Record cold weather across America has not been able to cool the tension in the NBA. Referees, players, and coaches alike seem to be at odds with each other, causing conflict.

So many major altercations have occurred on the court this season.

Officiating in sports will always be controversial, but the NBA has the shakiest officiating of the major sports.

Referees do things such as, give technical fouls to players on the bench, ejecting multiple players for nothing, and the class is inconsistent.

Not allowing people to speak their mind also adds fuel to the fire. If any player or coach speaks out against officials, they are heavily fined.

Warriors forward Draymond Green was fined $25,000 for “comments detrimental to the league”.

Superstar players in the league Anthony Davis and LeBron James received their first career ejection this season.

The refs have held too much power and are not held accountable for their actions.

Refs are provoking players to retaliate to every call just so they can throw them out of the game. Missed calls highlight the league on a nightly basis.

Accountability and respect are two key factors in trying to fix this fractured relationship.

The refs don’t respect the players enough to call a fair game and keep things in order.

Players that rarely argue about foul calls are getting hit with technical for nothing.

Players are getting into plenty of fights this year, but it goes a little beyond at times.

Rookie of the year candidate Ben Simmons and Toronto point guard Kyle Lowry were both ejected after an argument.

Multiple disagreements went on during the game between the two.

Simmons then motioned for Lowry to meet him in the tunnel.

According to ESPN “I don’t know if they’re trying to test me or see how I am on the court, but I won’t play around,” said, Simmons.

The Houston Rockets and LA Clippers provided the biggest example of player tension so far.

The game was filled with rough play and trash talk, however, emotions spilled over.

After the game, several Rockets players tried to get into the Clippers locker room. This incident led to suspensions for several Rockets players.

According to ESPN, “When you have two players who entered an opponent’s locker room to confront an opponent, it’s inappropriate and possibly a very dangerous situation,” said NBA executive of basketball operations Kiki VanDeWeghe.

Competition and intensity in sports often lead to situations where players argue.

This situation escalated after the game and forced the NBA to deal with it accordingly.

Players and refs have an opportunity to mend fences with a meeting scheduled for the all-star break in February.

Effective communication is key to solving the lingering issues.

Intensity and hard play within the rules can help make basketball more entertaining.