Jack Nies
| Jack Nies | |
|---|---|
| Born |
November 11, 1937 Jersey City, New Jersey, United States |
| Residence | Tucson, Arizona; Fajardo, Puerto Rico |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | University of Saint Mary (Kansas) |
| League | National Basketball Association |
| Years active | 1978–2009 |
| Spouse(s) | Kimberly D. Nies |
| Children | Tara Nies Kolesar |
| Parents | Mary Balas Nies and John J. Nies |
Jack Nies (pronounced niece) (born November 11, 1937) is a retired National Basketball Association (NBA) referee. Wearing #35 throughout his 31-year career, only Dick Bavetta and Joey Crawford have had more years of NBA officiating experience than Nies.[1] Nies officiated 2,046 regular-season games throughout his career, making him the sixth referee to do so. In addition, Nies oversaw 150 playoff games, 10 NBA Finals games, two NBA All-Star Games (1996 and 2005), and the 1987 Legends Classic.[1] Internationally, he was part of the referee crew that oversaw the 1994 Mexico Challenge and the 1997 McDonald's Championship; 2007 Istanbul, Turkey; Malaga and Madrid Spain—NBA Preseason Games
Nies retired from the NBA following the 2008–09 season.[1]
Biography
Nies graduated from St. Peter's Preparatory School. He led the school to a state championship in 1955, and was awarded an All-State selection. Nies then played basketball for University of Saint Mary in Kansas before graduating in 1961 with a degree in Psychology and Philosophy.
Nies then moved back to New Jersey and started refereeing high school basketball games while working as a special education teacher in the local school district. He then officiated Eastern League games from 1971 until 1978, when he was hired by the NBA. Then-New York Knicks coach Red Holzman helped by giving the league a letter of recommendation, having been impressed by his refereeing in a game he had seen in 1970.[2]
On April 15, 2008, Nies refereed his 2000th NBA game as his homestate New Jersey Nets overcame a 20-point deficit against the Charlotte Bobcats 112–108.[3] On April 13, 2009, he officiated his last NBA game as the Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder.[4]
NBA Finals games worked
1997 NBA Finals 1997 Finals, Game 3 1998 NBA Finals 1998 Finals, Game 4
- 2000 Finals, Games 1 and 6
- 2001 Finals, Game 4
- 2002 Finals, Game 1
- 2003 Finals, Game 3
- 2004 Finals, Game 4 (Lead official)
- 2005 Finals, Game 2
- 2006 Finals, Game 3
References
- 1 2 3 "Officials call end to long careers". Boston Globe. Associated Press. 2009-06-09. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
- ↑ Dave D'Alessandro (2009-04-15). "This ref is doubly grand". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
- ↑ NBRA (2008-04-16). "Veteran Referee Jack Nies Officiates 2,000th NBA Game" (PDF). NBRA. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
- ↑ Bruce Ely (2009-04-14). "Goodbye". Sidelines. Retrieved 2009-06-15.
External links
- Official profile @ National Basketball Referees Association