International referees getting court time
Basketball went global for players long ago, but now referees are getting into the act, as evidenced by the NBA Summer League.
Twenty referees from China, Russia and FIBA games in Europe have officiated at Cox Pavilion and the Thomas & Mack Center, along with the usual Summer League lineup of NBA, D-League and female referees.
The inclusion of international officials is part of a goodwill effort in conjunction with the NBA's referees. The refs also participated in classroom activities.
During Friday's New York-Cleveland game, Nan Ye and Chengxin Li worked together in the first half, and Xiaoguang Yang and Xing Jin Ming worked in the second. All four officiate in the Chinese Basketball Association.
The Portland-Denver game was refereed by Ilya Puteko and Evgeny Vetrov, who work in Russia's pro league.
■ VICTIMS HONORED - A moment of silence was observed before the Denver-Portland and Charlotte-Memphis games in honor of the victims of Friday's shooting rampage at an Aurora, Colo., movie theater, where 12 people were killed and 58 wounded. The Nuggets also wore black headbands.
■ NO COACH, NO WIN - Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap missed Friday's game against Memphis to attend his induction into the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Hall of Fame. Dunlap spent nine seasons at Metro State, compiling a 248-50 record and winning NCAA Division II national championships in 2000 and 2002.
With Dunlap on the sidelines, the Bobcats were 4-0. With assistants Steven Silas and Rick Brunson running the team Friday, Charlotte lost 97-79 in its summer league finale.
■ THORNS PLAYS - Former Valley High School guard Hank Thorns played the final 2 minutes, 52 seconds for Memphis and scored two points. Thorns, who played at Virginia Tech and Texas Christian, had not played in the Grizzlies' first two games in Las Vegas.
Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.
