Golden State coach Steve Kerr said a mistake he made in his team’s NBA Cup loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night was “ruthless” and that an elementary school judge didn’t care.
WARRIORS LOSE TO ROCKET IN THE LAST SECONDS AFTER A LOS BALL FOUL CALL 😱 pic.twitter.com/zCYuyiBXJD
– Bleacher-Bericht (@BleacherReport) December 12, 2024
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After Stephen Curry missed a three-pointer with Golden State within a point with 11 seconds left, Gary Payton II grabbed the offensive rebound but turned the ball over with a pass that Jalen Green intercepted. Then Jonathan Kuminga was called for a foul on Green while they were on the floor, which gave Green two free throws that gave Houston a 91-90 victory and an exit from the NBA Cup Semifinals.
“I’m crazy,” Kerr said. “I wanted to reach (the semifinals) in Las Vegas. We wanted to win this trophy and we won’t because a loose ball foul was 80 feet from the basket and the game was on the line. I’ve never done that before.” I’ve seen something like that in my life and it was ridiculous.
Kerr said it should have either been a jump ball or the Rockets should have called the timeout they tried to call.
“Our guys fought back, did their best and deserved to win the game or at least have a chance for a stop at the end to end the game,” he said. “And that was taken away from us by a call that I don’t think a high school referee would have made. Because this guy would have sensed and said, “You know what, I’m not going to decide a game with a loose ball 80 feet from the basket.”
Crew chief Billy Kennedy was asked why the foul was called.
“The defender makes contact with the neck and shoulder area, which warrants a personal foul,” Kennedy said.
Kerr railed against the referee for about two minutes after the game, complaining about what he said was a clear foul on Curry that wasn’t called earlier.
“The game was a complete wrestling match,” Kerr said. “They didn’t call anything. Steph Curry got hit in the elbow on a jump shot like he did that day, just hit it and didn’t make any calls. So you’ve found that you just don’t want to call anything the whole game, that’s it.” A physical game. So you’re going to call a loose-ball foul in a jump-ball situation where guys are jumping to the ground while the game is on the line?”
Houston played 15 games against the Warriors and won the series for the first time since February 2020, when James Harden and Russell Westbrook led the Rockets.
In Wednesday’s second quarterfinal, Trae Young had 22 points and 11 assists, De’Andre Hunter and Jalen Johnson starred in the Knicks’ frontcourt, and the Atlanta Hawks continued their surprising NBA Cup streak, defeating New York 108 at Madison Square Garden: 100.
Hunter scored 24 points and Johnson had 21 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists for the Hawks, who were perhaps the surprise team of the tournament after defeating the defending champion Celtics in Boston and the NBA leaders Cleveland Cavaliers in group play to reach the Knockout. Stage as number 3 in the East.
But the game will most likely be remembered for Young’s celebration at the end of the game, when he knelt on the Knicks logo and pretended to roll the dice to celebrate his team’s advance to Vegas. In 2021, he drew the ire of Knicks fans after eliminating New York from the playoffs by bowing and waving goodbye to the crowd at Madison Square Garden.
“We’re going to Vegas, so I had to do this,” Young said, referring to his dice celebration. “I planned it with my little brother a few days ago. We had talked about it and I knew what I wanted to do.”
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson said he had no problem with the celebration. “We should win the game if we don’t want him to do that.”
NBA Cup semifinals
Atlanta Hawks vs. Milwaukee Bucks
Houston Rockets gegen Oklahoma City Thunder
