The Sacramento Kings can't get a call at the end of games. Coach Mike Brown just wants to make it to OT.
"I just want, at the end of the game, somebody to step up and make the right call. A guy gets hit on the arm shooting a 3, it's a foul. A guy take 6 steps or 4 steps, it's a travel. We just want an opportunity to win in overtime." -Mike Brown to reporters at Oracle
— James Ham (@James_HamNBA) November 8, 2022
Wednesday night, Tyler Herro traveled before hitting the game-winning shot against Sacramento. Unfortunately the officials didn't call it live.
Instead, the NBA's Last Two Minute Report acknowledged the error, which got the Kings a moral victory, but not a victory in the standings, the kind that actually matters.
NBA rules Tyler Herro committed an uncalled travel on this game winner last night
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) November 3, 2022
(h/t @AhnFireDigital )
pic.twitter.com/RSs3lbtCzu
Monday night in San Francisco, it was the Kings who were shooting last-second three. Kevin Huerter went up, Klay Thompson contacted his arm, and no whistles blew as Huerter's shot went awry.
For the second time in six days, a referee's call prevented Sacramento from taking a game to overtime. Had the refs correctly called a foul, Huerter would have had a chance to send the game to overtime by making all three of his foul shots with no time left.
And had the referees called traveling on Herro, the Kings would have, at worst, gone to overtime in Miami, and at best, had six seconds to win the game themselves.
Huerter was unhappy after the game.
Only thing we can do at this point is get fined. Zero accountability
— Kevin Huerter (@KevinHuerter) November 8, 2022
Technically, the Last Two Minute Report is accountability, but that won't make Huerter feel any better.
Nor will the league's acknowledgement that before the non-call on Thompson, the refs missed a traveling violation on Steph Curry with 16.6 seconds remaining, which would have given Sacramento the ball down only a point.
Sacramento dropped to 3-6 with the loss, but when the officials do allow them to get to overtime, they're 1-0. Just ask De'Aaron Fox.
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