293: Bob Delaney on Operational Stress and Life as an NBA Referee

Joe and Tom are joined by one of their most multifaceted guests to date as Author and former NBA referee Bob Delaney sits down to share insights from his latest book, Heroes Are Human: Lessons in Resilience, Courage, and Wisdom from the COVID Front Lines. Bob explains how his experiences with PTSD from working as an undercover state trooper led to the work he does now and how the pandemic impacted healthcare workers far more deeply than most of us know. He discusses how his love for basketball helped treat his own operational stress and how he got started as an NBA official before moving into the league’s officiating office. Bob talks about how he worked at becoming a better referee, what he learned about human behavior through his time on the hardwood, and even which NBA player gave him the hardest time. The CUSP Show is a production by the faculty of Sports Management at Columbia University. You can get in touch with the program on Twitter @CU_SPS_Sports. The CUSP Show is hosted by Joe Favorito (@Joefav) and Tom Richardson (@ConvergenceTR). The show is produced by Yash Agarwal ‘22 (@yashagarwall655), Matt Hornick ‘23 (@MNHornick), and Cindy Li ‘23 (@cindyliiiii), with Jillian Quinn ‘22 (@JillianMQuinn) and Marco Vonderheide ‘23 managing social media efforts.