So… what now?
After another dramatic finish in the Knicks and Pistons first round series, the NBA has reportedly admitted it missed a call that would’ve put Detroit’s Tim Hardaway Jr. on the line with three chances to tie or win the game.
Following Cade Cunningham’s miss in the final 10 seconds, the Pistons were able to scramble for a rebound and get it out to Hardaway Jr. who was spotting up in the corner.
Knicks guard Josh Hart appeared to make contact with Hardaway’s shooting arm but no whistle was blown and Detroit ended up going down 3-1 instead of potentially evening things up 2-2.
Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff was beside himself after the non-call — as was the rest of the team’s bench. And now according to Brad Rowland, officials owned up to their mistake in the postgame pool report.
i am sure pistons fans will be satisfied with this in a season-changing game
(from the pool report) pic.twitter.com/dLgvCVp3gg
— Brad Rowland (@BTRowland) April 27, 2025
Speaking to the Detroit News‘ Coty Davis, crew chief David Guthrie was asked about the final play and here’s what he had to say:
“During live play, it was judged that Josh Hart made a legal defensive play. After postgame review, we observed that Hart makes body contact that is more than marginal to Hardaway Jr. and a foul should have been called.”
Unfortunately for the Pistons, that doesn’t change the result and they head back to Madison Square Garden with the chance of their season ending on Tuesday night.
You hate to see games end with situations like these. Although the argument can be made that it was a physical contest all afternoon and that there were a lot of fouls that could’ve and should’ve been called (especially in the second half).
It’s also worth noting too that Hardaway passed up on two free points because he tried to dunk the ball instead of taking an easy layup before time expired in the third quarter — and the Pistons lost by one.
© Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Either way Detroit will have to put this one behind them quickly if they want any chance of extending the series past five games.
Game 5 takes place on April 29 at 7:30 PM ET with Shaq and the crew on TNT.
Related: LeBron James Is Getting Ripped For ‘Dirty’ Play On Sunday