NBA referees are, unfortunately, the talk of the league right now after another pivotal missed call Friday night.
Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard attempted a layup with 11.2 seconds left in Friday night’s game between the Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz. The shot would have tied the game at 116, but Utah’s Rudy Gobert clearly blocked the shot after it had touched the backboard and was on its way down. Somehow, goaltending was not called, and the Jazz won 117-114.
The call was not reviewable because goaltending was not called. It can only be looked at if the call is made on the floor.
This was a big talking point, as the referees may have cost Portland a chance at overtime by missing an obvious call. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban piled on, suggesting that this is a widespread problem that has happened to his team as well.
This is not an aberration. In our Jan 25th game the NBA admitted there were 3 missed goaltends IN A SINGLE QUARTER ! They blamed the misses on mechanics. ‘That’s something the NBA should look at’: Donovan Mitchell and Jazz agree league officials’ failures https://t.co/ctXCvZEiki
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) February 8, 2020
Cuban will always look to get in on things like this, but it does further magnify how badly the referees blew Friday night’s game. It’s not even the first time Gobert has gotten away with a game-changing call late. It’s a fair question whether this will become a point of emphasis going forward.
