Roger Mason was able to play only a few minutes against the Bucks on Friday before being pulled from the game. His limited role wasn’t the result of injury or not being up to speed with the Wizards’ offense, however. Mason was ejected from the game because a paperwork glitch resulted in his name not appearing on the team’s 15-man roster, and thus he was not eligible to play.
It was a human mistake,” a frustrated Mason said after the game according to the Washington Post. “It happens.”
Mason’s name did not appear on the official team roster that was submitted from the league office prior to the game. Neither Wizards coach Flip Saunders nor Washington’s public relations staff identified the error, and the roster was signed off on and made official. Despite rumors, NBA spokesman Tim Frank denied a report that the NBA has been installing a new data system and Mason was still listed as a member of the Knicks.
The most entertaining moment of the unusual situation came when Mason hit a turnaround jump shot and the points were awarded to Rashard Lewis.
“That’s even better for me,” Lewis joked. “No, but it was crazy. I don’t think it put us in a funk, but I think it put him in a funk. I could see it in his eyes. He was extremely hot about it. He was upset, but at the same time, he was talking to the guys at halftime, talking to us after the game and trying to keep everybody motivated.”
Kudos to Mason for seemingly taking the entire situation in stride. Mistakes happen, but this is the NBA. If something like this happened to my YMCA team when I was 11 I would have been livid. I can imagine how Mason must have felt.
