Following Fred Vanvleet’s tirade against NBA referee Ben Taylor, which saw him pay a $30,000 fine, everyone is curious about Taylor, check out his brief bio and career
Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet was slapped with a $30,000 fine for passing comments about officiating after Wednesday’s 108-100 loss to the LA Clippers.
Who is NBA referee Ben Taylor, biography, age, education and career stats
“I don’t mind, I’ll take a fine. I don’t really care. I thought Ben Taylor was f***ing terrible tonight. On most nights, out of the 3, there’s 1 or 2 that f*** the game up.”
Fred VanVleet on tonight’s officials, and NBA officiating: pic.twitter.com/Plp8DaqNp5
— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) March 9, 2023
Fred VanVleet went OFF on referee Ben Taylor and NBA reffing in general in his post-game after the Raptors loss. Haven't heard anything like this. pic.twitter.com/VcMkGTh0k3
— Faizal Khamisa (@SNFaizalKhamisa) March 9, 2023
According to Joe Dumars, NBA executive vice-president and head of basketball operations, VanVleet was reportedly fined for “public criticism of the officiating”.
Fred Vanvleet’s tirade on Ben Taylor
Fred Vanvleet reportedly delivered a harsh tirade against NBA referees, particularly against Ben Taylor. The 29-year-old Raptors star delivered the tirade after he received a technical foul from referee Ben Taylor.
It came during the third quarter of the game against the Clippers. The foul was Vanvleet’s eighth technical foul this season, out of which three have come from Taylor.
VanVleet said:
I’ll take a fine, I don’t really care. I thought Ben Taylor was f****** terrible tonight. For most nights, out of the three [officials] there’s one or two that just f*** the game up. It’s been like that a couple games in a row. Denver was tough, obviously. You come out tonight competing pretty hard, in the third quarter, I get a b******* tech, [it] changes the whole dynamic of the game, changes the whole flow of the game.”
NBA referee Ben Taylor brief bio and career
For many NBA fans, the incident between Fred Vanvleet and Ben Taylor was the first time they heard about Taylor. Ben Taylor was born on October 7, 1985 in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He attended the Middle Tennessee State University where he received a bachelor’s degree in Public Relations.
Taylor first started out as referee in the NBA G League where he spent six seasons. He eventually began his NBA career by joining the full-time NBA staff back in 2013-14. Up until now, Taylor has officiated 499 regular-season games and 22 playoff games across nine seasons as an NBA official.
Taylor made his playoff debut as an referee in the NBA back in 2019. According to his referee bio, Taylor’s most notable game was in 2014 during a regular-season game between the Miami Heat and the Charlotte Bobcats. LeBron James scored 61 points during that game.
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