The Magic Felt ‘Cheated’ By The Strange Clock Rule That Cost Them A Shot To Beat The Lakers

The Magic are among the teams fighting for the top spot in the upcoming NBA Draft Lottery, so their 108-107 loss to the Lakers on Wednesday night came as little surprise and, in the grand scheme of things, was probably the preferred outcome for Orlando.

That being said, the players on the court are not actively trying to lose and so the controversial finish to the game understandably frustrated them as they felt “cheated” out of the opportunity to win the game in the final second. The closing seconds of the game were bizarre, but after a pair of Brook Lopez free throws with 0.6 seconds left gave L.A. a one-point lead. Orlando called timeout to advance the ball into the frontcourt to set up a potential catch-and-shoot situation for the win.

Frank Vogel drew up a play designed to go to Aaron Gordon around the rim, with Mario Hezonja throwing a lob off of the inbounds pass towards Gordon on the far side of the lane. The clock is not supposed to start until the ball is touched, but while the ball flew through the air, the clock ticked down to zero and the buzzer sounded.

The referees looked at it on review and determined that the clock did indeed start early, but because of a very weird rule, the Magic didn’t get a chance to try another inbounds play. Instead, because no one had possession when the clock started, by rule, the teams were forced to have a jump ball at center court, killing the Magic’s chances at a shot to win.

Orlando’s players and coaches were, understandably, frustrated by the ruling and called into question why the rule is written that way when you would think common sense would dictate in that situation the team inbounding the ball would get it back. Aaron Gordon made sure to make his feelings on the matter known in speaking with reporters after the game, per ESPN.

“We feel cheated,” Orlando forward Aaron Gordon said afterward. “… They gave them the game. … It’s just a terrible end to a game of basketball. They didn’t even give us a chance to win. And that’s the last time we see them [the Lakers]. We have to wait a year to play them again. They [the NBA] have gotta change that rule, and I think they will.”

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“I mean, obviously you have to change the rule,” Gordon said. “It’s an inadvertent whistle. A foul down the stretch [before that]. We just played perfect defense and they called a foul. They gave them the game. For the most part, the referees did a good job throughout the game. Just down that stretch, it’s bad.”

Gordon can probably expect a fine, particularly for the “they gave them the game” comments, but his frustration is understandable and his sentiments were echoed by his coach Frank Vogel.

“They took the ball from us and made it a jump ball with 0.6 seconds, which kills any chance of us tying the game or winning the game,” Vogel said. “I don’t know. It’s just common sense would tell me that in that situation, the clock started early, that you do redo the possession.

It’s one of those weird instances where the rulebook probably needs to be amended to include a specific situation to either dictate that on an inbounds pass, possession remains with the team inbounding until the ball is touched or that in that situation a clock error does not count as a loose-ball clock error. That won’t give the opportunity back to the Magic, but it would prevent this from occurring again if it were to happen in a bigger spot.