The NBA’s head of officiating admitted that the referees in Game 3 of the NBA Finals fell short in one odd fourth quarter moment.
The San Antonio Spurs attempted to make a substitution with just over five minutes left in Game 3 at Madison Square Garden in New York, N.Y. Initially, the substitution did not take place, but officials abruptly whistled the play dead just after the New York Knicks had inbounded the ball to try to figure out what was going on.
NBA head of officiating Monty McCutchen felt that the game officials were not authoritative enough and got themselves into a mess as a result.
“You have to run the game with a certain authority that isn’t overly authoritative, which can be off-putting, but also not to be in a situation in which you allow confusion, which is exactly what happened,” McCutchen said on ESPN’s “NBA Today.” “I think we contributed to the confusion by not being more authoritative in that regard, and allowed someone who thought they were coming in to come in.
“It should have been you are not allowed into the game, make sure he is clear that he is not allowed in the game, or clear that he is allowed into the game. Because we did such a poor job of that administratively, I think it was best handled the way it was.”
Monty McCutchen on this moment:
— Oh No He Didn't (@ohnohedidnt24) June 9, 2026
"It should have been you are not allowed into the game make sure he is clear that he is not allowed in the game or clear that he is allowed into the game and because we did such a poor job of that administratively I think it was best handled the… https://t.co/ubdVwbFepO pic.twitter.com/Pts7hEy7br
One can certainly argue that the officials did not put their stamp on the game as much as they should have even before this point. Victor Wembanyama seemingly got away with a dirty move in the first half, and it was not until the second half that foul calls became more frequent, though that benefitted one team more than the other.
Regardless, the officiating in Game 3 left a lot to be desired. It’s never a great sign when the league’s head of officiating is on television the next day answering questions about where they messed up.
