NBA admits officiating error in Spurs’ loss to Blazers – San Antonio Express-News
Jakob Poeltl, DeMar DeRozan and Gregg Popovich had plenty to say to the referees at the end of the Spurs’ 107-106 loss to Portland on Friday.
Turns out they were in the right.
The Spurs wanted to know why the Blazers’ Robert Covington wasn’t called for a foul while defending Poeltl’s potential game-winning 17-foot jumper with three-tenths of a second left.
On Saturday, the NBA’s Last Two Minute report for the game revealed the officials should have whistled Covington for a foul.
“Covington makes contact to Poeltl’s arm that affects his jump shot attempt,” the report stated.
Poeltl’s miss capped a wild sequence in which DeRozan, who finished with 26 points, missed a 15-foot-jumper with 9.2 seconds left and Rudy Gay missed a 3-point attempt with 3.2 seconds left. Poeltl got the rebound after both times and let fly with an awkward attempt after the second one.
“It looked like when Jakob was getting the rebound, he got hit,” DeRozan said. “But I also felt the last couple of possessions, we were trying to come down and be aggressive, and we didn’t get a call. I especially thought Jakob’s shot attempt was a foul.”
Even if a foul had been called on Covington, there’s no guarantee Poeltl would have sank either of the two free throws. The 7-foot-1 center has hit just 41.9 percent of his charity shots this season, although he did sink his only attempt of the game, completing an old-fashioned 3-point play with 5:47 left in the third period.
Aldridge’s retirement surprised ex-teammate
DeRozan called the retirement announcement made by LaMarcus Aldridge last week “definitely shocking” after it came just days after the two had a pleasant phone conversation.
“I just talked to him last week about how happy he was and me telling him how happy I was for him, just checking on him,” DeRozan said. “So it was definitely surprising to see what happened.”
Aldridge, a seven-time All-Star, called it quits after 15 seasons because of health concerns. After signing with Brooklyn after the Spurs bought him out, Aldridge experienced an irregular heartbeat in his final game with the Nets.
“For 15 years I’ve put basketball first, and now, it is time to put my health and my family first,” he wrote in a letter announcing his retirement that he posted on social media.
Aldridge, 35, and DeRozan, 31, were teammates in San Antonio for the past two and a half seasons.
“I had a great time with him,” DeRozan said. “Hell of a player … a dynamic player, in my opinion, a Hall of Famer. To be able to play with him was definitely an honor. I wish him nothing but the best and more success off the floor. I am glad I gained a friendship with him.”
Murray shrugs off triple-double feat
With 13 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists against Portland, point guard Dejounte Murray became just the fourth player in Spurs history to record three or more triple-doubles in a season.
Johnny Moore was the first, notching five triple-doubles in 1984-85. David Robinson had four in 1993-94 and Alvin Robertson three in 1985-86.
Murray was in no mood to discuss his achievement after the close loss.
“Even if we won, it wouldn’t matter to me,” he said. “I am here to do my job. I get paid to play basketball and go out and produce and get better every year, so that’s my job.”
DeRozan downplays dust-up with Kanter
DeRozan described his dust-up with Blazers big man Enes Kanter late in the third period as “friendly competition.”
They jawed at each other after battling for a loose ball in the paint during a Portland possession. Teammates pulled them apart, but that didn’t stop the officials from hitting each player with a technical foul.
“I was able to play in the league early on where that was the norm and it wouldn’t be a double technical,” DeRozan said. “It’s just the era I grew up in, a little physicality, a little aggression, doesn’t hurt anybody. It’s good for the sport.”
Mills joins elite group
Patty Mills played in his 650th game for the Spurs on Friday.
Only five other players have reached that threshold with the Silver and Black: Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Robinson, George Gervin and Sean Elliott.
Mills is in his 10th season with the Spurs, making him the longest-tenured player on the current roster. He joined the Spurs in March 2012 after spending his first two seasons with Portland.
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Twitter: @tom_orsborn