NBA Says Refs Missed Late Foul in Warriors-Clippers Game 1

The NBA admitted that referees missed a late foul on Chris Paul by Draymond Green, which would have given the Clippers a chance to tie Game 1. From the AP:

Los Angeles point guard Chris Paul lost the ball out of bounds with 18.9 seconds left Saturday and Golden State leading 107-105. Rod Thorn, the league’s president for basketball operations, said in a statement Sunday that the Warriors’ Draymond Green should have been whistled for a foul, which would have given Paul two free throws.

Instead, Golden State got the ball and went on to win 109-105 in Los Angeles to open the first-round playoff series.

Officials reviewed the video after the ball went out of bounds and awarded possession to the Warriors. Thorn said that decision was correct, but the foul was missed moments earlier. Referees are not allowed to check for fouls when they use replay.

“A mistake happened on their end, but we made our own mistakes,” Clippers head coach Doc Rivers said Sunday. “We have to take ownership of that.”