The Sacramento Kings snatched victory from the jaws of defeat on Wednesday night against the lowly Houston Rockets, thanks to a controversial foul call in the game’s final seconds.
With the Rockets leading by one with 1.2 left on the clock, Kings’ De’Aaron Fox chucked up a desperation 3-pointer, missing the mark. However, officials ruled that Eric Gordon fouled Fox, awarding the young point guard three free throws.
Fox, a 78% free-throw shooter, unsurprisingly drained all three from the charity stripe, helping the Kings escape with a two-point win.
Even on slow-mo replays, it’s hard to find any substantial contact that wouldn’t warrant a foul call, especially at that point of the game. While it’s possible Gordon lightly clipped Fox as he rose to shoot, it’s a ticky-tack call at best and a horrendous one at worst.
After the game, Gordon chose his words carefully when discussing the call with reporters.
“I’m not gonna get in trouble, but the video will show you,” Gordon said.
In the pool report interview, crew chief Gediminas Patraitis told The Athletic’s Kelly Iko that Gordon made illegal contact with Fox’s lower body, saying there was “no doubt” the call on the floor was correct, later confirming it in the postgame video review.
For those on the Rockets tanking conspiracy train, they added more fuel to the fire on Wednesday night.
Before the controversial foul on Fox, Houston had possession of the ball leading by one with under two seconds to go, but Alperen Sengun threw away an in-bounds pass to Malik Monk, setting up the late-game drama.
A league-worst 13-42, the Rockets have lost four in a row and are only 3-16 since the calendar turned to 2023.
