Disgraced NBA Referee Reveals All

Disgraced NBA referee Tim Donaghy, came out from prison in November following a 15 month jail term. He has just published a book called "Personal Foul: A First-Person Account of the Scandal that Rocked the NBA."

Donaghy pleaded guilty to conspiring with gamblers but said that he never abused his position by rigging basketball games. His book explains, "I didn't need to fix them, I usually knew which team was going to win based on which referees had been assigned to the game, their personalities, and the relationships they had with the players and coaches of the teams involved."

Donaghy's book details how referees routinely favored some players and penalized others. These actions, he states, often influenced the outcome of games.

The Road to Gambling Addiction
Donaghy started sports event gambling with a friend and enjoyed the euphoria he experienced after picking a winner. But what initially started out as a pleasurable pursuit ended up becoming a serious addiction. He placed more and more bets to feed his addiction but his ultimate downfall was his decision to bet on NBA results, even those matches he was refereeing himself.

Criminal Activity
Donaghy's 75% success rate drew the attention of a New York crime family, the Gambinos. The Mafia family paid him a visit, telling him to provide them with choice picks. The request was not a cordial one and accompanied by threats to his family, if he were to refuse to comply.

Down the Wrong Road
Donaghy ended up betting on around 100 games in one year, earning the Mafia millions of dollars. He was paid $2,000 for each successful bet and his book describes seedy meetings where he was clandestinely handed wads of money which he hid within his clothing. He remarked that once he commenced his Mafia tipping scheme that he was aware all was not going to end well for him.

Donaghy reflects on the episode, "We all have choices to make in life and when we decide to go down that wrong road we would be better off backing up... Not only do you affect your life... but the lives of the people you love the most."