The Golden State Warriors sealed the fifth win of the season and put an end to their on-the-road worry. The Dubs superstar Stephen Curry pulled off a blinder with only seconds left in the game, to clinch a close 139-141 victory. While Steph made the game-winning bucket, it was Draymond Green, who celebrated in style. In fact, Dray Magic found himself in a controversial call which could have cost the game for the Warriors.
This isn’t the first time where Green got involved in controversial calls on the court. Green, the untold leader of the Dubs pack, always brings his passion to the court. While it helped the Warriors to win the games many, it got him ejected several times as well. On this occasion, Green’s move at the penultimate moment triggered a controversial call.
Draymond Green pulls off a Stephen Curry special
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
When the game was tied at 139, Steph had the ball in his with less than 15 seconds left in the game. The superstar kept his nerve and ran down the paint and dropped a soft layup over Chet Holmgren. However, it wasn’t a sleek bucket as the ball did slightly dance off the rim and Green was locked in, pushing the ball in. Eventually, the ball found its way without Green’s effort. Nevertheless, the refs were skeptical about Green for offensive interference/goal tending while the ball was still inside the cylinder.
Giddey grabbed the net…thunder fans yall lost
pic.twitter.com/Vff4hLx8kV— TheWarriorsHouse (@GSWarriorsHouse) November 4, 2023
He did touch the rim, but OKC’s Josh Giddy had already pulled the net before Green. After a tense moment of suspense, the refs called it in favor of the Dubs, with a goaltend on the young Australian PG. Following that, DrayMagic pulled out the famous ‘Night Night’ celebration on the court.
View this post on Instagram
Moments later, he took the celebration to his Instagram stories and shared the picture.
The controversial call had almost everyone scratching their head. Let’s find out more about goaltending.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
What is goaltending in the NBA?
Apart from calling controversial fouls on players, the refs have the power to stop the game momentarily for a violation, which is goaltending. It is a violation of rules when a player on the defensive team interferes with the ball while it is on its way to the bucket. To be more precise, when the ball is almost inside the cylinder and the player either touches the rim or the ball, the refs have the power to call it goaltending. It’s a rare call in the game but often occurs during lay-ups.
As opposed to goaltending, when the offensive player is judged to interfere with the ball’s path, he is called for interference with the play. In this case, the refs had originally called an interference charge on Draymond, but upon review, it was changed to a goaltend on Giddey.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Watch This Story – Right After Getting 1st Warriors Bucket, Chris Paul Sets Up Stephen Curry in an Astounding Breakaway Play
What do you make of the controversial call that cost the game for the OKC? Let us know in the comments below.