Like most, Monty McCutchen, the NBA’s senior vice president of referee development and training, was distressed by the missed call late in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s Lakers-Celtics matchup. In the final seconds, LeBron James was slapped on the arm by Jayson Tatum while attempting a game-winning layup. The game went into overtime, with Boston pulling out a 125–121 win.
“We’re always disappointed when we don’t live up to the charge of excellence up against delivering on a final play or a play that impacts the latter portions of the game,” says McCutchen. “So clearly we were disappointed and are going to work to eliminate these mistakes moving forward.”
McCutchen attributed the missed call to “a lack of fundamentals” from the referees involved. As James drove, the baseline referee, Jacyn Goble, was in motion in an effort to gain the best angle. While Goble’s intentions were good, the end result left him in a position where he was unable to clearly see the foul.
