The Knicks lost to the Wizards on Thursday night, which is not remarkable.
They lost because they had a complete and total failure on the final play, in which they failed to even generate a shot, down three with 13 seconds to go, which is also, given that it's the Knicks, not remarkable.
They also lost because Courtney Lee passed up an open 3, instead pump-faking and driving to the rim, where, unable to find anyone, he threw the ball away. That's a little remarkable. Lee is a veteran, and a smart one. The odds of him making such a mistake unprompted are not invisible, but small.
Here's what happened:
Well, that's embarrassing.
And odd. Then, after the game, Lee mentioned that Wizards assistant coach Sydney Lowe had "distracted him."
Here's what it looked like:
Here's what Lee said after the game:
"If that was their tactic, their defensive scheme, it worked," Lee said.
Lee added that Lowe was screaming, "I'm here," and, "My stunt," which gave him the impression there was a defender closing in. Lowe was clearly on the court in a suit - positioned to Lee's right -- and was pushed back to the bench by a referee only after the play unfolded.
"I think it's something (the league) needs to take a look at," said Lee, who added that he's unsure if Lowe did it as a purposeful distraction. "Being a basketball player, you play off instincts. And if you hear somebody right there, that's why I tried to make the right play. But I still should have shot it."
"I thought it was another guy rotating down. I'm watching the ball and all I hear is "I'm right here, I'm right here.' And I'm not sure if he had his hands up or not. But he fooled me."
Source: Knicks' Courtney Lee calling NBA to investigate Wizards assistant - NY Daily News.
Coaches have, from time to time, deployed distracting tactics on the sideline. Shouting at players, getting in the way of running lanes, etc. But this is, according to Lee's account, a coach actually simulating being a player. The fact that he is standing next to the official, who does not do anything to deter Lowe, is problematic.
Of course, would an official really stop play to alter that behavior? On a key sequence? It would open up a host of other issues. Say the official stops play, awards a technical, and the Knicks keep possession. They had a wide-open Lee 3-pointer in the corner. If he stops play, wouldn't the Knicks object to that as well, if they had lost?
This is where it gets complicated. But you wonder if the league will review this situation and issue either a fine, statement, or future rule changes to alter this kind of action.
In the end, it's a remarkable path to an unremarkable event: The Knicks lost in painful fashion.
