Warriors pull a Chris Webber, call late timeout they didn’t have
Chris Webber #ChrisWebber
The Golden State Warriors committed a mental error comparable to one of the biggest mistakes in college basketball, and perhaps sports, history.
Steph Curry was bringing the basketball up the floor when the Kings trapped him behind halfcourt. With 42 seconds left in the game, Curry let his instincts take over and called a timeout to prevent the turnover in the backcourt.
The problem was that the Warriors had no timeouts remaining. This was because Steve Kerr called for a challenge on an illegal screen foul that came against Kevon Looney a couple of possessions earlier. Kerr, who understood this fact, nearly fell to his knees in disbelief at what his star player had just done.
For those who didn’t witness Chris Webber’s infamous blunder in the 1993 championship game, calling a timeout with none remaining results in a technical foul. Not only did the Kings get that free throw, but they also got possession immediately afterward. Sacramento made good on the opportunity, with De’Aaron Fox scoring a 3-point basket to turn what was a 126-121 deficit to a 126-125 deficit.
The good news for the Dubs is that things did not shake out the way it did for Webber’s Michigan Wolverines 20 years ago. Though the Kings got the final possession of the game, the attempted game-winner from forward Harrison Barnes clanked off the back of the rim as time expired, allowing Golden State to tie the series at 2-2 with a 126-125 win.
Despite his reaction to the incident as it happened, Kerr took full responsibility for Steph’s mistake on the court when speaking to reporters after the game.
“One hundred percent my fault, I knew we didn’t have any timeouts left,” Kerr said. “We took the challenge and when the challenge was unsuccessful, as we were exiting the huddle, that’s on me. I’ve got to remind the guys we’re out of timeouts. I didn’t say that so Steph wasn’t aware. So that’s on me for not making that clear.”
Warriors center Kevon Looney said the timeout message was not fully conveyed to the team, saying, “I don’t think anybody on the court knew about the timeout situation… I was surprised like everyone else.”