The Cleveland Cavaliers had chances to take a decisive 3-1 lead over the Toronto Raptors in Game 4. They had an eight-point advantage with five minutes to play, but squandered the lead with a combination of bad defense, reckless decisions, and missed point-blank shots. This all added up to a 93-89 loss with the series tied at two games apiece.
Likewise, the referees didn’t have a great close to the game. According to the Last Two Minute Report, they missed seven calls down the stretch. Four should’ve gone against the Cavs while three should’ve gone against the Raptors.
Let’s get into all seven.
First, Evan Mobley should’ve been called for a defensive three-second violation with 1:57 remaining in the fourth quarter. This would’ve resulted in a free throw and Toronto keeping possession.
This possession for the Raptors ended up in two points thanks to a shooting foul by James Harden and two made free throws by Brandon Ingram.
The second missed call also benefited the Cavs. Donovan Mitchell should’ve been called for a double dribble with 1:36 remaining because he pinned the ball against his leg.
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The replay clearly shows this happened. Mitchell should’ve either thrown this out to the corner or dumped it off to Mobley. It seems like he was going to do that, but something caused him to change his mind. The poor decision resulted in a missed shot. Even though the double dribble wasn’t called, the outcome of this play was the same for Toronto.
The third missed call happened at the 1:08 mark and also went in the Cavs’ favor. Harden should’ve been called for an offensive foul. The league found that he pushed off of Jamal Shead, which created a wide-open 14-foot jumper. Harden missed this.
Even though this was a missed call, the result on the floor was the same. This was an empty possession for Cleveland regardless. Since this wasn’t a loose-ball foul, it wouldn’t have resulted in free throws the other way.
The fourth blown call benefited the Raptors and completely changed the momentum of the game. Mitchell’s eight-second violation caused this game to completely get away from the Cavs. And it shouldn’t have happened. Instead, this should’ve been a foul on Shead.
The league stats: “Sheed moves forward into Mitchell’s path and delivers body to body contact prior to making any contact with the ball.”
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Shead made a heads-up play to charge Mitchell, but he does get the body first. He goes through Mitchell to poke the ball free. This should’ve been a foul.
If this were called correctly on the floor, the Cavs would’ve gotten two free throws. Mitchell would’ve had a chance to make it a three-point game. Instead, Toronto came down the court and retook the lead.
The fifth also hurt the Cavs.
With Cleveland down one with 34 seconds left, Sam Merrill should’ve been awarded a free throw with the Cavs keeping possession. Collin Murray-Boyles committed an off-ball foul by throwing him to the ground with 34 seconds left.
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The report states: “Murray-Boyles moves into Merrill’s path and delivers contact that affects his FOM (freedom of movement). The contact occurs prior to the release of the inbound pass, and an away from the play foul is warranted.”
The sixth missed call technically benefited Cleveland.
Max Strus should’ve been called for a personal foul after Brandon Ingram rebounded Mitchell’s missed three with 23 seconds remaining. Strus knocked the ball out of bounds. The Cavs fouled Barnes a few seconds later.
The final missed call also disadvantaged Merrill. He should’ve been awarded a free throw after Barnes grabbed during a long two-point make with six seconds remaining.
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If this game were called correctly, the Raptors would’ve been awarded one more free-throw attempt, while the Cavs should’ve received four additional free throws. That hurts in a game that was this close.
The Cavs have no one to blame but themselves for the loss. They should’ve won this game even with the calls that went against them. That said, it’s frustrating to be on the wrong end of calls that directly influenced the outcome of a pivotal playoff game. The referees needed to be better than they were.
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