Portland Trailblazers head coach Chauncey Billups lost his mind Tuesday night after referees refused to acknowledge his timeout call, and they ejected him with 15 seconds remaining.
With his team up one point in crunch time, Billups was assessed a pair of technical fouls and ejected. The Blazers then lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder 111-109.
Billups received his technical fouls after flipping out over a turnover call on his guard Malcom Brogdon. Referees called a double dribble on Brogdon, but Billups appeared to call a time out just before the foul was assessed.
What an embarrassing display by Chauncey Billups. First of all, his TO was way too bang-bang w the double dribble that it’s ridiculous to have expected any ref to grant it. Second, YOU’RE WINNING. W 15 SECONDS LEFT. You can’t get 2 T’s & tossed here!!! pic.twitter.com/7LCj5wPwOV
— SCOUTWITHBRYAN (@ScoutWithBryan) January 24, 2024
Upon the double dribble call, Billups ran up to the official and made contact with him. After the game, head ref Bill Kennedy told pool reporters this was the source of the first technical. “The first technical foul was issued due to contact while Chauncey was trying to express himself to the official. He makes contact with the official two times, and the result is a technical foul,” Kennedy explained. (RELATED: ‘Disgusting’ And ‘Immature’: Timberwolves Head Coach Chris Finch Rips Into His Own Team After Loss To Hornets)
Kennedy then said the second tech was for his refusal to leave the court. “The second technical foul was assessed due to the fact that Chauncey aggressively now tries to follow and pursue the official after the first technical foul was assessed,” he said, according to Thunder beat reporter Clemente Almanza.
Pool report on Chauncey Billups’ ejection with referee Bill Kennedy: pic.twitter.com/3BdRUoyGzw
— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) January 24, 2024
The Trailblazers are filing a protest with the NBA’s league office to challenge the result of the loss, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The protest is on the grounds that Billups clearly called a timeout before the referees hit Brogdon with the double dribble.
ESPN Sources: Portland is filing a protest with the league office to challenge result of 111-109 loss to Oklahoma City on Tuesday. With 109-108 lead, Portland contends Chauncey Billups was clearly calling timeout prior to official whistling a Blazers double-dribble with 15.6…
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 24, 2024
“We’ve got timeouts,” Billups later said, according to ESPN. “Referees usually are prepared for that, you know, that instance, that situation. I’m at half court, trying to call a timeout. It’s just frustrating. My guys played too hard for that. It’s a frustrating play.”
Kennedy explained to reporters the referee was focused on the play in front of him, so he didn’t see or hear Billups calling the timeout.
“The referee in the slot position was refereeing the double-team that was right in front of him, which makes it difficult for, number one, to hear and, number two, to see a coach request a timeout behind him,” Kennedy said, according to Almanza. “He is taught to referee the play until completion, which a double dribble happens, and he correctly calls the double dribble and then pursuant, the technical fouls come forward.”