The Sacramento Kings and Memphis Grizzlies were played on the edge until the end. With both teams having crucial stakes—Memphis fighting to remain in the playoff hunt and Sacramento looking for its second straight win—the tension was palpable.

As the clock ticked down, with just under seven minutes remaining, Ja Morant found himself locked into a tight defensive duel with DeMar DeRozan. DeRozan went for a jumper, and Morant contested the shot with arms high. Morant’s frustration escalated immediately after officials called the foul on him. The call led to Morant’s second technical foul, an ejection that changed the momentum.

The referees later acknowledged they made an error in the call that triggered Ja Morant’s foul on DeMar DeRozan and his subsequent ejection. According to their post-game review, “In live action, the official believed Morant bumped DeRozan during the jump shot. However, review revealed Morant maintained a legal guarding position and should not have been called for a foul.” 

Morant was right in expressing his frustration. Since then, furious fans called out the awful refereeing, which is now frequent in the NBA.

Fans call out refs and Adam Silver over Ja Morant’s wrong call

One user reacted to this by commenting, “Refs are just horrible. Seriously just ruining the league. This is pathetic.” Notably, Morant positioned himself defensively with both arms raised, making every effort to steer clear of contact as DeRozan elevated for a fadeaway jumper. Morant’s disciplined stance showed his intent to avoid a foul, yet the whistle still blew against him.

Another user was not shy in criticizing Adam Silver. ” Ja Morant just got ejected for being mad about the most obvious bad call of all time. this is the reason viewership is f—ing declining.” The league’s shifting stance on physical defense has become a growing source of irritation. Last season, referees surprised teams by suddenly allowing more contact during games midway through the schedule.

While the NBA did release its usual mid-season focus points, the abrupt adjustment to officiating standards threw many teams off balance. Sure, some welcomed the slowdown in offense-heavy games, but the sudden change left players and coaches scrambling to adapt.

This is getting out of hand now. Fans are being obscene over their remarks. One netizen chimed in with, “Refs gotta be held accountable I’m sorry ejected Ja Morant when this wasn’t even a foul is nasty”. Despite losing Ja Morant late in the game, the Grizzlies still scored a victory, leaving the Kings with another frustrating loss. Sacramento had a golden opportunity to capitalize on Memphis, missing its star player in the crucial moments. The ref call gave an unfair advantage to the Kings, totally unacceptable.

“Ja Morant got ejected for this? And Adam Silver is wondering why the league’s ratings are down,” wrote another fan. Morant is one of the superstars in the NBA for whom the crowd tunes in and turns up. The Grizzlies guard did nothing wrong and did not deserve punishment in this situation. Getting him off the court due to a bad call will only mean fewer viewers for the league.

Well, another fan provided us with some food for thought. “It’s getting so difficult to watch the @NBA. The Memphis game was painful officiating. Ja Morant gets ejected for showing the slightest bit of emotion but Harden, Jokic and Luka can nearly choke an official with no repercussions.” they wrote.

Does the 2x All-Star’s reputation and fiery approach bias the ref’s decision? Because bias is unacceptable. Do his past actions play a role in current decisions? There is no place for bias here. What do you think?