On Christmas Day, the Warriors-Cavaliers rivalry was given a new layer thanks to a few choice calls by the refs towards the tail end of the close contest. While the Warriors would go on to win the game by a score of 99-92, the victory was controversial given the apparent missed foul calls on LeBron James in the final two minutes.
Almost everyone thought that Kevin Durant hacked James despite the no-calls on the floor. Apparently, even the NBA did. The following day, the NBA released its "Last Two Minute Report" for the game that indicated that four calls had been missed by the officials in the last 1:12 including two fouls that should have been given to Durant for his encounters with James.
This past Wed., Warriors forward Draymond Green was asked about the NBA reporting the missed calls and had his own opinion on the entire situation calling the report "pointless."
In a video posted by The Mercury News' Mark Medina on Twitter, Green would go on to say, "Why would you just address the last two minutes of the game. What about the call that was missed in the first quarter? What about the call that was missed in the third quarter?"
Green does have a solid point here. Although a lot of the game's most pivotal moments do take place late in the game, it is somewhat foolish to hone in on two minutes of a game that could have been riddled with missed calls and momentum shifts. Furthermore, it's not like the NBA admitting they were wrong alters the outcome in any way. The Warriors still won. The Cavaliers still lost. The only thing these "Last Two Minute Reports" successfully accomplish is calling out human error and giving players and fans more of a reason to be angry about a close outcome.
James and Durant have also been vocal about the incident. After the game, James said, "But whatever. What are you doing to do about it?" Durant took the defensive route by saying the play in question "felt clean" to him.
At the end of the day, this is all just more fuel to add to the fire of the likely third straight NBA Finals matchup between the two teams this June.
