What was 2009 NBA Playoffs Conspiracy: Bulls vs. Celtics?

The 2009 NBA playoffs were the National Basketball Association’s playoffs championship for the 2008-09 season. In the NBA Finals, the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic 4 games to 1. The NBA Finals MVP was Kobe Bryant. The Boston Celtics lost a best-of-seven series to the Orlando Magic after advancing 3-2 for the very first time in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals. Previously, their first-round series against the Chicago Bulls established an NBA Playoff record for the most overtime games (4) and periods (7) managed to play.

It was for the very first time since 1997, that the Houston Rockets clinched a first-round series. They took the defending champs Lakers to a Game 7 before falling short. The Atlanta Hawks managed to win a first-round series for the first time since 1999 but were washed by the Cleveland Cavaliers after a tough seven-game series against the Miami Heat, who made the postseason for the fifth time in six years. For the first time since 1994, the Denver Nuggets won a playoff game, ultimately hitting their first conference final since 1985.

For the first time since 2000, the Detroit Pistons and San Antonio Spurs were unable to advance past the first round. The Cavs washed the Pistons, while the Spurs fell 4-1 to the Dallas Mavericks. The Portland Trail Blazers made the finals for the first time since 2003 but were nullified in the first round by Houston in six games for the fourth time in a row. By brushing off the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks, the Cleveland Cavaliers were only the second team in League history (after the Miami Heat) to go 8-0 through the initial two rounds (they would duplicate this feat in 2016, against the same two teams). However, they were defeated in the Eastern Conference Finals by the Orlando Magic in six games.

2009 Eastern Conference First Round – Bulls vs. Celtics

Many Bulls fans were disappointed that the referees favoured the Celtics during a 2009 postseason series between the Boston Celtics and the Chicago Bulls. With only two seconds remaining in overtime in Game 5, Celtics guard Rajon Rondo made a hard connection with Bulls centre Brad Miller’s face. Earlier in the game, Rondo tripped Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich, forcing him to get incisions to close the wounds caused by the tripping. Miller’s mouth was bleeding as a result of the hit, but because the foul was governed by a personal foul, Miller had to shoot the free throws or he would not have been permitted to return, and the Celtics would have chosen the replacement shooter.

If the foul had been ruled a blatant, the Bulls could have chosen their substitute shooter. Miller would miss the first free throw and then intentionally miss the second to give the Bulls a chance to take the lead, but the free throw would not hit the rim, and the Celtics would take possession and run out the clock. After the game, Rondo admitted that he didn’t have a play on the ball.

Rondo threw Hinrich into the scorer’s table near the end of the first half in Game 6, similar to Robert Horry’s body slam of Steve Nash two years earlier. Rondo received a flagrant 1, allowing him to remain in the game, rather than a flagrant 2, which would have resulted in ejection (as was Horry’s punishment for a similar foul). Additionally, the league examined the incidents in question after both games and opted not to penalize Rondo or elevate the fouls, while Horry’s body slam earned him a two-game suspension.

Meanwhile, Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic was reprimanded for Game 6 of the Magic’s series against the Philadelphia 76ers after the league evaluated video of him elbowing Sixers centre Samuel Dalembert in the head in Game 5. The foul was initially called a technical, but after further review, the league enhanced it to a flagrant 2.