Knicks vs Pacers missed calls collage

Game 1 of Knicks vs Pacers was a horrific officiating disasterclass

Jesus Christ, it’s happening again. Game 1 between the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks went down to the wire, and right when things looked grim for New York, the refs jumped in to save them from potential defeat on numerous occasions.

Game 1 of Knicks vs Pacers was an officiating disasterclass from start to finish:

Let’s start with what may very well be the most important play of the whole game. Despite happening in the first half, this obvious foul by Jalen Brunson was called correctly on the floor but was somehow overturned by a Tom Thibodeau challenge.

Not only was that call incorrect, but it also allowed New York to retain their challenge, which they used successfully later in the game. It’s funny how that works.

But that’s not all folks. Let’s jump ahead to the fourth quarter.

Tie game. Less than one minute left in the game. Indiana forces a textbook turnover, and the refs somehow call it a kick ball, allowing New York to keep possession.

Of course, that call then led to a Donte DiVincenzo three, because of course it did. This is the New York Knicks we’re talking about! The bullshit call to game-altering play pipeline is firmly intact here in the second round.

Speaking of DiVincenzo, get this man his Primetime Emmy. Indiana had possession down one with the shot clock turned off. Before they could even get into their action to try and take the lead, DiVincenzo sold the softest moving pick I’ve ever seen as if it was a brutal foul.

Is Donte DiVincenzo okay?? It looked less like he got caught by a moving screen (he didn’t) and more like he took a .50 cal bullet from Chris Kyle himself.

To make matters worse, if you look closely at the play that was ruled a kick ball before his three-point make, DiVincenzo himself set a moving screen. That should have either been a foul or a 4-on-2 fast break for the Pacers, but instead resulted in three points for the Knicks.

Nothing quite like wildly inconsistent officiating down the stretch in the playoffs!

And the nonsense isn’t just limited to these moments. Brunson himself shot 14 free throws, only five fewer than the entire Pacers team.

I haven’t seen an undersized guard foul bait like this since Trae Young in 2021. I mean, it’s seriously ridiculous stuff to witness.

And don’t even get me started on the two points from Tyrese Halliburton that were disallowed. He clearly got the shot off before the buzzer. We have video and photographic evidence proving it. But even that’s somehow not enough.

The refs on the court can’t do their job, and the replay team in New York can’t do theirs either. What the hell is going on with NBA officials? It’s like if the game isn’t a blowout, they can’t do anything without leaving their fingerprints all over the result.

Don’t get me wrong, the Pacers absolutely could have been better tonight. Tyrese Halliburton scored a grand total of 6 points. That’s obviously not going to get it done.

But if there’s a flurry of calls that go the Knicks way in the last two minutes, regardless of how the rest of the game has gone, how does that feel like it’s anything other than rigged?

At some point, something’s got to give.

Gear up in the TLL Shop

Very real and legitimate journalist. I don't see a loss on the schedule.

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