The NBA on Thursday denied the Dallas Mavericks’ protest of their March 22 loss to the Golden State Warriors, which featured a confusing situation that Mavericks owner Mark Cuban called the “worst officiating non call mistake” in NBA history.
The Mavericks filed a protest of the game, which ended in a 127-125 score, following a bizarre scene late in the third quarter when Warriors forward Kevon Looney scored an uncontested two points after an inbounds pass. According to Cuban, Looney was unfettered on the basket attempt because the Mavericks were told they had possession of the ball.
As it turned out, they did not.
The Mavericks were on the other end of the court during the Looney basket, which proved the difference in a two-point game, because referees changed possession of the ball during a timeout, Cuban contended.
“Never said a word to us,” Cuban said. “They got an easy (basket). Crazy that it would matter in a 2-point game. Worst officiating non call mistake possibly in the history of the NBA. All they had to do was tell us and they didn’t.”
In a statement released by the NBA, the league said Cuban’s comments were “inaccurate” and that the Mavericks acknowledged possession had been granted to Golden State in their written submission.
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The NBA also said the Mavericks took the lead in the game twice after the Looney basket and therefore were not “deprived of a fair opportunity to win the game,” criteria necessary for a protest to be deemed valid.
The Mavericks’ protest failed on this basis alone, the NBA said.
Despite rejecting the protest, the NBA did acknowledge that on-court officials could have handled things better.
“The NBA concluded that although the game officials could have taken steps to better manage this particular situation, that did not provide a basis for the extraordinary remedy of upholding a game protest.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mavericks protest fails after Mark Cuban comments on loss to Warriors