NBA admits blown call on key Rockets turnover late in Game 3

Before P.J. Tucker’s turnover, the NBA says Oklahoma City guard Dennis Schroder fouled Houston’s Eric Gordon away from the play.

The most impactful play of Saturday’s Game 3 loss by the Rockets to Oklahoma City was an inbounds turnover from P.J. Tucker with 24.4 seconds left. At the time, Houston led the game, 103-101, and the Thunder should have had to foul to prevent time from running out.

Had the Rockets had been fouled and made the ensuing free throws, they would have gone ahead by multiple possessions in the closing seconds. That didn’t happen, of course, because Tucker’s inbounds pass sailed out of bounds, giving the ball to OKC with only a two-point deficit.

On Sunday, the NBA said that turnover should never have occurred, had the game been officiated correctly. According to the Last Two Minute report, which reviews all officiating judgments in the final two minutes of close games, Oklahoma City’s Dennis Schroder fouled Houston’s Eric Gordon during the sequence. The report reads:

Schroder (OKC) wraps his right arm across the front of Gordon’s (HOU) body, which dislodges him during the inbound.

Gordon went to the ground, which led to him being unable to retrieve Tucker’s pass. Because it would have been an away-from-the-play foul (just as Chris Paul’s foul of James Harden during the previous inbounds play, which the report deemed correct), the Rockets should have had a free throw and possession of the basketball afterward.

In other words, it should have been Houston’s ball with 24.4 seconds left, most likely leading by three points. Instead, it was Oklahoma City’s ball, trailing by only two. The significance of the blown call was massive. Had the Rockets won, they would’ve been up 3-0 in the best-of-seven series, which no team in the history of the NBA playoffs has ever recovered from. As it is, the Thunder cut Houston’s first-round lead to a 2-1 margin.

After the blown call, the Thunder went on to force overtime, where they won with ease after Harden fouled out in the first minute.

The overtime period even had its own officiating controversy, when officials declined to review (without giving a reason) Chris Paul’s below-the-belt shot against Ben McLemore. Saturday’s NBA officiating crew was comprised of David Guthrie, Ed Malloy, and Leon Wood.

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At Sunday’s practice, Gordon shook his head when told of the judgment. “I hate to even talk about that,” he said. “Because as strong as I am, ain’t nobody going to throw me to the ground. Just got to move on.”

Game 4 between the Rockets and Thunder tips off at 3:00 p.m. Central on Monday, with a national broadcast on TNT and a regional version (with Houston announcers) on AT&T SportsNet Southwest.

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