Sixers' protest of officiating is the sorest of loser moves

It’s unclear what “filing a grievance” entails since they’re not protesting a specific game or call. But it could be that head coach Nick Nurse claims he tried to call timeout before Philadelphia’s fatal last-second turnover.

However, focusing on the officiating says more about Philadelphia’s organizational culture than the actual calls, which led to a whopping difference of one free throw Monday night, 23-22 in the Knicks’ favor.

Under team president Daryl Morey, the team has skirted NBA rules about injury reporting and tampering and racked up big fines in the process. They’ve also complained about officiating, which was a big part of Morey’s strategy when he ran the Houston Rockets.

After the 2018 Western Conference Finals, Morey’s staff compiled an elaborate audit of the officiating in Game 7, concluding that the Rockets should have won. The final score was 101-92.

Their memo to the league argued that NBA officials "exhibit the most bias against our players." This team featured James Harden, arguably the most successful flopper of his era. After the report, the Rockets lost their rematch with the Golden State Warriors, this time in six games.

Complaining about the officials might seem like it’s sticking up for your players, but it sounds like Philly is making excuses for its mistakes. And it seems disingenuous when Joel Embiid has taken 12 free throws in each of the series' first two games after averaging an NBA-high 11.6 free throw attempts in the regular season.

Philadelphia also won a dubious challenge, getting a Kyle Lowry foul overturned and gaining possession on a play where Donte DiVincenzo was clearly hit.

Instead of filing grievances, the Sixers should focus on more important things, like getting an offensive rebound late or making their free throws when they get calls.