Carlisle: 'Small-market teams deserve a fair shot.' Pacers send calls for NBA review, AP source says
The Indiana Pacers have, as coach Rick Carlisle said they would, sent 78 plays they believe were officiated incorrectly from the first two games of their series against the New York Knicks to the NBA office for review, a person with knowledge of the action said Thursday
NEW YORK (AP) — The Indiana Pacers have, as coach Rick Carlisle said they would, sent 78 plays they believe were officiated incorrectly from the first two games of their series against the New York Knicks to the NBA office for review, a person with knowledge of the action said Thursday.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because neither the Pacers nor the league had publicly confirmed the plays were actually sent.
“I’m always talking to our guys about not making it about the officials,” Carlisle said after Game 2 on Wednesday, a 130-121 win for New York that gave the Knicks a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinal series. “We deserve a fair shot. There’s not a consistent balance and that’s disappointing. Give New York credit for the physicality that they’re playing with. But their physicality is rewarded and ours is penalized, time after time.”
Carlisle said the Pacers identified 29 plays from Game 1 that they had issue with, but that he decided against sending those clips to the league office because he believed “we’d get a more balanced whistle” in Game 2.
