis’ assignment to the
Spurs reporter Dusty Garza told NBA fans to stay positive about Marc Davis’ assignment as the crew chief despite Game 3’s negative results. The reporter outlined the reasons for his optimistic outlook on the decisive game.
“I know a lot of fans are nervous about the whistle tonight given that Marc Davis was part of Game 3, but there’s actually a reason to feel a little better about it,” he tweeted. “Yes, Game 3 was kind of a disaster. There were 53 fouls, 66 free throws (split evenly between the teams), and the third quarter felt like it took three hours. And some fans from both sides did spend more time talking about the refs than the basketball.”
Later, he remarked that Game 7s have been officiated differently throughout the league’s history.
“Also historically, Game 7s tend to be called differently. Not perfectly, but differently. The league generally wants the players deciding the outcome, not the officials. Does that mean there won’t be any controversial calls tonight? Of course not. But if this game is allowed to be physical and decided by actual basketball, that’s a good thing for San Antonio.”
Game 7 between the Spurs and the Thunder will tip off at 7:00 p.m. ET at the Paycom Center.
Edited by Avi Shravan