With the Pacers and New York Knicks tied at 115 and 52 seconds left, Aaron Nesmith seemed to deflect a pass from Jalen Brunson intended for Donte DiVincenzo
Although the Pacers could have gained possession, referee Sean Wright ruled that Nesmith kicked the ball, allowing the Knicks to keep it. The Knicks then took the lead 12 seconds later when DiVincenzo made a crucial 3-pointer, securing a 121-117 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
After the game, crew chief Zach Zarba admitted the call was wrong. “On the floor, we thought it was a kicked ball violation,” Zarba said. “But the postgame review revealed that it hit the defender’s hand, which is legal.”
Zarba also clarified that the Pacers couldn’t challenge the call, as challenges can only be used for fouls, goaltending, and out-of-bounds situations.
The Pacers felt another call went against them later, when Myles Turner was charged with an offensive foul for setting a pick that knocked DiVincenzo down with 12 seconds remaining. Indiana did challenge that call, but it was upheld upon review.
“In my time in this league, I believe it’s better to let the players determine the game’s outcome,” Turner stated. “It’s disappointing that it happened… they called it an illegal screen. It’s playoffs. DiVincenzo did a good job selling it. Mostly, we shouldn’t rely solely on referees to decide games. We need to take responsibility too. We know we shouldn’t have let it get to that point.”
The Pacers successfully challenged another call, overturning a foul on Tyrese Haliburton when the game was tied at 113-all with 1:51 left.
“I think the two controversial calls, we had to use our challenge on one call (on) Tyrese, then the kicked ball on Aaron Nesmith that was not a kickball. You can clearly see that on the replays,” Turner continued. “So, it’s unfortunate but we can’t put ourselves in that position.”
