Steve Kerr blames referees for Warriors' farewell to NBA Cup: "It has been ridiculous, I have never seen anything like this in my life"

Golden State Warriors fell eliminated against Houston Rockets in the NBA Cup quarterfinals by just one point, and Steve Kerr blamed the referees for a controversial foul by Kuminga on Jalen Green with 3.5 seconds left that decided the match:

"I'm angry. I wanted to go to Las Vegas. We wanted to win this Cup, and we didn't because of a foul on a loose ball, 24 meters from the hoop, with the game on the line. I have never seen anything like this in my life, and it was ridiculous."

He explained that he had never seen a similar situation of calling a foul like that in the middle of the court with two players fighting for a ball right at the end of the game:

"I have never seen a foul on a loose ball in a jumping situation between two players, 24 meters from the hoop, with the game on the line. I think I saw it in college 30 years ago. I have never seen it in the NBA. It is, I mean, inconceivable. I don't even understand what just happened. Loose ball, players diving to the floor, 24 meters from the hoop, and you're going to give two free throws to a player to decide the game when people are fighting for the ball. Just give them a timeout and let the players decide the game. That's how you officiate. Especially because the game was a constant battle. They didn't call anything."

He continued to lament what he perceived as an incredibly inconsistent change of criteria by the referees on the final play:

"You've set that you're just not going to call anything during the game. It's a physical game. And you call a foul on a loose ball in a jumping situation between two, with players diving to the floor? With the game on the line? This is a billion-dollar industry. Jobs are on the line."

"I'm stunned. I give credit to the Rockets. They fought and played great defense all night. But I feel for our guys. Our guys fought, played incredibly well, and deserved to win that game or at least have the chance to make one last defensive stop to end the game. And that was taken from us with a decision that I don't think even a grade school referee would have made, because that referee would have had common sense and would have said, 'you know what? I'm not going to decide a game on a loose ball, 24 meters from the hoop," he concluded.

Stephen Curry also commented on the play:

"I haven't seen the replay, but...if you tell me it was a clear foul, I'll be quiet, but I don't think that's the case. Was it? There's indecision in the group, so that means you should let the game continue and let us decide it, not with two free throws, 27 meters from the hoop."

He is convinced that the referees impacted the match heavily:

"We can talk about the referees all day, but it's not why we lost. But there are key moments in the game, obviously the last two free throws and that play. It's a five-point difference."

"If I shoot a shot from 5.5 meters and miss by 2 meters, then either you tell me it hit the ball or it's a foul. I have never shot a 5.5-meter shot that fell so short. And then they go and [Tari] Eason hits a corner three. It's a huge swing. We can't let the referees take us out of the game, which I don't think we did. But those are clear plays that can define a very tough, low-scoring game, where you give them an extra possession they don't deserve."

"That's why I was going crazy. I don't yell at the referees in that way. It was a clear foul."

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Steve Kerr culpa a los árbitros del adiós de los Warriors a la NBA Cup: "Ha sido ridículo, nunca he visto nada así en mi vida"