What is a formal protest in the NBA, and has any team ever won one?

A formal protest is incredibly rare in the NBA, but what is it, how does it work and has a team ever been successful in filing one?

You truly never know what’s going to happen in the NBA, particularly if the refs aren’t up to their A-game. And if that’s the case, then there is a rare chance that might result in a formal protest from a franchise.

That’s what happened on the night of March 22, 2023 with the Dallas Mavericks and Golden State Warriors. In a game Golden State won by two points, the Mavs argued that the Warriors were given a free bucket after the refs called Dallas ball prior to a timeout, changed the call, but then didn’t tell the Mavericks, thus resulting in a wide-open lay-up for Golden State.

The Mavs went on to lose by, you guessed it, two points. Now, Mark Cuban is planning to file a formal protest to the NBA over the missed call. But what exactly is that and, more importantly, does it actually work?

What is a formal protest in the NBA? Rules, process explained

A formal protest is a franchise protesting the result of a given game. This refuting of the outcome is based on either an incorrect call or the rules not being correctly utilized during the game, thus putting the result in question. If such an infraction happens and a team believes they were wronged by these parameters and it cost them a game, they can then file the protest with the NBA.

ESPN’s Bobby Marks laid out more particulars about a formal protest. It costs $10,000 to file one, which will be refunded if the protest is successful. The team has 48 hours to file the protest with the league office with the $10K check and the organization also has five days to provide adequate evident to the league that the protested action did occur. Adam Silver (or whoever is commissioner) then has five days after receiving the evidence to make a decision.

Has an NBA team ever won a formal protest?

There have been 44 known formal protests in the history of the NBA, the most recent one prior to the 2023 incident also involved the Mavericks as they protested a loss to the Atlanta Hawks in 2020 (a protest they did not win and that resulted in a massive fine for Mark Cuban).

Of the 44 known protests, there have only been six successful protests. There has also only been one protest win in the league since the 1982-83 season, which came back in January 2008 over an error counting Shaquille O’Neal’s fouls.

What happens if an NBA formal protest succeeds?

If an aggrieved team wins their protest of an outcome, then the game is replayed at a later date with the initial result no longer counting toward the season totals for either team. The replay will still be listed as being played on the same date as the original game, which is how Sean Marion, who changed teams via trade, played in two games on the “same night” thanks to the O’Neal protest in 2008.