Houston Rockets head coach Mike D'Antoni kept money in his pocket after Game 1 by declining to go all-in on the officials following a controversial end to a 104-100 loss on Sunday.
D'Antoni's star James Harden shot and missed a closely-contested 3-pointer, which cause for teammate Chris Paul to confront the sideline official for a call — making contact with him and soon being ejected from the game with 4.4 seconds left.
The interaction gave the Golden State Warriors a technical free throw, which Stephen Curry buried to salt things away.
“I'm going to try to be a nice guy because I really don't want to give the charity to them. I'd rather have my charity have the money,” D'Antoni said, referring to a potential fine for criticizing officiating, according to ESPN's Tim MacMahon. “So, I mean, the response was they came in halftime and said they missed them. That's what they told me. They missed four of them. That's 12 foul shots. So be it. They're trying to do the best they can do.”
However, D'Antoni noted his team must focus on playing, rather than pleading with the officials.
“We just need to suck it up and don't worry about how they officiate and sit there and take it,” D'Antoni said. “I'm getting a little old for that, but that's just how it goes. I try not to curse. I try not to completely be a jerk. Obviously didn't work. So I don't know. I don't know. It's beyond me.”
D'Antoni himself was hit with a technical foul at the same time Paul got his first, resulting in two free throws for the defending champions.
All in all, it was a choppy game for both parties — though one that didn't go the Rockets way with the whistle.
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