PBA taps NBA ref as consultant

Former National Basketball Association (NBA) referee Jess Thompson is arriving next week to assume a full-time job as technical consultant in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) with the objective of further upgrading the league’s officiating standards.

PBA commissioner Noli Eala told The Star the other day Thompson’s contract is for the duration of the Philippine Cup. Thompson will be reporting directly to technical manager Perry Ronquillo.

Eala said Thompson visited Manila twice last month to offer his services and watch PBA games.

"I’m sure we can learn a lot from Thompson because of his extensive experience," noted Eala. "His game philosophy is based on good communication with players and coaches. That came about when he used to work games involving stars like Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. His whole premise was never to embarrass players and coaches or himself on the court. If Bird or Magic thought there was a bad call or a missed call, he would tell them fine, let’s review it later but just keep on playing. That kind of relationship generated mutual respect which is what we’re envisioning to build in the PBA."

Thompson, 70, has been a licensed International Basketball Federation (FIBA) referee since 1978. He was listed in the NBA roster of referees in 1981-82, wearing No. 33.

A former US Army officer with a Colonel’s rank, Thompson is a retired helicopter pilot. He was stationed in Korea and often visited Clark Air Base during his military tour of duty in Asia.

Thompson was the Korean Basketball League (KBL) supervisor of officials the last five years. On home breaks, he would go home to New York City and referee games in the United States Basketball League (USBL).

Thompson said he worked Michael Jordan’s first NBA game as a Chicago Bull fresh out of the University of North Carolina in 1984. He described Jordan as "a good player, good with people and not a head case."

"Jordan took his fame in stride," said Thompson. "He was good for basketball, good for his team. He had exceptional speed and power."

Thompson proved his keen basketball sense when in a Star interview in Pennsylvania after a USBL game in 1999, he predicted the San Antonio would beat New York in the NBA finals and singled out Korean guard Lee Sang Min as a rising star in Asian hoops. As it turned out, the Spurs beat the Knicks in five games and Lee hit the buzzer-beating triple that beat the Philippines and sent Korea to the Asian Games finals in Busan two years ago.

Lee wasn’t as popular in Korea in 1999 as Hur Jae, Seo Jang Hoon and Kyung Eun Moon but he was Thompson’s choice as the only KBL player who could step into the NBA. That was three years before Lee buried the miracle trey in Busan.

Thompson said he trained KBL referees on NBA rules and techniques.

"I lived and worked in Seoul during the regular season and playoffs," wrote Thompson in an email to PBA basketball operations head Rickie Santos. "During the offseason, I returned to New York and refereed USBL games and other summer leagues. A few seasons back, I met the PBA’s most famous player Robert Jaworski through Sam Unera, the general manager of the USBL team Pennsylvania Valley Dawgs, in the US."

Thompson said he also knows coach Norman Black. He recalled working Black’s games in the NCAA for St. Joseph’s University and the Continental league before the former Detroit Piston settled in Manila.

"I really enjoyed training and teaching the referees in Korea," continued Thompson. "It is generally accepted among Asian sports officials that Asian referees do a creditable job of controlling players and keeping the tempo of the game moving. In the time I spent with the Koreans, there were notable changes in their ability to referee and control NBA-style games. In fact, I arranged for the more advanced officials to work summer pro league games in the US. This could also be done for PBA referees."

Thompson said he hopes to make PBA referees more proficient which, he added, would help the entire league grow in the long run.

Thompson mentioned that Unera once told him the PBA would not be able to match what he was paid by the KBL.

"There are other negotiable and acceptable methods of coming to terms other than money," he said. "I’ve visited the Philippines in 2003 and 2004 to renew my Korean visa and saw a couple of PBA games from my hotel room in Makati. I have an idea about the economic situation through my many Filipino friends in Korea. I’m interested in working in the PBA full-time I enjoyed living in Asia and am seeking an opportunity to return to the profession of training and teaching and refereeing pro basketball. I have a good friend, a retired US Navy man, living with his family in the Philippines and he’s an avid basketball fan who seldom misses PBA games."