Coach Thibodeau Unfazed by 76ers’ $10,000 Threat After Controversial Game 2 Ending

Philadelphia 76er‘s protest announcement after their Game 2 against the New York Knicks was expected to stir up trouble in the NBA. However, Knicks’ coach Tom Thibodeau seems to be undaunted by the 2-minute report from the NBA for their last game. “I’m more concerned with the 46-minute report… I knew they couldn’t call a foul there,” Thibodeau said in a post-match conference instead of worrying about the 2-minute report from the league.

Interestingly, the 2-minute report that Thibodeau is not so concerned about found that officials missed two fouls on Tyrese Maxey. Both of these fouls would have benefited the Philadelphia 76ers, as they happened in the controversial final 30 seconds of the game. Apart from general on-court fouls, another one mentioned in the report was that Sixers coach Nurse’s callout was “neither recognized nor granted by the officials.”

However, the 76ers were the only ones who would’ve benefited from fouls. Joel Embiid‘s hand touching DiVincenzo‘s head would have called for a personal foul in the game’s last moments. Considering all of this, Sixers spokespersons confirmed to CBS News Philadelphia that they will be filing a grievance for the series’ first two games. But Thibodeau is not focusing on the issue right now. “I’m locked into Game 3; we don’t get sidetracked with that stuff,” Thibs said to the press at the post-match conference.

What Will Happen if Tom Thibodeau’s Team Gets Penalty?

The Sixers have the balance in their favor, as the NBA report found discrepancies in the last 30 seconds of the game. There will be a rematch if the Philadelphia team management files a “formal protest” or grievance. However, the referees will replay the game from the point of view of an view of an incorrect call or ruling. The first step to filing such a protest will be to submit $10,000 to the league. But this amount is refundable if the protest is upheld.

Teams get two days after the game is concluded to file the protest. After filing the protest, the Sixers will have five days to submit evidence. This evidence will act as proof of foul calls or rulings for the league. Then NBA Commissioner Adam Silver gets five more days to make his decision after analyzing the evidence from the filing team.

The process for filing a protest is quite simple, but its efficiency is not that great. Only six attempts at the protest have been successful out of a total of 44 attempts in NBA history. However, the efforts of the 76ers might be all in vain. It seems unpragmatic to play just the last 10 seconds of the game. Moreover, Tyrese’s position during the foul is quite controversial.

Considering the unrealistic replay of the match from foul calls, it looks like the lead is going to remain at 2-0. That’s why Tom Thibodeau is cool with all the ruckus around him. What do you all think about the 76ers’ threat to the Knicks in the last game? Will it bring out any justice for the former?