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Chris Paul’s ejection with 6.6 seconds left typified the Golden State Warriors’ frustrations in their 123-111 home loss to the Indiana Pacers on Friday, March 22, which cut their lead over the Houston Rockets for the last play-in spot to just two games.
“He was talking to me, I talked back,” Paul told reporters of referee Tony Brothers after the loss. “I called him a ‘TikToker’ and then I got [the first technical foul]. The second one, I just said, ‘That’s too much power’ and he gave me another [technical foul].”
Paul then posted one of Brothers’ TikTok videos on his Instagram Story after the game to prove his point.
Not the First Time Chris Paul Feuds With Referee
Paul’s incident with Brothers, which was born out of the frustration of another disappointing home loss for the Warriors, cannot compare to his highly publicized beef with Scott Foster, another veteran NBA referee.
Paul’s feud with Foster is “personal,” according to Paul after Foster ejected him in a November 22 loss to the Phoenix Suns early in the season.
“It’s personal,” Paul said of his long-running feud with Foster, which dates back to his Los Angeles Clippers days. “We had a situation some years ago, and it’s personal.”
“The league knows, everybody knows, and it’s been a meeting and all that. It’s a situation with my son and so, yeah. I’m OK with a ref talking, saying whatever, just don’t use a tech to get your point across. I gotta do a better job making sure I stay on the floor for my teammates. But, yeah, that’s that.”
Friday’s ejection was Paul’s eighth in his 19-year career.
The 12-time All-Star guard left the game with 12 points off the bench on a 5 of 10 shooting night. He added 6 rebounds and 4 assists for the Warriors, who have lost five of their last eight games.
Home Unsweet Home
The loss dropped Golden State’s record at home to 18-19 — a concerning trend for the Warriors, who built their dynasty with superior home records in their last four championship seasons.
| Warriors’ Home Record During Championship Years Under Steve Kerr | |
| 2022 | 31-10 |
| 2018 | 29-12 |
| 2017 | 36-5 |
| 2015 | 39-2 |
“[We’re] disappointed, obviously, in this homestand. We were hoping to get all three and we only got one and that’s put us in a tough spot,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr lamented to reporters after the loss.
The Warriors got off to a hot start against the Pacers, leading by 12 in the first half. But they began to unravel in the third quarter where the Pacers outscored them 36-21.
Indiana’s defense held Stephen Curry to 9 of 24 shooting for 25 points.
“Any time you hold Steph Curry to under 30 in his building, you’ve done an amazing job,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle told reporters, praising Andrew Nembhard’s defense on Curry.
But it was not only Curry who put up a stinker.
Jonathan Kuminga was also limited to 4 of 17 as the Warriors’ rising forward only finished with 11 points, his lowest scoring output since putting up six points in their 140-88 loss in Boston on March 3.
“Before you go on a long road trip, [you have] the opportunity to protect your home court,” Curry told reporters. “We talked about that so many times. We didn’t do it.”
The Warriors will go on a five-game road trip that could make or break their season to end this month.
Their first three stops will be against playoff-contending teams — at Minnesota on March 24, at Miami on March 26 and at Orlando on March 27.
The last two games of the gauntlet will be against lottery-bound teams Charlotte Hornets (March 29) and San Antonio Spurs (March 31).
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