As part of their L2M report, the NBA on Thursday announced the call for a jump ball at center court in the final seconds of the game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic was incorrect.
“On the inbound pass, referees were reasonably certain that there was a clock malfunction and triggered an Instant Replay under Rule 13.1.a.5,” the report read. “After review, it is confirmed that the game clock was inadvertently started by the referee crew and that time expired before the ball was touched.
“The clock is correctly reset to 0:00.6. However, since the pass was still in the air when the clock expired, the ball was still in ORL’s possession and thus ORL should have retained possession on the sideline at the nearest spot.