Last week, a bad no-call in a professional basketball game helped dictate the outcome of the final score, leaving basketball fans wondering once again if officials should be held to more accountability.
The New York Knicks were down one and on the verge of losing to the lowly Detroit Pistons, when star point guard Jalen Brunson hoisted up a three that was off the mark. After that, chaos ensued.
Multiple loose balls and possession changes eventually led to the ball ending in Knicks Donte DiVincenzo’s hands. DiVincenzo tried to get the ball back to Brunson for another game-winning attempt before the Pistons’ Ausar Thompson stole it. As Thompson started to move down the court, he ran into DiVincenzo in what appeared to be a blatantly obvious foul, but the whistle was not blown.
Brunson eventually retained possession and found Josh Hart in the paint for the easy game-winning layup.
After the game, NBA referee James Williams admitted that DiVincenzo should have been called for a foul on the collision with Thompson.
In the report, Williams said, “Upon postgame review, we determined that Thompson gets to the ball first, and then was deprived of the opportunity to gain possession of the ball. Therefore, a loose ball foul should have been whistled on New York’s Donte DiVincenzo.”
That being said, it was too little, too late, with the damage already done and the Pistons leaving Madison Square Garden on a sour note.
Pistons head coach Monty Williams voiced his displeasure in his post-game press conference in a minute-long rant, saying, “The absolute worst call of the season. No call? Enough is enough. We’ve done it the right way. We’ve called the league. We’ve sent in clips. We’re sick of hearing the same stuff over and over again. We had a chance to win the game and the guy dove into Ausar’s legs and there was a no-call. That’s an abomination.”
He has the support of fans and media personalities across the country who agree that something needs to be done with the officiating.
This is just two weeks after the Knicks were on the other side of bad officiating days before the all-star break in a game against the Houston Rockets.
The Knicks, who were down 16 at one point in the game, managed to fight their way back to tie the game at 103 after a Brunson jump shot. With overtime seeming inevitable, the Rockets Aaron Holiday heaved up a desperation shot just before the buzzer. On the play, Brunson was charged with illegal contact with Holiday. Even after a replay review, the call stood, leading to free throws and a 105-103 Rockets win.
However, in a report following the game, crew chief Ed Malloy admitted the Brunson foul should not have been called.
“After seeing it during postgame review, the offensive player was able to return to a normal playing position on the floor,” Malloy said. “The contact which occurred after the release of the ball therefore is incidental and marginal to the shot attempt and should not have been called.”
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau was a little less heated than Williams in his press conference, but still was not pleased.
“The thing with the officials, this is the way I feel about that in general, is I don’t really care how tight the game is called. You can call it tight or you can call it loose. I just want consistency to be the same,” Thibodeau said. “They have a job: they have to control and manage the game. That’s their number one responsibility. They have to use their judgment and I have respect for that. So it didn’t go our way tonight.”
The Knicks did protest the loss, but the appeal was recently denied by the league, saying referee error is not enough to overturn.
It is seemingly unlikely that these two calls will have any real weight in determining where these three teams will end up at season’s end. The Knicks even out with the calls and, unless they encounter a historic collapse, are destined for the playoffs. The Rockets are on the outside looking in on the west, while the Pistons have the worst record in the entire league.
That said, is it inevitable that one of these officiating blunders happens in a pivotal moment, maybe a playoff game or even a finals game, and what then? How can the league keep the referees accountable? Clearly, the replay system isn’t working because, even after a review of the Brunson call, they still got it wrong.
Many fans think the referees should be fined for making bad calls, but everyone knows that will never happen. It is also not like the NBA has the luxury of just firing referees because good referees don’t just grow on trees — think of the middle or high school referees you once had.
It’s really the lack of public reprimanding that aggravates fans. Adam Silver did say that the league does hold referees accountable, it is just done in a private manner. Still, with the number of bad calls the NBA has had so far this season, it clearly isn’t enough. The current system in place for reviewing and punishing referees appears to be ineffective. While referees do face some consequences, there are other options the league could explore. Nevertheless, it is heavily argued that public accountability and punishment would promote change.
The perfect referee doesn’t exist and it is simply unrealistic to expect that it ever will. However, the lack of change and accountability is frustrating and seems to worsen each and every year. Better systems need to be put in place to reduce the number of bad calls. It’s not an easy fix, but a lot can be prevented. It’s time for the NBA to make some changes for the people who have the power to influence the outcome of games.
