How Many Games Do NBA Refs Work Per Season?
Contents
The answer may surprise you. NBA referees work an average of 71 games per season. That includes the regular season, playoffs, and exhibitions.
NBA Referee Work Schedule
NBA referees typically work between 70 and 75 games per season. They may work more or fewer games, depending on how the schedule falls. The NBA schedule is very fluid, and can change from day to day. NBA referees also travel a lot, and they typically have to be in the city where the game is taking place the night before the game.
Pre-season
During the NBA preseason, referees officiate a total of 60 games. Thirty of these games are split between two- and three-person officiating crews, with the remaining 30 games being worked by a single referee.
Regular season
The regular season for NBA referees begins on the first Tuesday in October and ends on the first Sunday in April. During this time, referees work several games per week. The number of games varies depending on the schedule, but most officials work between 60 and 70 games during the regular season.
Playoffs
The NBA Playoffs are a best-of-seven elimination tournament annually held after the NBA regular season to determine the league’s champion. The tournament brackets are made up of the eight teams from each of the two conferences with the better win-loss record, seeded by their regular season record.
Since 1983, the winner of each playoff series has received the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy. The Playoffs began on April 15 and will end on June 20, with the 2020 NBA Finals set to begin on September 30 and end no later than October 12.
Number of Games Per Season
During an NBA season, each referee works an average of 60 to 70 games. That includes between 30 and 40 regular-season games, 10 playoff games, and 2 preseason games. The number of games each referee works can vary based on many factors.
Pre-season
Pre-season officiating assignments are typically lower-level games, such as those involving NBA G League teams, exhibition games between two NBA teams, or scrimmages between prospects at the NBA Draft Combine. Because of the lower significance of these games, the experienced officials who are typically assigned to work them receive far fewer assignments than they would during the regular season. In fact, most officials only work one or two pre-season games before moving on to their regular season assignments.
Regular season
The regular season begins in late October and ends in late April. Each team plays 82 games, 41 each at home and on the road. NBA refs work all of these games, as well as any pre-season games that teams schedule.
The NBA does not publish the number of officials per game, but it is generally between two and three, with three-person crews being most common. There are a total of 58 officials on the NBA’s staff. Including playoffs, each official works about 70 games per season.
Playoffs
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the premier professional basketball league in North America. It is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada), and is one of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. NBAreferees officiate approximately 1,200 NBA games per year, including the playoffs. The average NBA official works about 60 games per season.
Compensation
NBA referees are compensated handsomely for their services. They are paid an average of $150,000 per year, and the top refs can earn up to $500,000 per year. That’s a lot of money! But how many games do NBA refs actually work per season?
Per game
NBA referees work an average of three games per week during the regular season, which runs from October to April. They typically work two games on back-to-back nights, and then have one day off in between. During the playoffs, which run from April to June, NBA referees often work up to seven games per week.
Per season
The average NBA referee works about 70 to 75 games per season.
Retirement
After 20 years of working as an NBA referee, I’ve decided to retire. I’ve worked an average of 60 games per season and I’m ready to move on to the next phase of my life. In this blog post, I’ll talk about my decision to retire and what I’ll be doing next.
Age
The average NBA referee is around 41 years old. However, the league has been phasing out older officials in favor of younger ones in recent years. The minimum age for an NBA referee is 18 years old.
Length of service
The average length of service for NBA referees is about 10 years. After that, many refs move on to other things. Some become stay-at-home dads, some take up coaching, and some just enjoy watching from the stands.
