The Portland Trail Blazers are filing a protest with the NBA to challenge the outcome of a 111-109 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night, sources told ESPN.
The Blazers maintain that coach Chauncey Billups, with a 109-108 lead, was clearly calling a timeout on the bench before a referee called a double dribble on guard Malcolm Brogdon with 15.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter in Oklahoma City.
In response, Billups reacted angrily to what he believed was a failure to honor his timeout request. He received two technical fouls, including a second after coming onto the court to argue, and was ejected in the final seconds of the game.
“We have timeouts,” Billups said afterward. “Referees are usually prepared for that, you know, that case, that situation. I'm at half court, trying to call a timeout. It's just frustrating. My guys played too hard for that. It's a frustrating play.” .
According to an interview in the group's report, crew chief Bill Kennedy said Billups was not granted a timeout because the referee was focused on the play in front of him, making it “difficult” for him to hear and see the request. by Billups.
“The referee in the slot position was refereeing the double team that was right in front of him, which makes it difficult for No. 1 to hear and for No. 2 to see a coach call a timeout behind him” . Kennedy said. “He is taught to officiate the play until its completion, when a double dribble occurs, and he correctly calls the double dribble and then accordingly [to that] technical fouls are brought forward.”
The Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made one of two technical free throws to tie the score at 109-109, and Jalen Williams scored with 2.1 seconds left to secure the victory.
Portland fell to 12-31 with the loss. The Blazers and Thunder play one more time this season: March 6 in Portland.
An NBA team has 48 hours to file a protest with the league office and five days to submit evidence of the protested action. After that, the league office has five more days to make a decision. Filing a protest costs the team $10,000 and is refunded if successful.
The NBA has not supported protests often in its history: only six times, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The last time was on December 19, 2007, when Miami Heat center Shaquille O'Neal was incorrectly convicted of six fouls when he only had five. The game resumed on March 8, 2008, but neither team scored in the 51.9 seconds of overtime and the Hawks won 114-111. Before play resumed, O'Neal had been traded to the Phoenix Suns.
