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After the game, the head of the game crew, Ed Malloy, admitted that the foul call was incorrect. The league’s Last Two Minute Report, which records all calls made in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter, also acknowledged the error.
Feb 28, 2024, 04:32 PM ET
At the end of the game, Knicks player Jalen Brunson tied the score by making a 15-foot shot with 8.1 seconds left. In a last-ditch effort, Aaron Holiday took a shot before the buzzer, but was fouled by Brunson. Holiday broke the tie by making two free throws with 0.3 seconds left and intentionally missing the third to let the clock run out.
The league stated that New York had to prove that there was a mistake in the application of the official rules of the game, rather than a mistake made by the game officials. Since the call in question was determined to be a judgment error, New York failed to show a misapplication of the rules and the extreme action of upholding a game protest was not necessary.
The New York Knicks’ game protest against the Houston Rockets’ 105-103 victory earlier this month was rejected by the NBA on Wednesday.
Only six protests have been upheld in NBA history, with the most recent coming in late 2007, when Miami Heat center Shaquille O’Neal was ruled to incorrectly have six instead of five fouls in a game against the Atlanta Hawks. That game was resumed several months later to play the remaining 51.9 seconds from the incorrect call. Neither team scored, and the Hawks’ 114-111 win stood. By that time, O’Neal had been traded to the Phoenix Suns.
The league confirmed that the referees made a mistake, but not in a way that would support a protest.Field Level Media
The Knicks submitted a protest to the league in order to challenge their loss on Feb. 12. They raised concerns about the accuracy of the foul call made in the last second, which impacted the final score.