That’s some game at the Little Caesars Arena! The New York Knicks managed to squeeze a 94-93 win on the road against the Detroit Pistons. The Knicks are now in a commanding position in the series with a 3-1 lead over the Pistons. An eventful evening in Detroit with Jalen Brunson briefly exiting the game after tweaking his right ankle in the third quarter, then returning in the fourth to drop 15 massive points. Meanwhile, Karl-Anthony Towns also had a solid game, finishing it with 27 points, 9 rebounds, and an assist. However, it was the final seconds of this high-intensity matchup that had everyone talking.
The waning moments of the game have sent the NBA world into a frenzy. With the clock ticking, the Pistons had the chance to seal the deal and bring the series to a deadlock at 2-2, and they were almost there. Cade Cunningham missed a midrange shot near the buzzer, then the ball bounced around before eventually ending up in Tim Hardaway Jr.’s hands. The Pistons’ sharpshooter had the ball in the corner and tried to drill a buzzer-beater. However, his attempt and the final one of the game might’ve been disrupted by a foul from New York’s wing, Josh Hart. Despite that, the referees did not blow the whistle. The last gasp effort from Hardaway Jr. fell short, and the Knicks held on to a one-point win.
Now, after the game, the truth about the incident has been revealed by the officials. Crew Chief David Guthrie answered a pool of reporters after the game about whether the incident was a foul or not. “During the live play, it was judged that Josh Hart made a legal defensive play. After postgame review, we observed that Hart makes body contact that is more than marginal to Hardaway Jr., and a foul should have been called.” Guthrie stated on the NBA. The Detroit fans and even the staff and players did not take this wrong call from the officials well. In fact, according to reports, there is so much frustration among the Pistons faithful that the Detroit Police have been called for protection of the referees after costing the Pistons this game.
The referees are leaving the court with police protection.
Fans threw towels and food at them on their way out.
— Zariq (@zariqxavier) April 27, 2025
Moreover, the fans have thrown towels and food items at the officials to express their anger. It has been an absolutely terrible call for the NBA referees, who missed a clear contact and did not even blow the whistle with the game and even the series on the line for the Pistons. Of course, they were going to lead to the crowd getting a bit out of control. However, the police are in place to address the situation. To put things into perspective, it’s not ‘Malice at the Palace’ bad, but still, the crowd seems to be frustrated by the poor officiating. The referees’ statement also doesn’t help their cause. On the contrary, it makes it worse. Not just the fans, even Detroit’s head coach, J.B. Bickerstaff, is fuming after the Josh Hart-Tim Hardaway Jr. situation.
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