“That’s my go-to move, the step back. I’m not going to air ball that.”
That’s what Stephen Curry had to say about the final shot he took – the shot that was about a foot short from the rim – against the Los Angeles Clippers in a 98-96 loss in Game 3 of the first round of the playoffs.
With time winding down and the Golden State Warriors desperately trying to get back into the game, Curry took over in the final minute of the fourth quarter, hitting two seemingly-impossible 3-pointers to bring his team within striking distance after getting off just nine shots the whole game. Down by just two points and about seven seconds left on the clock, Curry had the chance to drive to the basket to tie or take a 3-pointer to win the game. He chose the latter and took a step back to create separation from Chris Paul, who was hounding him on the defensive end. Paul did a little more than hounding at the end, grabbing Curry by the hip and preventing him from getting a proper shot off. It was clearly a foul (you also must allow a player to land after a shot, which Paul prevented Curry from doing), but it’s also worth noting that Curry pushed off a couple of times without a call made against him prior to the shot. Generally speaking, the refs tend to swallow the whistle on final possessions, but this is one they probably should not have ignored. Curry’s former teammate Brandon Rush saw the play and had this to say:
That was a foul
— Brandon Rush (@BRush_25) April 25, 2014
“Obviously it was a 50-50 call. I thought it should have went my way, but it didn’t. It’s a frustrating way to end the game,” said Curry after the game. Mark Jackson agreed with his star point guard, saying what Paul did wasn’t legal. “Chris did a good job of putting his hands on Curry. When he went up for the shot, you’re supposed to be able to come down,” he said.
The TNT crew also believed it wasn’t even close – they essentially said you can’t hold a player from the hip while he’s elevating to shoot, and you must allow the shooter to land properly.
In all likelihood, the league will probably announce on Friday that there should have been a call made at the end of this contest. Unfortunately, that won’t do any good for the Warriors, who are now down 1-2 in the best-of-seven series and facing a must-win situation in Game 4.
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James Park is the chief blogger of Sheridan Hoops. Follow him on twitter @SheridanBlog.
Apparently nobody watched the entire sequence of the “Chris Paul alleged foul”. Watch a hal second before that when Steph Curry blatantly pushed off on Chris Paul. He takes his forearm to Chris Pauls stomach to make some space for himself. DO NOT just go off of the continuous Sportscenter replays……..watch the entire sequence!!!!