The NBA admitted to blowing two crucial calls late in the fourth quarter of the Golden State Warriors’ 91-90 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.
Warriors fell on both sides of wrong calls vs. Rockets
Per Bay Area News Group’s Michael Nowels (via The Mercury News), the league did not fess up to a controversial play where Jonathan Kuminga called for a foul in a loose ball situation involving Rockets star Jalen Green, which Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was irate over. However, the final two-minute report did reveal this:
“The report did identify two mistakes, one disadvantaging each team: Dillon Brooks should have received a defensive three-second violation with 1:41 left in the game, and Podziemski should have been assessed a five-second call before the Warriors’ final inbound pass,” Nowels wrote.
Warriors: Refs’ blown call on Rockets impacted the game
By the 1:41 mark, the seven-point lead that Golden State created with 3:38 to go was only cut down to six points. However, Rockets star Fred VanVleet hit a three with 1:16 left on the game clock to make it a three-point affair. Had the defensive three-second violation on Brooks been called, the Warriors would have had the opportunity to connect on a free throw and get the ball back, which could have impacted the final result of their one-point loss.
Warriors skated past late violation that did not avail
As for Podziemski’s final inbounds pass, he was given the ball with 3.5 seconds left down 91-90. He waited to feed Stephen Curry who came to the ball on the sideline. Curry dished the ball back to the young shooting guard who rose up for a fadeaway three in the right corner that was blocked by Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr.
Had Podziemski been called for five seconds, Houston would have gotten the ball back without any time coming off of the clock, and would likely have been fouled with a chance to put two more points on the board at the charity stripe. Theoretically, the Warriors could have executed an intentional foul with enough time to draw up one final prayer to win or stay alive afterward.
Nevertheless, Golden State (14-10) is now 2-7 in their last nine games after being the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference at 12-3 overall back on Nov. 22. They’ll look to right the ship and prevent potential game-altering blunders in their next matchup against the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday, Dec. 15.
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