As expected, the NBA officially denied a protest by New York challenging the result of its Feb. 12 loss in Houston. The Rockets (25-33) and Knicks (35-24) remain with their current records.
In postgame comments, league officials acknowledged a last-second shooting foul on Jalen Brunson should not have been called. The game was tied at 103, and without that call, the game would have gone to overtime. Instead, Rockets guard Aaron Holiday went to the free-throw line, where he scored the winning points.
Here’s the NBA’s explanation as to why the protest was denied:
The Knicks protested the result of the game on the ground that a shooting foul was called incorrectly on the Knicks’ Jalen Brunson for making contact with the Rockets’ Aaron Holiday during a last-second shot attempt.
Under the standard for NBA game protests, New York was required to demonstrate that there was a misapplication of the official playing rules, as opposed to an error in judgment by game officials.
Because the foul call at issue reflected an error in judgment, New York did not demonstrate a misapplication of the playing rules, and the extraordinary remedy of upholding a game protest was not warranted.
In contrast, in December 2019, a protest from the Rockets actually did meet the league’s standard for a misapplication of the rules. In that one, then-coach Mike D’Antoni was incorrectly denied an ability to challenge a call when James Harden’s made fourth-quarter dunk was not counted (the game finished tied after regulation, and Houston eventually lost by two points, i.e. the margin of that dunk).
“While agreeing that the referees misapplied the rules, Commissioner (Adam) Silver determined that the Rockets had sufficient time to overcome the error during the remainder of the fourth quarter and two subsequent overtime periods … and thus, the extraordinary remedy of granting a game protest was not warranted,” the league said in its announcement at the time.
Now, over four years later, Houston finds itself on the other side.
The following has been released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/zdF29Swrva
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) February 28, 2024
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