Does the league still have credibility when it comes to integrity of the game?

[CIN-C-STAR]

With the NBA previously clearing Terry Rozier only for him to be arrested by the FBI last week for the same activity the NBA cleared him for, it seems like the NBA is more interested in protecting the players, the franchises and the league, rather than the game.

Here's Silver's quote when asked about it: “We worked directly with the law enforcement, as they said at their press conference, that the league has been cooperating. That was obviously over two years ago. The federal government has subpoena power, can threaten to put people in jail, can do all kinds of things that a league office can’t do. We’ve been working with them since then.
Of course, what they announced yesterday was an indictment. Two and a half years later, he still hasn’t been convicted of anything, in fairness to Terry. Obviously, it doesn’t look good. But he’s now been put on administrative leave. There’s a balance here of protecting people’s rights and investigating. Like I said, we’ve been working with the government, and they have extraordinary powers that the league doesn’t have.”

While he's correct that federal law enforcement has investigative powers that the league doesn't have, the league also has a lower burden of proof to take action than the FBI does to make an arrest.
I found this part of the quote particularly interesting: "There's a balance here of protecting people's rights and investigating."
That sounds like something a defense attorney would say, not the investigators.

Then on the Aspiration-Clippers scandal, Silver said this: "Number one, the burden is on the league if we're going to discipline a team...
In terms of your specific question about circumstantial evidence, I was only quasi-joking with someone earlier that when people talk about a smoking gun, that's obviously circumstantial. It means the gun is still smoking; it must have been recently fired.
I'd say in the case of the league, we and our investigators look at the totality of the evidence. I think whether mere appearance, just by way those words read, I think as a matter of fundamental fairness, I would be reluctant to act if there was sort of a mere appearance of impropriety."

So even a smoking gun is just circumstantial evidence, and circumstantial evidence wouldn't be enough for the league to act because it's the mere appearance of impropriety and not definitive proof.
This contradicts the CBA which gives the league broad discretion in punishing teams for acts that tarnish the reputation of the league, particularly regarding cap circumvention. Article XIII of the CBA, titled "Circumvention", specifically states that circumstantial evidence is sufficient for league action.

To me it seems like the league is acting more like the defense team for teams and players, rather than as a regulator or rules enforcer.
The comparisons to WWE are nothing new, but they are growing louder, and the perception that the league simply doesn't care about the integrity of the game could become a long-term stain on the league that will be difficult to remedy once that perception has become the norm.

Is Silver dropping the ball here by acting like the mouthpiece for players and franchises, rather than acting as a steward of the game?
Even if he really was just acting on behalf of franchises and players behind the scenes, it seems like a bit of a slap to the face of those who love the game to just come out and say, basically, that the league isn't interested in any aggressive enforcement of rules meant to preserve the integrity of the game.

[Exp0sed]

No, they lost all credibilty when they slapped Dinaghy on the wrist and purposely covered up the involvment of other refs, who remained active refs while the league knows they're dirty. They never got their credibility back and making the league basically a gambling affiliate, closed the lid on it completely

Sent from my SM-A055F using RealGM mobile app

[Billl]

It's not silver's fault per se. He didn't legalize nationwide sports gambling. He didn't sell all the local tv stations to fan duel. The league has annual training that informs all the players and staff exactly what the rules are , and so far, we haven't had any out and out throwing of games or point shaving involving palyers. If you are going to have a multibillion dollar industry betting if some bench guy gets +/- 2 rebounds though, there are just too many people in these organization to think that nobody is ever going to leak a players health or a player himself isn't going to pad or slack on a particular stat.

[Lunartic]

A multi-billion dollar company will always do whatever is in its best interest.

They will make players wear goofy jerseys with phrases like "stop hate" ,they will shill sports betting, they will cover up corruption from refs, they will cover up PED abuse, they will manufacture "Stars" by granting them preferential ref treatment, they will do whatever it takes to maintain the brand and ideally, grow the brand.

So yeah, they're going to try to cauterize this wound by blaming/banning Chauncey/Rozier/Jones and proclaim the case solved.

[JRoy]

Absolutely not.

Close to pro wrestling.

[Texas Chuck]

Obviously almost everyone who posts itt believes the league still has credibility because they consume the product and spend time discussing it online. I guess there might be one or two who follow it in a way one might follow professional wrestling in that they care not about the outcomes of the games, but just enjoy the athleticism and the show.

Now your poll question is very different from the title of the thread. Silver's priority is increasing the wealth of the governors and minority shareholders first and foremost. Integrity matters to achieving that end, but its not his priority and I think things would have to get a loss worse than Ballmer/Rozier for him to lose his job. He's navigating a changing television market with aplomb and that's simply going to matter more to his bosses.