Game Four of the San Antonio Spurs-Memphis Grizzlies series Saturday was an instant classic. It had an incredible duel between the Spurs’ Kawhi Leonard and the Grizzlies’ Mike Conley Jr., with the former scoring San Antonio’s final 16 points to force overtime and finishing with 43 points, and the latter notching 35 points and setting up Marc Gasol’s game-winner. It had huge runs from both teams, and big shots at both ends. However, it also had controversy, most notably inside the final two minutes. That’s where a Spurs’ shot hit the rim and they grabbed the rebound, but the shot clock wasn’t reset, which led to Patty Mills hurrying a shot and missing it:
As you can see in that clip, the Spurs then protested to no avail, including head coach Gregg Popovich arguing with the timekeepers in the image at up above. They had their reasons, though, as this was something that potentially had an impact. This game was so close, with so little margin for error either way. If the shot clock had been properly reset after the first shot struck the rim, the Spurs would have had a full possession, and they might have wound up with a better shot. The on-fire Leonard might have gotten the ball and made one, and that could have affected how things went down the stretch, potentially even letting San Antonio win in regulation.
Of course, it wouldn’t have been easy to remedy this after the fact, and even the correct call in the first place might not have led to Spurs’ points. It should also be noted that the shot clock horn incorrectly going off got Memphis’ defenders to stop, giving Mills a more open look than he might otherwise have had, so this is a mistake that easily could have swung the other way if he’d made the shot. Still, this kind of obviously-wrong call isn’t something you want to see in the NBA, especially late in a close playoff game. Here’s hoping we don’t get too many more situations like this this postseason.
[DefPenSports on Clippit]
