NBA Admits Four Crucial Officiating Mistakes in Clippers’ Loss to Heat

Max Strus should have gone to the free-throw line with the Los Angeles Clippers up two and 5.7 seconds left in overtime. Instead, his layup missed, the Miami Heat got the ball back and Klay Thompson hit a game-winning 3-pointer.

The NBA identified four missed calls in its Last Two Minute Report from Wednesday’s 117-116 Miami win at Intuit Dome. All four favored the Heat.

Three would have resulted in Miami turnovers, and the fourth would have given Strus two free throws with a chance to extend the Clippers’ lead to four.

The last missed call came with the Clippers leading 116-114. Strus went up for a layup, and the league determined that Bam Adebayo made contact with his arm and affected the shot. Officials let play continue, and Giannis Antetokounmpo secured the rebound. 

Strus then fouled Antetokounmpo with 3.3 seconds remaining. The league ruled that foul was correctly called.

Miami took a timeout, and Antetokounmpo found Thompson in the left corner on the ensuing inbound pass. Thompson hit his eighth 3-pointer of the night with one second left, and Kobe Sanders missed a desperation shot at the buzzer.

The missed shooting foul mattered because it took away the Clippers’ chance to make it a two-possession game. Had Strus made both free throws, Miami would have been down four on its next possession.

Even one make would have meant Thompson’s three could only tie the game if Miami scored on the ensuing trip.

The first error came with 1:15 left in regulation, when Antetokounmpo stayed in the lane longer than three seconds. The league flagged him for the same violation with 1:06 left in overtime.

That second miss came after a Darius Garland floater put the Clippers up 116-112. Adebayo scored inside on the possession to cut the lead to two. 

Between those two plays, the officials missed a travel on Davion Mitchell with 1:50 left in overtime. The league determined that Mitchell moved his pivot foot before releasing the ball to begin his dribble.

A whistle would have given Los Angeles possession after Garland had opened the extra period’s scoring with a jumper.

The Clippers had built a 20-point lead in the first half and still led by 10 with about four and a half minutes left in regulation. Miami answered with a 9-0 run to set up the close finish.

Garland led Los Angeles with 26 points and seven assists, while Adebayo finished with 35 points and 10 rebounds and Thompson scored 30. The loss dropped the Clippers to 1-7, with seven straight defeats since their season-opening win over Sacramento.