The Detroit-New York series was always going to be close since the announcement of the fixture. And the series hasn’t disappointed with the quality on hand. But one thing that has stood out like a sore thumb is the officiating in the playoffs. It was once again the highlight after the Knicks edged out the Pistons by one point. Inside the NBA shared its thoughts twice on the matter since it was a big debate on social media. But it’s not just Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and co. But a former Suns star as well.

After the game, as per the rules, the A Last Two Minute Report, or ‘L2M,’ report drew criticism. The report from crew chief David Guthrie stated that the last play was a foul on Tim Hardaway Jr. “During live play, it was judged that Josh Hart made a legal defensive play. After postgame review, we observed that Hart makes body contact that is more than marginal to Hardaway Jr, and a foul should have been called.” Eddie A Johnson shared his solution to avoid such problems in the future.

“I have been saying forever! All end of game last second shots should have a challenge for each team to get it right. Period.” The Inside the NBA crew also discussed the same for the second time. First, it was Ernie Johnson who suggested, “I would like to see another voice coming… ‘Hey that’s a gamedeciding play. And I’ve looked at it and it’s a foul.‘” In the final second, Josh Hart did make some contact with Hardaway Jr., but there was no foul called.

“Inside the NBA” first addressed the questionable officiating broadly after earlier games in the series, highlighting specific instances where calls appeared inconsistent or incorrect. Following the Game 4 ending, the crew revisited the topic, focusing specifically on the missed foul on Hardaway Jr., with Ernie Johnson suggesting a real-time review for such critical plays and Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley strongly supporting the need for a system to rectify game-deciding officiating mistakes.

Shaquille O’Neal was on board with this idea and simply said, “I like that, Ernie.” It was Charles Barkley who detailed why such a new rule would be beneficial. “It’s very rare that one play decides W’s and L’s. That play decided W’s and L’s,” said Chuck. “Like I say, a turnover, like you know, he didn’t mean to turn that ball over, or a missed free throw, that stuff happened…when it decides the game it can’t decide the game. A mistake can never decide the game.”

Not just Shaquille O’Neal, another former Miami legend, also raised the Heat after the “missed call”

If the Pistons weren’t upset before, they truly are now. The message Detroit vs everybody was the theme on social media, and their feelings are justified. Since there was no foul called during the game and the report after the game clearly stated the judgment on the court was wrong. After the 1-1 series in Madison Square Garden, the New York are now 3-1 with two victories in Detroit’s home with a combined 3 points.

“All I got to say is a missed call. That’s all I got to say. Missed call. Missed call. That’s all I got to say. That’s not good for our league to miss those type of calls. Point blank.” Tim Hardaway Sr. was clearly upset after the officials missed the call on the final play of the Knicks vs. Pistons game 4. His son attempted a shot, which wouldn’t go in, but there was contact from Josh Hart.

Since the foul was not called, the New York franchise headed to MSG and could seal the series. Shaquille O’Neal, during the TNT broadcast, reminded viewers how this call not only decided the game but could end up deciding the series. That’s why the legends of the game are calling for more help from technology to avoid errors during crunch time.

The pressure is mounting for the NBA to implement mechanisms that minimize the influence of officiating errors on playoff results, preserving the integrity of the competition and the credibility of the game’s most crucial moments.