In probably one of the closest games of the season, the Dallas Mavericks edged past the Atlanta Hawks 119-118. However, according to 22-year-old point guard Trae Young, there should have been a foul call in the final seconds of the match. Trae Young was thumped down to the floor by Mavs center Willie Cauley-Stein while he was setting up a screen.
The play was designed in such a way that Young would collect the inbound ball and attempt the shot. It was all disrupted by his untimely fall, which according to him should have resulted in a foul call. In fact, Young stomped down to the referee after the game ended to protest his decision.
Trae Young’s displeasure
After voicing his annoyance to referee Josh Tiven, Young took to the reporters to tell what went wrong, He said, “I’m not going to run away from the ball with four seconds left and we’re trying to win the game. I’m not going to fall just to fall at the end. That’s just the most frustrating part. Not really having an opportunity to make a play at the end is just really frustrating.”
Trae Young was not pleased by the referee’s decision
Trae Young was by far the most influential player from the Hawks last night, scoring 25 points and 15 assists over the course of the game.
The Atlanta Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce came out in support of Young. He told the reporters, “It was a perfect screen, Willie Cauley-Stein ran Trae over, and that’s a foul. It’s a foul. It’s why Trae was on the floor. It blows up our play. It’s unfortunate. I thought our guys really competed. Trae was fouled. He falls on the floor. He gets hit in the nose. Young set a great screen. I give him credit; he set a great screen. We tried to execute, and he did.”
Referee Josh Tiven’s opinion:
Referee Tiven told a pool reporter that the contact from Willie Cauley-Stein was “deemed incidental“. He also added that the footage from the incident was reviewed once again after the game and the officiating crew got to the same conclusion again.
Willie Cauley-Stein supported the referee’s decision by explaining what exactly happened. He said, “I ain’t even see Trae, he’s a smart kid. He was trying to get a quick, little foul to shoot free throws and ice the game. No way they was going to give him that call for the game. Good try, though. That was smooth. It was sneaky.”
Luka Doncic faces off against Trae Young
Apart from Trae Young, Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic continued his scintillating run of form as he scored 28 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists, which resulted in him getting his 7th triple-double of the season. The Dallas Mavericks also managed to achieve their biggest comeback win of the season, coming back from a mammoth 13-point deficit.
