The NBA has confirmed that officials were correct in their decision to overturn the controversial charge call on Kevin Durant in the final minutes of Game 1.
Though the call on the court was originally ruled as a charge against Kevin Durant, the referees elected to review the play to make sure LeBron James, who Durant barreled into, was not in the restricted area. Upon consulting the video, the crew elected to change the call to a blocking foul on James, which they are within their rights to do according to the rules. Had the call not been overturned, the Cavs would’ve had the ball and a two point lead with 36.4 seconds remaining.
Here’s the league’s official statement via the two minute report:
“The crew was not reasonably certain whether James (CLE) was in the restricted area after an offensive foul was called against Durant (GSW). Upon replay review, it was confirmed that James was outside the restricted area. The referees also reviewed whether James was in a legal guarding position, which is an additional reviewable matter for this replay trigger. Replay showed James was not in a legal guarding position because he was turning his body and moving into Durant when contact occurred. Thus the initial call on the floor was overturned and James was assessed a blocking foul.”
The report did say one call was missed during the last two minutes of Thursday’s game. Draymond Green should’ve been called for a lane violation on Cleveland point guard George Hill’s second free-throw attempt with 4.7 seconds to play in regulation. Despite missing the call, the league deemed Green’s violation “incidental or immaterial.”
The Warriors and Cavs will face off in Game 2 on Sunday evening.
