NBA Referee Profile
Gary Zielinski
Gary Zielinski has worked 1,036 NBA games, and the numbers say he lets play run. His career average of 41.3 personal fouls per game sits 1.4% below the league average, and his 47.5 free throw attempts per game runs 1.5% under the league mark. That combination tells you Zielinski is not stopping the game to hand out fouls — he keeps the whistle in his pocket and lets contact absorb into the flow. For bettors, that profile generally favors unders in foul-sensitive spots and cuts into the edge of teams that thrive by drawing free throws. His home team win rate of 63.9% is the number that demands attention. League-wide, home teams win at roughly 59-60% — Zielinski's 63.9% is a meaningful gap, not noise across 1,036 games. When he is on the crew, home-court advantage has been real and documentable. Fade the road team or inflate that spread cushion accordingly.
Career stats
Games officiated
1036
Personal fouls / g
41.3
-1.4% vs league
Free throw attempts / g
47.5
-1.5% vs league
Combined points / g
198.7
-0.1% vs league
Home vs visitor
Home teams win 63.9% of games officiated by Gary. That's well above the league's ~57% home-court baseline — a signal his crews lean home when the game is close.
Recent seasons
| Season | Games | PF/g | FTA/g | PTS/g | Home W% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-11 | 64 | 41.7 | 49.2 | 197.0 | 64.1% |
| 2009-10 | 71 | 41.5 | 47.3 | 197.2 | 54.9% |
| 2008-09 | 69 | 39.2 | 45.2 | 198.5 | 63.8% |
| 2007-08 | 61 | 41.0 | 49.3 | 196.5 | 68.9% |
| 2006-07 | 65 | 42.9 | 50.6 | 198.5 | 61.5% |
| 2005-06 | 61 | 42.6 | 49.0 | 190.2 | 62.3% |
| 2004-05 | 62 | 43.3 | 49.0 | 194.9 | 74.2% |
| 2003-04 | 44 | 43.8 | 51.3 | 189.3 | 72.7% |
| 2002-03 | 53 | 41.8 | 49.2 | 195.2 | 71.7% |
| 2001-02 | 48 | 40.6 | 45.1 | 189.0 | 62.5% |
Top team splits
Teams Gary has officiated the most, and how those franchises have fared under him.
| Team | Games | W-L | W% | Pace | PTS/g |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAL | 84 | 50-34 | 59.5% | 93.5 | 100.6 |
| SAS | 78 | 47-31 | 60.3% | 92.0 | 97.3 |
| GSW | 78 | 46-32 | 59.0% | 96.6 | 104.0 |
| PHO | 76 | 37-39 | 48.7% | 95.4 | 104.2 |
| SAC | 76 | 40-36 | 52.6% | 94.3 | 103.7 |
| LAC | 74 | 39-35 | 52.7% | 92.7 | 99.1 |
| CLE | 74 | 41-33 | 55.4% | 92.3 | 99.1 |
| UTA | 73 | 43-30 | 58.9% | 90.7 | 97.8 |
| POR | 72 | 34-38 | 47.2% | 91.7 | 99.0 |
| HOU | 72 | 37-35 | 51.4% | 93.3 | 98.6 |
| OKC | 69 | 38-31 | 55.1% | 93.9 | 101.6 |
| MIA | 69 | 32-37 | 46.4% | 91.0 | 94.5 |
| WAS | 66 | 27-39 | 40.9% | 93.8 | 97.0 |
| PHI | 66 | 26-40 | 39.4% | 92.6 | 96.9 |
| ORL | 65 | 29-36 | 44.6% | 93.3 | 96.1 |
| CHI | 65 | 33-32 | 50.8% | 93.3 | 98.8 |
| TOR | 63 | 26-37 | 41.3% | 91.7 | 97.2 |
| ATL | 62 | 31-31 | 50.0% | 92.5 | 98.3 |
| DET | 57 | 26-31 | 45.6% | 89.5 | 91.3 |
| DAL | — | — | — | — | — |