The NBA says the officials were correct not to call a foul on the Cavaliers in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter against the Pistons, in a game Cleveland won in overtime.
“[Jarrett] Allen and [Ausar] Thompson legally step to the same spot while pursuing the loose ball [before either player has possession], and both lose their balance from the marginal contact,” the league said via its Last Two Minutes Report on Thursday.
Except that is not what happened.
As the video below shows, Allen tripped Thompson and committed a foul. Had the foul been called, Thompson would have gone to the free-throw line with the score tied 103-103 with less than a second to play.
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That’s a trip right there,” said game analyst Tim Legler on the replay. “There’s a couple of tenths left when that happens.”
Though Thompson is just a 60% free-throw shooter, the odds would have heavily favored a Detroit win had the officials properly called the foul.
Detroit Pistons PG Cade Cunningham drives to the basket on Cleveland Cavaliers SG Donovan Mitchell in Game 1 of their second-round series of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Little Caesars Arena in Michigan. (Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images)
Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff agreed.
“[Allen] fouled Ausar — clearly,” Bickerstaff said after the game. “He tripped him when he was going for a loose ball.”
Bickerstaff came into the game already displeased with the officiating in the series, noting the free-throw disparity in Game 4.
“It’s unacceptable, it is,” Bickerstaff said, via the Detroit News’ Coty Davis. “We didn’t do enough honestly to help ourselves, and I’ll start there. But ever since we came to Cleveland, the whistle has changed. There’s no way that one guy on their team shoots more free throws than our team.”
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For context, the Pistons shot just 12 free-throw attempts in Monday night’s loss to the Cavaliers. Cleveland guard Donovan Mitchell shot 15 free throws himself.
Still, crew chief Tony Brothers stands by his poor officiating.
“During live play, both players were going for the ball, and there was incidental contact with the legs with no player having possession of the ball,” he said about the no call on Wednesday.
“There was incidental contact on the play. The play will be reviewed by the league office tomorrow, and it will be posted in the L2M,” he added.
Cleveland Cavaliers PG James Harden is defended by Detroit Pistons wing Ausar Thompson during Game 1 of the 2026 Eastern Conference Semifinals. (Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images)
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The Cavs host the Pistons on Friday for Game 6. Detroit would like some makeup calls.
