Minnesota Lynx Head Coach and President of Basketball Operations, Cheryl Reeve, made headlines with her post-game comments about the officiating after Game 5 of the WNBA Finals, and quite frankly, she has a point.
By now, you all know the scenario and have seen the replay over and over.
With 6.3 seconds left in Sunday’s winner-take-all Game 5 of the WNBA Finals, the Minnesota Lynx held a 60-58 lead over the New York Liberty with a title mere seconds away. At the top of the three-point line, New York Liberty’s Breanna Stewart received the ball, took a few steps into the lane, and pulled up at the top of the key with the potential game-tying shot.
Stewart went from the three point line to the free throw line without dribbling it once.
pic.twitter.com/E3qM6F0SSF— GopherHole.com (@GopherHole) October 21, 2024
The ball missed the mark, only to have a whistle blow from the official on the sideline. A foul had been called on Minnesota’s Alanna Smith, giving Stewart the opportunity to hit both free throws and force overtime. In extra time, New York pulled out the victory to claim its first championship in franchise history.
After the game, “the call” was all the talk. Many questioned the conclusion of the contest and the decisions made by the officiating crew. Among those fuming was Lynx head coach and president of basketball operations Cheryl Reeve.
“I know the headlines will be ‘Reeve cries foul,’” Reeve said. “Bring it on. Bring it on. Because this shit was stolen from us.” Since those comments, Reeve’s name has flooded headlines across the country. Though some disagree with her, Reeve’s frustration is understandable. And quite frankly, it’s justified.
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“The call” didn’t ultimately lose the game for Minnesota, it had plenty of opportunities to put the game away. It didn’t decide who would or wouldn’t be crowned WNBA Champions then and there. However, that decision extended a game that likely should have ended seconds later. And not only was “the call” a questionable one — to say the least — there is more to it than that.
There are multiple aspects to the play and the call that was made. For starters, Stewart appeared to travel before the shot attempt, which would have blown the play dead at that moment. Regardless of if that travel is called or if the subsequent foul call occurs, it’s the fact the officials then had multiple opportunity to get it right after Minnesota challenged the call.
It’s one thing to make the call, it’s another thing to look at it on replay, see that there was just marginal contact and still not correct the call. Knowing well the stage and the implications that call would make.
“It’s a shame that officiating had such a hand in a series like this. … We have got to change our challenge rules,” Reeve said post-game. The officials during the game should have a third party, because that was not a foul. That call should have been reversed on that challenge … if we would have turned that clip in (to the league), they would have told us that this was marginal contact, no foul. Guaranteed. Guaranteed.”
That is where Reeve has a strong point. A missed call like that, in real time, is quite common. But when it’s challenged and that same officiating crew has a chance to view the play in slow motion — and it’s that obvious — you have to correct that call. When you don’t, your putting yourself into a game where the players should decide the outcome, not officiating crews.
“Unfortunately I have experience in this and I have a lot of feelings about it,” Reeve said Tuesday during the team’s end-of-season media availability. “We all know what happened.”
The officiating complaints weren’t just from Game 5, both teams were impacted by officiating in each of the previous four contests. From last-second game-altering calls, to disparity in fouls called. On multiple occasions, those decisions by those who aren’t supposed to impact the game heavily impacted the end result.
This season, during the playoffs and throughout the Finals, Reeve hasn’t just been asking, she’s been pleading for the WNBA to look into its officiating, just as others have around the league. This spans far beyond this instance and far beyond just this year. This call was just the most recent example on the biggest of stages.
While a lot of attention has been made on Reeve’s latest comments after the final buzzer sounded in Game 5, she has a point. The frustration is justified. The issues at hand and the corrections needed to be made are clear as day. And hopefully, now she is being heard.
The infamous Game 5 call will forever be “the call” we all remember. Unfortunately, it will be one of the main things we will remember from what was the best WNBA Finals we have ever seen between two great teams in Minnesota and New York.