Two-time NBA champion and Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, a veteran in his 17th season pacing the sidelines, on Tuesday made a rookie mistake in the final seconds of the team's 123-121 loss to the Detroit Pistons in a group-play game of the NBA Cup at Little Caesars Arena. Trailing by two points with 1.8 seconds left, Pistons guard Cade Cunningham, out of an inbound, lobbed an alley-oop to center Jalen Duren, who slammed the ball home for the game-tying basket just as Spoelstra called for a timeout that the Heat didn't have.
Spoelstra was assessed a technical foul, and Pistons guard Malik Beasley sank the ensuing free throw, giving Detroit a late lead the club would not relinquish.
