But I think it’s more subconscious. Rookies are reffed without any prior knowledge or bias…there’s an expectation from established players and when the expectation doesn’t come(like an awkwardly missed shot with a defender contesting) the refs subconsciously think, he must’ve got fouled. Will they always call the foul? No, but certainly they do sometimes without actually seeing a foul.

I think it’s more noticeable the other way. If you’ve established you can defend and be physical without fouling…refs tend to give you the benefit of the doubt in the future when you do foul by being overly physical. It’s the Bruce Bowen, Pat Beverley method. You see guys like Dillon Brooks trying to get that reputation though not always doing the best job of showing they can defend without fouling.