NBA Denies Dallas Mavericks’ Protest After Loss To Golden State Warriors

The NBA formally denied the Dallas Mavericks’ protest of their 127-125 loss to the Golden State Warriors on March 22, 2023. In a statement released Thursday, the league said the Mavericks’ protest did not meet the normal circumstances to warrant a protest.

In an impromptu media session with reporters before the Mavericks took on the Sacramento Kings Wednesday night, Mavericks Governor Mark Cuban expressed optimism
optimism
that the NBA would see that he was right to protest the game’s outcome. However, he didn’t expect that the game would be replayed.

Cuban’s protest stems from an incident with under two minutes to play in the third quarter. The Warriors had possession of the ball and inbounded it under their basket, leading to a Kevon Looney dunk. No Mavericks players were on that side of the court, mistakenly believing it was their possession. Cuban blamed the confusion on the referees on Twitter after the game.

“For those wondering about the play with 1:54 to go on the 3rd, let me explain what happened,” Cuban tweeted. “The ref called Mavs ball. The announcer announced it. Then there was a timeout. During the time out, the official changed the call and never told us.

“Then, when they saw us line up as if it were our ball, he just
just
gave the ball to the warriors. Never said a word to us. They got an easy basketball. Crazy that it would matter in a 2 point game. Worst officiating noncall mistake possibly in the history of the NBA. All they had to do was tell us, and they didn’t.”

However, the league said the play did not negatively affect the game’s outcome. In its statement, the NBA states, “Dallas thereafter took the lead twice in the final four minutes.” Therefore, “…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…”

While the Mavericks and Cuban did not receive the outcome they hoped for, the league did admit that “game officials could have taken steps to better manage this particular situation.”