Last 2 Minutes report shows Clippers got short end of stick Monday in loss to Thunder

J.J. Redick

J.J. Redick/Photo courtesy of Los Angeles Clippers

 

There were a couple of calls that did not go the Clippers’ way Monday night in their 100-99 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder at Staples Center.

The NBA’s L2M (Last 2 Minutes) report released Tuesday shows they were incorrect, and should have gone the Clippers’ way.

With 1:04 to play, the report shows that Dion Waiters should have been called for a foul when he grabbed J.J. Redick’s jersey before he shot and missed a 26-point 3-point attempt. The thing is, all the correct call would have done is give the Clippers the ball out of bounds because the Thunder were whistled for just one fourth-quarter foul, and the report indicated the foul took place before Redick “catches, plants and takes the shot.”

The Clippers were down 96-95 at the time.

Then, with 12.2 seconds left, Chris Paul makes a steal and awkward layup for a 99-98 lead. Paul complained there should have been a foul called on OKC’s Russell Westbrook, and this report agreed.

After the game, coach Doc Rivers was asked about the calls that went the other way.

“It’s frustrating,” he said. “It’s not like they’re (officials) … doing it on purpose. But these are games that in the West, you need every game. And so it gets very frustrating from a coaching standpoint.”

Paul was asked for a comment about the officiating, and all he said was, “I’ll save my money.”