On Thursday night, the Washington Wizards fell to the Boston Celtics by a final score of 110-104 in overtime after leading by three points with 12.8 seconds to play in regulation. They had fought their way back from a 10-point deficit with five minutes left to play only to throw it all away later. Some of the Wizards would suggest that their demise was the result of some questionable foul calls and non-calls in cruical moments of the game.
Although he said that the main reason for the loss was 22 turnovers leading to 24 points, Scott Brooks questions why Bradley Beal did not earn a trip to the free throw line for his drive against Kyrie Irving before settling for a fadeaway jumper at the end of regulation. Brooks would go on to say after Friday's practice that it "probably" was not a foul.
"He had an opportunity for Tomas to set a screen and get the matchup we wanted," Brooks explained about the final play in regulation for Beal. "He had the ability to attack Kyrie. He got bumped and he didn't get the call. Knocked off balance, that's why he shot the fadeaway shot."
Beal felt that he was aggressive all night but was not rewarded with the same foul calls that others in the game were rewarded with. In a game where he played 44 minutes and took 27 shots, Beal shot just one free throw, which was the result of a Celtics technical. Boston shot 34 free throws, while Washington only shot 20 with three coming via technicals.
"It's crazy," Beal said after a long pause when asked about his single free throw. "It's crazy because I feel like I'm being just as aggressive as everybody else out there. My teammates were doing the same thing, [but] sometimes we don't get rewarded for it. That's not going to stop our aggression. Keep attacking and I'll get them one day."
Markieff Morris fouled Kyrie Irving with 9.8 seconds left on a three-point attempt that resulted in the game being tied at 98 before Beal's potential game-winning attempt. "The first was nowhere near a foul," Morris said after the game. "I mean, Billy [Kennedy] was behind me. I don't know how could see me swiping down on the ball -- me hitting his arm. If I hit his arms, there was no way he could get the shot up. The second was foul. I can honestly admit to that, but the first one was nowhere near."
Kyrie Irving would not fall for the "trap" questions about whether he was fouled at the end of regulation or not, but the funnier moment came when he was asked about Cleveland's bevy of trade deadline moves.