The Philadelphia 76ers suffered a heartbreaking loss in James Harden’s return to the Wells Fargo Center. The sticking point from that gutting defeat, however, had little to do with the team’s former star point guard.
Instead, a non-call on the final play left the 76ers stinging following the 108-107 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
With the Clippers holding a one-point advantage and 5.1 seconds remaining, a jump ball was held at center court after Kawhi Leonard blocked Kelly Oubre’s layup and it got wedged between the rim and backboard. The 76ers won the jump ball, and Oubre had a chance for a game-winning layup.
But Paul George slid into the lane and made body contact while contesting the shot, causing Oubre’s release to occur after the game clock expired (the shot was blocked by Leonard anyway).
The non-call from officials on George had both Oubre and head coach Nick Nurse enraged.
