Nov 16, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers reacts to a call during the first quarter against the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images Bucks coach Doc Rivers was handed a $25,000 fine on Sunday for criticizing the officiating of Milwaukee’s 115-114 loss to the Charlotte Hornets the previous evening.
Rivers was upset with a foul call on Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo that sent Charlotte guard LaMelo Ball to the free-throw line with 7.3 seconds left in regulation. Ball went 2-for-2 at the stripe to put the Hornets up by one, and Milwaukee failed to hit a game-winner at the other end.
“LaMelo Ball fell. He just fell down,” Rivers said postgame. “Nobody was near him. He slipped on his own. We come up with the ball and the game is over. So back-to-back games now we have had a call made against us that is incorrect. We were lucky in Detroit the kid missed two free throws. Tonight LaMelo Ball made the free throws.”
Following the game, crew chief Curtis Blair admitted that referees got the call wrong.
“During live play we called illegal leg-to-leg contact,” Blair said. “During postgame review when we looked at the play there was no illegal contact on the play.”
It was yet another frustrating loss for the Bucks, who are off to a 4-9 start this season. They will host the Houston Rockets on Monday.
–Field Level Media
