The Cleveland Cavaliers missed a golden opportunity to steal home-court advantage from the Golden State Warriors as a late J.R. Smith blunder cost them a win in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday night.After grabbing the rebound from a missed George Hill free-throw with the game tied at 104, the veteran decided to dribble out the remaining 4.7 seconds instead of attempting a game-winning shot as he thought the Cavs had the lead.This error sent the game into overtime and allowed the Warriors to capitalise on this good fortune as they outscored their visitors 17-7 in the extra period to claim a dramatic 124-114 win.But that wasn't the only major talking point down the stretch as the Cavaliers were left furious with a controversial call by the referees with 35 seconds left.Kevin Durant was initially called for an offensive foul after barrelling into LeBron James on a drive to the basket but after reviewing the play, the refs overturned their decision and called a blocking foul on the Cavs star.This sent Durant to the free-throw line with the Warriors down by two and he made no mistake as he drained them both to tie the game.
Cleveland head coach Tyron Lue was irate with the call and had some strong words to say about the refs in his press conference.
“I mean, they called a charge, right?” Lue said, per USA Today. “And LeBron was clearly four feet outside the restricted area.
"So it doesn't make sense to go review something if – the review is if he's on the line or if he's close to the charge circle. That's the review. He wasn't close. So what are we reviewing? Either call a blocking foul or call an offensive foul.
“For our team to come out and play their hearts out and compete the way we did, man, I mean, it's bad. It's never been done before where you know he's outside the restricted, and then you go there and overturn the call and say it's a block.
"It's never been done, ever, in the history of the game. And then (Thursday) in the Finals on the biggest stage, when our team played well, played our (butt) off, man, it ain't right. It ain't right.”
Lue went on to say that the were "robbed" by the officials as he was clearly emotional in the heat of the moment after a tough loss.
The defeat soured another memorable game by LeBron as he posted a historic 51 points.
“To do what he did tonight and come out robbed, it's just not right,” Lue said
Speaking about the play, James was adamant that his feet were outside the restricted area and that he timed his charge perfectly.
"I read that play just as well as I've read any play in my career, maybe in my life," he said. "I saw the play happening. I knew I was outside the charge line, and I knew I took the hit. I don't know what else to say."
Even after this moment of controversy, the Ohio-based outfit still had a chance to win and that will make this loss a bitter pill to swallow.
They now face a difficult task to keep the series alive in Game 2 as they can't afford to fall into a 2-0 deficit against this Warriors team.
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