Steve Kerr rips officials for 'unconscionable' foul call
The Warriors flamed out of the NBA Cup Wednesday night in chaotic, controversial fashion. They blew a seven-point lead in the final three minutes of the fourth quarter, but the game came down to a scramble and a foul on Jonathan Kuminga.
Up a point inside the final 15 seconds, Stephen Curry took a 3-pointer midway through the shot clock and missed. The rebound initially went to Gary Payton II, who recovered it, but tried to pass it on the ground instead of calling timeout. Steve Kerr's attempted timeout wasn't heard or seen by officials.
The ball ended up with Jalen Green on the floor, and a foul was called on Kuminga, who looked like he got a hand on the ball. Green made two free throws to take the lead, and Kerr, after the game, was apoplectic.
"I’ve never seen a loose ball foul on a jump ball situation 80 feet from the basket with the game on the line," Kerr said. "I’ve never seen that. I think I saw it in college one time 30 years ago. I’ve never seen it in the NBA. That is unconscionable. I don’t even understand what just happened. Loose ball, diving on the floor, 80 feet from the basket, and they’re going to give a guy two free throws to decide the game when people are scrambling for the ball. Just give them a timeout. Give them a timeout and let the players decide the game. That’s how you officiate. Especially because the game was a complete wrestling match. They didn’t call anything. Steph Curry got hit on the elbow plain as day on a jump shot. No call."
The Athletic's Anthony Slater shared Kerr's full soundbite, which can be found here. Kerr continued to say an elementary school referee would have done a better job.
“This is a billion-dollar industry," Kerr said. "You’ve got people’s jobs on the line. I am stunned. I give the Rockets credit. They battled back, they played great defense all night, but I feel for our guys. Our guys battled back. They played their asses off and deserved to win that game or at least have a chance for one stop at the end to finish the game. And that was taken from us by a call that I don’t think an elementary school ref would have made, because that guy would have had a feel and said, ‘You know what, I’m not going to decide a game on a loose ball 80 feet from the basket.’"
