Kings Coach Made a Late-Game Blunder Against the Warriors, and Nobody's Buying the Excuse

The Sacramento Kings lost to Golden State 110-105 on Tuesday night, but the real story happened with 3:15 left on the clock. With Sacramento up by one, coach Doug Christie called for forward Doug McDermott to intentionally foul Seth Curry, who sits at 86.4% from the free throw line. The problem? The Warriors were already in the bonus. It was a tactical disaster that blew up in everyone's face, and the NBA is now looking into whether it was an honest mistake or something way darker.

The Foul That Started a Firestorm

Here's what went down according to sources: Christie wanted to call a timeout before he automatically lost it when the clock hit three minutes. But in making that call, he miscalculated. He didn't realize Golden State was in the bonus, which meant sending an elite free throw shooter to the line was the exact opposite of what Sacramento needed. Seth Curry made one of two, tying it at 101. The Kings drew up a McDermott three-pointer from the timeout and it actually worked, putting them up three. Then they completely fell apart in the final minutes and lost.

Enter Draymond Green and the Tanking Accusations

After the game, Warriors forward Draymond Green went on a rant about the NBA's tanking problem, and he wasn't subtle about it. "I saw a team tonight foul Seth Curry with three minutes to go for no reason," Green said. "I get fined when I do wrong. Fine the hell outta people." He doubled down, saying organizations need to face bigger financial penalties for obvious tanking moves. The implication was clear: this looked intentional.

But multiple team sources told ESPN it wasn't. They say it was purely a coaching error, not a deliberate tank job. The Kings have been absolutely gutted by injuries down the stretch with Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and DeAndre Hunter all having season-ending surgeries. DeMar DeRozan and Russell Westbrook weren't even active for Tuesday's game. Sacramento is clearly focused on building through youth and sits at 21-59, tied with Utah for the fourth-worst record in the league. But sources were adamant that the coaches and players on the floor had every intention to win.

The Kings have actually won seven of their last 16 games, so the narrative isn't totally cut and dry. Still, that foul is going to live in infamy for a while.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.