After losing the first two games in their series against the New York Knicks, the Philadelphia 76ers said they will file a grievance due to how those contests were officiated. With how competitive these NBA Playoffs have been, Philly’s front office are taking measures to ensure fairness in the coming days.
In that particular game, the Knicks went home with the 104-101 win over Philadelphia. Although All-Star guard Jalen Brunson only shot 27 percent from the field, he still ended with 24 points, eight rebounds, and six assists. Josh Hart dropped 21 points and 15 rebounds, while Donte DiVincenzo made 19 points, including the game-winning shot that sealed the victory.
On the other hand, Philadelphia was led by Tyrese Maxey’s 35 points and 10 assists. This year’s Most Improved Player awardee also shot 54 percent from the field and 45 percent from beyond the perimeter. Joel Embiid posted 34 points and 10 rebounds, while Tobias Harris added 10 points and nine boards.
Although the game ended in New York’s favor, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse claimed that officials denied his request for a timeout. This led to Philadelphia committing a turnover, and DiVincenzo’ game-winner from beyond the arc. Ultimately, the Knicks are now in the driver’s seat with a 2-0 lead over Philly.
Philadelphia 76ers To File Grievance Over Controversial Officiating in NBA Playoffs
Nurse’s claims about the officials ignoring his timeout request was only one of the issues Philadelphia plans to bring to the league’s attention. In a tweet by Tim Bontemps on X, the team is going to take action on what they allege as controversial officiating in Game 2:
“The 76ers plan to file a grievance with the NBA over the officiating across the first two games of this series, a team spokesperson told ESPN,” Bontemps said.
Just recently, an NBA report pointed out several mistakes committed by the referees in Game 2. Along with Nurse’s denied timeout request, Brunson appeared to pull Maxey’s jersey with 27 seconds remaining and Josh Hart committing a foul against the Sixers star, among others.
It remains to be seen what further action the league will take to address this controversy. What’s certain is that a lot of eyes will be on the referees when Game 3 is on between these two teams.
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