Midway through last season, the NBA began releasing what it calls “Last Two Minute Reports” for all games that are within five points at the two-minute mark of the fourth quarter — a rundown of notable calls and no-calls that directly or indirectly influenced the final result.
It’s safe to say the report for Monday night’s Oklahoma City Thunder-San Antonio Spurs game will be voluminous.
The final sequence of Game 2 of the teams’ second-round playoff series featured no-call after no-call after no-call, with players on both sides, the clock operator and even a fan in the front row committing unpenalized infractions. The result was a 98-97 Thunder victory that evened the best-of-seven series at one game apiece and handed the Spurs just their second home loss of the season.
Here’s how it all went down:
There’s a lot — and we do mean a lot — to dissect here. So, let’s break it all down from the moment the referee hands inbounder Dion Waiters the ball at the 0:03 mark of the above video to the final buzzer at 0:22.
0:03: The whistle blows to begin the play. Waiters is guarded by Manu Ginobili.
0:06: As Waiters tries to locate an open Thunder teammate, Patty Mills bear-hugs Steven Adams (illegal), and Kawhi Leonard grabs a handful of Russell Westbrook’s jersey (also illegal).
0:07: Waiters throws a forearm shiver into the Ginobili’s chest (obviously illegal), then leaves his feet as he lofts an inbounds pass toward teammate Kevin Durant (a more obscure skirting of the rules, but illegal nonetheless), narrowly avoiding a five-second violation. Replays later showed, however, that Ginobili’s left foot touched the out-of-bounds line while he was guarding Waiters, which, you guessed it, also is illegal.
0:09: Danny Green mauls Durant (illegal) and picks off Waiters’ pass, giving San Antonio possession. The clock also begins running before either player touches the ball, which should have resulted in a reset.
0:16: Gilobili flips a behind-the-back pass to Mills in the corner. Adams gives chase.
0:20: Mills’ 3-point attempt misses short after a clean contest by Adams, and both players tumble to the front row. As Adams attempts to rejoin the play, a female fan — the game was being played in San Antonio — grabs his right arm.
0:22: Serge Ibaka fouls LaMarcus Aldridge under the basket (illegal) and grabs the rebound.
0:23: Time expires. Thunder win.
The fact that not a single foul was called during that entire sequence is baffling, with Waiters’ push-off being the most egregious. Head referee Ken Mauer admitted as much after the game, saying he and his crew were wrong not to penalize the Thunder guard.
“On the floor, we did not see a foul on the play,” Mauer told a pool reporter, via ESPN.com. “However, upon review we realize and we agree we should have had an offensive foul on the play. It’s a play we’ve never seen before, ever. We should have had an offensive foul on the play.”
Oklahoma City certainly wasn’t complaining. After getting their doors blown off in a 124-92 loss in Game 1, the Thunder now head back home all square with a Spurs team that had won each of its first five playoff games by an average of 24 points.
Thumbnail photo via Soobum Im/USA TODAY Sports Images
