Airline ticket income investigation In 1998, Crawford was one of eight NBA referees charged with filing false income tax returns after an
Internal Revenue Service investigation found that cash was being pocketed by referees when airline tickets provided by the league were downgraded. At the conclusion of a four-year investigation, Crawford pleaded guilty on July 1, 1998 to falsely stating income of $82,500 from 1991 to 1993 and resigned from the NBA, effective immediately. He was reinstated by NBA commissioner
David Stern in 1999 and did not miss a game due to the
players' lockout that preceded the
1998–99 NBA season.
Games officiated milestone Crawford officiated his 2,000th NBA game between the
Los Angeles Lakers and
Philadelphia 76ers on November 11, 2005. He was the sixth NBA referee in history to reach 2,000 games, joining
Mendy Rudolph,
Jake O'Donnell,
Dick Bavetta,
Earl Strom, and
Tommy Nuñez. On April 17, Crawford was fined $100,000 and suspended for the remainder of the
2006–07 season and the
2007 playoffs, ending his streak of officiating 21 consecutive NBA Finals. The league also fined Duncan $25,000 for verbal abuse of an official and warned that a repeat incident in the future would result in an ejection. Commissioner
David Stern said Crawford's actions "failed to meet the standards of professionalism and game management we expect of NBA referees." On September 17, the NBA announced Crawford's reinstatement. Commissioner Stern said, "Based on my meeting with Joey Crawford, his commitment to an ongoing counseling program and a favorable professional evaluation that was performed at my direction, I am satisfied that Joey understands the standards of game management and professionalism the NBA expects from him and that he will be able to conduct himself in accordance with those standards." In a 2012 interview, Crawford named the Duncan incident as one of his two regrets from his career, saying "The Duncan thing probably changed my life. It was just—you come to the realization that maybe the way you've been doing things is not the proper way and you have to regroup, not only on the court but off the court. I had seen a sports psychologist before that. But after, I saw him a lot more. [...] It gave me a new perspective."
Retirement On January 2, 2016, Crawford announced that the 2015–2016 NBA season would be his last. A nagging knee injury prevented him from officiating much of the season. Crawford briefly returned in March, but on March 10, 2016, Crawford announced his retirement effective immediately, due to medical issues. Over his 39-year career, he officiated 2,561 regular-season games, 374 playoff games, and 50 NBA Finals games. The 374 playoff games is a record high for any NBA referee. == Personal life ==