Kevin Durant lost in his debut for the Houston Rockets after they fell short against the Oklahoma City Thunder, 125-124, in double overtime at Paycom Center on Tuesday.
Alperen Sengun gave the Rockets the lead, 124-123, in the second extension with only 11 seconds left after getting an assist from Durant. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, however, was fouled in the ensuing possession. He sank two free throws to give the Thunder the nail-biting win.
Durant almost cost the Rockets the game in the first overtime after he called a timeout with only two seconds remaining, even though they didn't have any. Fortunately for them, the referees didn't see it.
The missed call was confirmed by crew chief Zach Zarba after the game, according to ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel.
“None of the three game officials saw Kevin signal that timeout. That’s why it wasn’t granted before the expiration of time,” explained Zarba.
The Thunder would have been awarded a free throw had the referees seen Durant's timeout. Sengun even tried to snatch the ball from the two-time Finals MVP as he was gesturing the timeout.
Fans put the referees on blast for the missed call.
“LMAO, of course that's what they will say. Can we expect them to say, “Yeah, we saw KD (call) a timeout but just ignored him so we don't have to give him a technical,'” said @DGr8Content.
“So not a single official watching the player with the ball. Yeah. Sure,” noted @WillTerrellOK.
“Refs also wanted this game to end,” posted @Os91413Jon.
“Zach Zarba and the rest of this officiating crew should honestly be investigated and not assigned any more games this year. This is one of the worst officiated basketball games I have ever seen,” added @HydrationGang69.
“Zach Zarba totally bailed out Kevin Durant by knowing the situation and not awarding the timeout,” wrote @JonMetler.
Durant tallied 23 points, nine rebounds, and three assists in his first game for the Rockets. He also had four turnovers.
He took accountability for his crucial mistakes.
