Mark Cuban’s criticism of officials following the Mavericks’ 111-107 loss to the Hawks on Saturday is currently being reviewed by the NBA league office to determine whether or not the outspoken owner will face punishment. On Saturday, the Mavericks trailed the Hawks 109-107 when Trae Young attempted a layup that was whistled a goaltend, but Hawks’ forward John Collins rebounded the ball and scored after the whistle was blown. Upon review, officials determined there was no goaltend, but Collins basket would stand under NBA continuation rules. The Hawks went on to win 111-107.
The Mavericks have filed a petition citing a “misapplication of the rules” and are requesting to have the final 9.7 seconds of Saturday’s game replayed with the Hawks up 109-107. Following the game, a frustrated Cuban spoke with the Dallas Morning News regarding the blown call.
“One of the refs told one of the players it was an inadvertent whistle that came after the put-back – but everybody who was watching it said it came before the put-back,” Cuban said. “That’s neither here nor there because if it’s a goaltend and then it’s an inadvertent whistle, you stop play. But then they went and reviewed it. And they reviewed it for a goaltend. So either you can’t review it because it’s an inadvertent whistle, or you review it and it’s a goaltend, the play stops right there, unless there’s something I don’t know, and that’s always possible, but I’ve never seen anything like that.”
Before speaking to the media, Cuban released a series of harsh tweets referencing his distaste of the league’s officiating tactics just minutes after the game concluded:
Cuban has been fined on numerous occasions for bashing officials in the past, but this time he definitely has a point. He hasn’t been punished for any of his comments yet, but the league will review the case and decide if the Mavericks’ complaints are warranted.
