Golden State Warriors: Christmas Loss Highlights NBA's Officiating Issues

Dec 25, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) defended by Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) at Quicken Loans Arena. Cleveland defeats Golden State 109-108. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

The Golden State Warriors narrowly lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Christmas Day, in a game where multiple officiating mistakes were highlighted on the NBA’s biggest stage.

After an NBA Finals where the Golden State Warriors gave up a 3-1 series lead to the Cleveland Cavaliers, no one could call a Cavaliers win on Christmas Day a surprise. While the Warriors were favored, the Cavaliers are an elite team that has found weaknesses in the Golden State armor.

The script was similar to June’s as well, with LeBron uncorking a few defensive highlights before a huge shot by Kyrie Irving put Cleveland ahead in the final seconds. The one-point win for the Cavaliers were indicative of a tight, hard-fought game.

While there is plenty to say about the brilliance of Cleveland’s fourth-quarter comeback, and the Warriors’ issues with late-game offense, their Christmas showdown has been overshadowed in part by the third team on the court with them: the NBA officials.

While teams and their fans will always bemoan a call that didn’t go their way, a number of actions late in Sunday’s game brought the officials to the forefront of the story, a place the league never wants them to be.

Three incidents in particular stood out in the final two minutes, each with its own set of problems.

Dec 25, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (32) is guarded by Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Hanging on the Rim

After falling behind by 14 in the fourth quarter, the Cavaliers battled back and took the lead with 1:43 remaining on a thunderous LeBron James dunk. As the arena erupted, LeBron shook around the rim and hung for a few extra beats before dropping to the court.

The best player in the world capping a tremendous comeback with a dunk should have been the league’s favorite play, but instead the moment was overshadowed by what didn’t happen.

The referees did not call a technical foul for James’ extended time hanging from the rim. The non-call seemed reasonable in hindsight — James was fouled, which meant that play was stopped, and there were bodies around him.

While he put some extra mustard on the dunk, he didn’t pull his head back above the rim.

But the broadcast team, and specifically Jeff Van Gundy, made a note to bring the non-call up and injected it into the national spotlight.

Whether that influenced the NBA’s decision to include the play in their two-minute report is unclear, but it certainly kept the league watching out for that report.

On Monday the NBA released their two-minute report, which evaluates the decisions made by the officiating crew in the final two minutes of every close game.

This reported determined that LeBron had in fact committed an infraction by hanging on the ring so long, which should have resulted in a technical foul and a free shot from the Warriors.

That point may have come in handy for Golden State.

Dec 17, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue during the first half against the Los Angeles Lakers at Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavs won 119-108. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Replay Review Ripples

With 13 seconds remaining in the game, Golden State failed to get a shot off in time before the shot clock expired. The buzzer sounded before Klay Thompson even began his shooting motion, and it was clear on the court and on the broadcast that the shot did not count.

With Golden State up one, the Cavaliers had no timeouts remaining and no opportunity to draw up a play. Until, of course, the officials stopped play to confer with the replay booth in New Jersey to confirm the call on the court.

This afforded the Cavaliers the opportunity to huddle together and get a play call from head coach Tyronn Lue. Once the officials confirmed that the call on the court was correct, the Cavaliers proceeded to run the play that resulted in Kyrie Irving’s game-winning basket.

It’s debatable whether the extra time to prepare helped the Cavaliers. The Warriors had time to set their defense and substitute in personnel and the shot Irving hit was more of a one-on-one victory than a clever play call.

But regardless it became glaringly obvious that Cleveland was getting a free timeout.

This wasn’t the first time this situation has occurred either. In last year’s playoffs multiple television crews called to attention the “free timeout” teams without any remaining received when a call was reviewed.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr was beckoning his players back on defense because he seemingly did not want them to call for a review — it was clear on the court what the outcome would be and he didn’t want the Cavaliers the extra time.

Whether the situation is questionable or not, the league will need to figure out a solution to confirming calls that does not grant certain teams hidden benefits. As long as they don’t, it will continue to be a headline after marquee games.

And on calls where the replay was unnecessary, as on Christmas Day, the cries will only be louder.

Dec 25, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) drives to the basket against Cleveland Cavaliers forward Tristan Thompson (13) at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

A Step In Time

Down one point with three seconds to go, the Golden State Warriors had one more chance to hold off the Cleveland comeback. After Steve Kerr called a timeout and drew up a play, the Warriors inbounded the ball to Kevin Durant on the wing to attempt a game-winning shot.

That game-winning shot came from the ground, as Durant was forced to launch a 34-foot rainbow from his butt after tripping and falling to the court.

For those who missed it live, video replay immediately showed Cleveland forward Richard Jefferson stepping on Kevin Durant’s foot, propelling the lanky forward to the ground.

The officials blew no whistles, and no foul was called. The moment where Kerr and the Warriors would have liked a video review, none would be forthcoming. And Durant was robbed of either a good look from the wing, or a pair of free throws to take the lead.

Once again the NBA’s last two-minute report showed up, and again the call that went against the Warriors was deemed to be incorrect. Jefferson’s foot interfered with Durant’s “SQBR” — his speed, quickness, balance, and rhythm — and thus a foul should have been called.

Not only was Durant robbed of his chance to win the game, and Golden State handed a loss they could have avoided, but the officials yet again took the spotlight on a stage that should have been reserved solely for the league’s two best teams.

Everyone hopes for the officials to get every call right every time, but that’s never going to happen. What the league needs to do is find a way for the officials to step out of the spotlight and allow the amazing feats of its stars take the forefront.

Whether that is eliminating the two-minute report, adding a fourth official, or adjusting their training process, the league is best served evaluating and changing to best serve its teams and the fans.

This is something the league has proven capable of in other areas, and they will be motivated to do the best in this one as well.