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With less than a minute remaining, a shot clock gaffe may have helped the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in LeBron James' return to Cleveland.
In the clip below, with the shot clock winding down, LeBron rose up for a 3-point shot. It hit the rim, but the shot clock reset to 24 seconds instead of 14 like it's supposed to under the new NBA rules.
As observed, since the clock was not reset to 14, the Cavs were forced to foul on the next play. This sent James to the line, where he made 1-of-2 free throws. It gave the Lakers a cushion and was enough to get the victory.
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Per Kristian Winfield of SB Nation, the new shot clock rule — which is being applied this year — states:
The shortened clock also applies if a loose ball foul is called on the defensive team after a missed shot, or if the offensive team wins possession of the ball after it goes out of bounds following a missed shot.
Given this, the shot clock should have reset to 14 with 22.9 seconds remaining in regulation. This meant that the Cavaliers shouldn't have needed to foul the Lakers to stop the clock. And if they managed to come up with a defensive play on the next possession without fouling, could they have won the game and spoiled James' return?
We'll never know.
