"They cheating for the Knicks" - Kobe Bryant's former teammate berates NBA after questionable officiating
Kobe Bryant's former teammate in the LA Lakers, Nick Young, called out the alleged questionable officiating during Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Final series between the New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers. Young took to X (formerly Twitter), to berate the NBA officials for allegedly favoring the Knicks during the match on Wednesday.
"They Cheating for the knicks," Young tweeted.
Game 2 of the series concluded with the Knicks clinching a 130-121 win to go up 2-0 in the series against the Pacers. While the game was still in doubt in the final minutes of the game, the officials reversed a double-dribble violation which was called on the Knicks that could have given the Pacers a key possession to clinch the game.
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle seemed to reach his tipping point after the reversed call, which led to him receiving two technicals and an ejection during the final moments of the match. A similar incident also took place in Game 1 of the series in which a kicked ball violation was wrongly called against the Pacers but was not corrected, which cost the Pacers three crucial points in the tight 121-117 contest.
During the post-game interview after Game 2, the Pacers coach called out the officiating and highlighted that "small-market teams deserve an equal shot." Carlisle also said that the Pacers identified 29 questionable calls from Game 1 but elected not to review them with the league officials.
"I decided not to submit them because I just felt like we'd get a more balanced whistle tonight. It didn't feel that way," Carlisle said (as per ESPN). "I'm always talking to our guys about not making it about the officials, but we deserve a fair shot."
Tyrese Haliburton does not blame officiating for Game 2 loss to Knicks
During the post-game interview, the Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton refused to blame the NBA officials for the outcome of the game. Though many key calls went against the Pacers, the two-time All-Star argued that they were positioned to win but were unable to finish right.
“At the end of the day, we got outplayed. We were right there to win the game," Haliburton said.
"Would I like more consistency (out of the officiating)? Yeah. But let’s not pretend that’s the reason we lost. We just didn’t play good enough."
Haliburton also said that he's not worried about being down 2-0 and evoked confidence ahead of Game 3 in which the Pacers will look to bounce back in the series on their home court.
"It’s 2–0. We’re going back to Indy. I like us in any matchup. I’m not worried."
The Pacers were up 10 points at the end of the first half. However, they fell 36-18 in the third quarter and were unable to bounce back in the final quarter to lose their second game of the series. Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers' losing effort with 34 points, six rebounds, nine assists, and three steals.