One of the NBA's best referees has announced his retirement after 31 years in the league. Danny Crawford, who has officiated more than 2,300 games, called his last game on June 5, when the Golden State Warriors clinched their second championship in three years.

The Chicago native's career has spanned for more than 43 years, as he also became part of the CBA and NCAA before joining the NBA. He holds the longest record since 1975, for refereeing at least one Finals game for the past 23 years, and is widely respected around the league for his work ethic and being unbiased during all matches he was assigned to.

Crawford was also able to officiate three All-Star games and was known for not being afraid to fire back, by explaining his calls to players and coaches during games. He discussed via Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today Sports that he could've still gone for two more years, but decided that he wants to end his career with still a lot left in his tank.

“I left with gas in my tank. Could I have gone two more years? Yeah, I could’ve. But I looked at how many years I gave them and said, ‘When do you stop?’ You keep working this job and you can’t physically do it anymore. I didn’t want that. I wanted to leave with my gas in my tank and I wanted to leave in a positive way.”

When asked why he thinks he became effective at his job, Crawford said it's because he also plays basketball, and that he understood where players and coaches come from.

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“I think I could relate to where the players and coaches were coming from because I played basketball,” Crawford said. “I had an awareness of the emotional state that the players and coaches were in. They had their pressures just like we had our pressures.

“My job was to give them an ear because they want to be heard. I think I did a pretty good job of listening and giving players and coaches the best answer I could give them. That’s all I could do. Be straight-up honest, no BS and hopefully move on. I had a great working relationship with players and coaches because I gave them the respect they gave me.”

Many expect Crawford to become a Hall-of-Famer someday, and become just the 17th referee to be enshrined in Springfield.

Congratulations on a stellar career, Danny!