BREAKING: After 39 years, longtime NBA referee Joey Crawford says he is hanging up his whistle after the season.
Crawford, 64, has been sitting out this season after undergoing knee surgery. He plans to return to the court by March 1 and hopes to referee through the playoffs.
"There's nothing to be sorry about. You know what happens? It's not that you lose your passion. I have that. That's insanity. But it just comes to the point where you say, 'I don't want to make a fool out of myself.' And it's been so good that I want to go out on a high note. I don't want to go out on a low note. I want to be in the NBA Finals, and I don't want to be reffing just for the sake of reffing."
Crawford has been an NBA referee since 1977. He has officiated 313 postseason games, most of any active ref, including 50 NBA Finals games.