I used to get into this debate on my nationally syndicated radio show all the time. When it comes to buzzer beaters, the clock and instant replay shouldn’t be used but rather the determination should be based on the eyeball test — if a guy is shooting at the buzzer and makes it, the shot should always count. Isn’t that what sports is all about? Isn’t it about making a shot at the buzzer, regardless of whether or not the release was .07 seconds after the clock supposedly expired? Plus, what if the operator started the clock too early, or … what if the clock ran too much time off on the previous possession? That’s exactly what happened on Wednesday night.
As Matt Moore pointed out, Paul Pierce’s game-winning shot for the Celtics to beat the Knicks went through the cylinder with 0.8 seconds left. The Knicks should have had that much time left for their final shot, or at least more than their 0.4 seconds. Therefore, Amare Stoudemire’s catch-and-shoot 3 to win it should have counted. Here’s proof of how much time was left when Pierce’s shot cleared the cylinder:
Stoudemire raised for the shot at the buzzer and released it a split second after the buzzer. It didn’t count, but it should have, and the Knicks should have escaped with a one-point win over the Celtics. Tell me this shouldn’t have counted …
Eyeball test my friends, eye ball test. Sometimes we get so technical we get away from the actual game and this is one of those times.
