of portland trail blazers have filed a formal complaint with the NBA On the officiating at the end of Tuesday night's 111-109 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
With less than 20 seconds left and the Blazers leading by one point, Portland guard Malcolm Brogdon was trapped by two Thunder defenders as he crossed halfcourt. Blazers coach Chauncey Billups tried to call a timeout, but the referee was focused on the play and called for a double dribble from Brogdon.
Billups lashed out at the referee, earning two technical fouls and being ejected. Watch the sequence here:
After Shai Gilgeous-Alexander split two free throws due to a technical foul, the Thunder handed the ball to Jaylen Williams, who hit a pull-up mid-range jumper for the winning score. What a strange loss for the Blazers.
Watch Williams' winning match here:
Billups remained upset after the game.
“Umpires are usually prepared for situations like that.” Billups said after the game., via ESPN. “I'm in half court, trying to take a timeout. It's just frustrating. Our players played too hard for that. It's a frustrating play.”
The official pool report by referee Bill Kennedy explains why Billups did not take a timeout and why two technicians were given the whistle. Kennedy said Billups tried to call a timeout while the officials were watching the play and had their backs turned. He bumped into the referee twice and then received a technical foul for aggressively chasing him.
John Hollinger, who has worked in the NBA front office for many years, I have written “Billups wanted a TO, but you never take a timeout from behind a play like that. The referees can't hear you, they can't see you.”
With the win, the Thunder are now 30-13 overall and in a three-way tie for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. The Blazers fell to 12 wins and 31 losses, and will essentially be playing only internal development and ping pong balls for the rest of the year.
Just as good teams find ways to win close games, bad teams find ways to lose close games. The Blazers found a new and creative way to break up this win against OKC.
