The Chicago Bulls’ 104-103 win against the Boston Celtics on Thursday came thanks to two Jimmy Butler free throws. On the final possession of the game, Butler fired a turnaround jump shot that missed, but one that was whistled for a foul when Marcus Smart touched his elbow.
Here’s the play.
Here’s one more look.
Down 1, Bulls given 2 FTs w/1 sec left after arguably the worst "it was technically the correct call i guess" whistle in recent NBA history pic.twitter.com/1eN1jkEk2N
— Rob Perez (@World_Wide_Wob) February 17, 2017
Technically, by the rulebook, making contact with a shooter (especially on his shooting hand) is a foul. There’s no doubt Marcus Smart made contact, but by the loosest, least notable definition of made contact that exists. You’d like to think that referees only call shooting fouls when the contact visibly affects a shot and limits the shooter’s chance to hit it. That sure didn’t see to be the case here, technicalities aside.
The clock doesn’t stop, so you can see time would have run out and the game would have been over if not for the foul call. Instead, Boston had only a second left and obviously failed to hit a game-winner.
Isaiah Thomas wasn’t pleased.
Isaiah Thomas calls last-second phantom foul call "f***ing horrible, bro." pic.twitter.com/6pqNmbtmPi
— The Crossover (@TheCrossover) February 17, 2017
Celtics fans won’t be, either.