WNBA officials made 2 big mistakes in 2 days and fans have every right to complain

If you’ve been a fan of sports for a while, you’re probably all too familiar with the trials and tribulations that come with officials and missed calls. This season in the WNBA, it seems to be a bigger topic of conversation than it ever has before — or maybe we’re just paying closer attention. Either way, there were a couple of big ones over the last couple of nights…

Typically, a missed call or one that no one seemed to see but the official, in the middle of the game, will be forgotten about by the time the final buzzer sounds. But when it happens so late in the game, especially in games that could be decided within the final possession, it becomes unbelievably hard to ignore. You can’t necessarily blame fans for talking about it, expressing their frustrations, and possibly even calling for some transparency and accountability.

To put it frankly, fans kind of have to carry most of the weight when criticizing officials. The league is not shy when fining players who have something to say after they feel things weren’t fair during games — whether valid or not. Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve received the largest individual fine in league history after calling a game’s officiating “f—-ing malpractice.” Last season, Caitlin Clark was also fined for a comment she made on social media about officials after an Indiana Fever win, claiming the “refs couldn’t stop us.”

Fans sure are voicing their opinions after the most recent blunders by officials — and rightfully so.

Mistake 1: Dallas Wings vs. Atlanta Dream, Arike Ogunbowale

On July 29, the Atlanta Dream and Dallas Wings faced off for the third time this season. The Dream, who have had a rocky past few weeks, were looking for the season sweep that would give them a big boost in confidence. It wasn’t looking likely as the Wings held the lead through nearly the entire second half — until Arike Ogunbowale was called for a flagrant 1 reckless closeout. 

Do I personally think this is a pretty bad call to make with only around 20 seconds left in the game? Yes, but it was called nonetheless. It led to Allisha Gray banking three free throws, and the Dream got the ball. With the shift in momentum, I can imagine Gray was feeling pretty good. She drained the contested jumper, giving Atlanta the lead with only about 15 seconds left.

There is definitely some pushback against fans complaining about this call. One, some believe it is the right call, citing Ogunbowale’s movement of her right foot into Gray’s landing zone, causing her to shift her feet when heading back to the ground. And two, the Wings sort of fumbled that last 15 seconds. They didn’t seem to have a solid plan of what they were going to do. Ogunbowale was visibly upset after the loss. She was seen voicing frustrations at what I’d assume to be an official on her way back into the tunnel.

Mistake 2: Las Vegas Aces vs. New York Liberty, Jonquel Jones

To be frank, anyone with eyes knows this was the wrong call and an incredible blunder by the officials. Last night, the Las Vegas Aces took on the New York Liberty. The Liberty have had a rough go of things, but have done their best to turn it around lately. This was a close battle between two of the league’s best and most consistent squads in recent years — despite losing, a performance like this should give New York some confidence, especially with how it ended.

With about 18 seconds left, the score was 98-95 in favor of the Aces. A’ja Wilson drove to the basket and ultimately lost control of the ball, sending it out of bounds. Except the officials called the ball off Jonquel Jones. The officials on the floor even gathered to discuss and still concluded that it last touched Jones. It simply did not.

If New York had gotten the ball, it would have given them the final possession to tie the game up and force overtime with a 3-ball. Instead, the Liberty were forced to play the foul game, giving the Aces chances to extend their lead at the charity stripe.

Unfortunately, the Liberty had no more challenges, forcing them to sit with the decision the officials made. In my honest opinion, it’d be pretty heinous to make a team waste a challenge on a call that obvious, but I digress. After the game, Breanna Stewart was asked if she thought the call was the incorrect one. She responded, “Yeah, I did. So did A’ja. She was walking back to halfcourt.” Pretty brutal ending to a great game.

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