The Pistons Lost To The Bulls After Jaden Ivey Called A Timeout They Didn’t Have

The Pistons made a furious second half rally to turn a 21-point deficit into a tie game late in the fourth quarter against the Bulls, but they were never able to regain the lead.

Their best chance at a win came with nine seconds to play, when they got the ball after a Bulls missed shot and advanced it up the floor with their final timeout, trailing 114-112. Dwane Casey drew up a play to try and get the ball to Bojan Bogdanovic at the top of the floor, as he was 8-of-12 from three on the night and leading the Pistons with 34 points. Rookie Jaden Ivey was given the duty of inbounding the ball, and figured to be part of a secondary action in case the Bulls swarmed Bogdanovic, as he was the second leading scorer on the night with 19 points.

Unfortunately, Ivey didn’t get the message in the huddle that the Pistons did not have another timeout, and the youngster seemed to panic a bit after Bogdanovic didn’t pop free immediately and, terrified of a five-second call and a turnover, called for a timeout they didn’t have, leading to a technical and a turnover, effectively ending the game.

What makes it even worse is the ref was doing a very slow count and was only on her third count when Ivey called the timeout as Bogdanovic popped open near midcourt. You could see Ivey was distraught about making the error immediately after, with Bogdanovic trying to pick him up during the free throws on the other end. For Pistons fans who are also fans of the Michigan Wolverines, of which there are many, this has the added pain of ensuring that Chris Webber jokes and memes would hit the internet — on Webber’s birthday, no less.

While Detroit has all but locked up top-4 odds in the lottery, these are games that everyone wants to win — and arguably even moreso for a team desperate to build a little bit of positive momentum now that their place in the lottery is secured. In the end, it’s a tough learning experience for Ivey, who you can bet will be the most aware of the Pistons timeout situation in every game going forward.