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The New York Knicks will not take Monday night’s controversial 105-103 loss in Houston sitting down especially with the officiating crew chief Ed Malloy and the NBA Last 2 Minute Report acknowledging they made a mistake — strong evidence to back a protest.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Knicks are filing a protest to contest the “wrong” foul called on Jalen Brunson which led to Aaron Holiday canning the winning free throws with 0.3 seconds left.
The Knicks are seeking an overtime to be played.
“In live action, it was felt that the lower body contact was illegal,” Malloy said in the NBA pool report. “After seeing it during [the] postgame review, the offensive player was able to return to a normal playing position on the floor. The contact which occurred after the release of the ball therefore is incidental and marginal to the shot attempt and should not have been called.”
The Last 2 Minute Report also backed up Malloy’s acknowledgment, saying “Brunson legally contests Holiday’s shot. Holiday released his shot before contact with Brunson and is able to return to a normal floor position.”
History of NBA Protests
Per NBA Hoops Online, there have been 35 protests filed in the NBA since 1952. Only eight have been upheld and ordered a replay.
The last time a game was replayed was in 2008 between the Atlanta Hawks and the Miami Heat. They re-played the final 51.9 seconds of their December 19, 2007 game because the official scorer incorrectly ruled Shaquille O’Neal fouled out. It was the first time since 1982 that a protest was upheld.
Since 2019, three protests have failed with the last one from Dallas Mavericks last year.
The Mavericks filed a protest, contesting their 127-125 loss to the Golden State Warriors on March 22, 2023, claiming that the officials did not properly administer an out-of-bounds call with approximately two minutes remaining in the third quarter, resulting in an uncontested basket for Golden State.
The league denied the Mavericks’ protest, citing that “under these circumstances, Dallas was not able to show — as required under the standard for NBA game protests — that it was deprived of a fair opportunity to win the game, and the protest failed on that basis alone.”
The Knicks’ protest, in contrast, has legs with Malloy’s and the Last 2 Minute Report acknowledgment they made the wrong call.
How Does NBA Protest Works
According to the NBA official rules for the 2023-24 season, a team can file a protest within 48 hours after the conclusion of the game. The protesting team is required to issue a $25,000 bond, which can be refunded when the protest is upheld and forfeited when it is denied.
“Upon receipt of a protest, the Commissioner shall at once notify the member operating the opposing team in the game protested and require both of said members within five (5) days to file with him such evidence as he may desire bearing upon the issue. The Commissioner shall decide the question raised within five (5) days after receipt of such evidence.”
Monday’s meeting between the Knicks and the Rockets was their last for the season. So in the event the Knicks win their protest, the overtime will be played outside their remaining regular-season schedule.
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