The NBA is an incredible product. Referee Watch would make it better

The NBA is one of the most entertaining products in sports. It features some of the planet’s best athletes. We have superheroes, villains, and underdogs, and strong narratives off the court as well. Now let’s make it even better.

Introducing Referee Watch. It’s a pay-per-view option where the referees are wearing mics that get hot when approached by players and coaches after calls. We’re already entertained by the animated discussions between referees and players, and Referee Watch would make it even better. After almost any foul, players raise their hands and eyebrows in shock, and state their case, or simply just let a referee know that they thought the call was bullshit.

Of course, we can’t forget the big grab here for the NBA — it’s a new revenue stream too.

Referee Watch isn’t some kind of “gotcha” move. Sure, we want to hear our favorite vocal NBA players talking to refs and hearing how their rebuttals are served. But there are also just friendly and funny conversations happening. Or if you’re now-former referee Joey Crawford, you’re also buying fans beer on occasion:

There’s no better time than the present for this kind of special broadcast to be added to the NBA. Officiating has been one of the most discussed topics of the postseason, whether that’s because of the calls certain players like James Harden or Giannis Antetokounmpo get, or a laundry list of possible fouls that “cost” a team a series.

If the NBA was ever going to make something like this happen, using the referees would be the perfect way into it. Basketball isn’t nearly as chill as baseball is, so we wouldn’t be able to just put microphones on players and get moments like these:

While it’s not trash talk between players, to hear any conversation between referees and players (or coaches) would be worth paying for in the eyes of a lot of people.

And if anybody in the NBA was going to agree to such transparency, it might just be referees. The National Basketball Referees Association Twitter account has been doing watch parties to discuss calls made on the court.

While not everybody’s going to be pleased with answers for specific calls, even on Twitter, giving a real look into how a game is for officials is at least something. Just think back to a time you saw an obvious foul, saw a player complain to a referee about it and asked yourself, “What could they possibly be arguing?”

Taking this to another level, this opens the door for fans to become ... fans of referees. I’d love to stan over a referee because of how he spits game back to players or coaches over calls. Imagine changing your NBA viewing habits because you know you want to see Tony Brothers not take shit from Chris Paul on a Tuesday night.

The NBA Referees Twitter account is already doing a good job of highlighting their referees and assignments. This is quite the presentation of their #talent:

We could feasibly get to a point where somebody out there is begging for a Scott Foster jersey. I’d take a throwback Joey Crawford, myself.

Sure, all of this would never happen. The NBA Players Association would never allow the league to subject its members to even more microphones than they already do — those seem to be challenging enough at times as it is.

But you probably wouldn’t find many fans that would say no to Referee Watch, especially if it was available for the next Warriors-Rockets game.