One of the most bizarre sequences in recent NBA history unfolded in the third quarter of Friday’s clash between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center. Following a turnover by Mavericks’ Khris Middleton with 2:11 left in the period, the Cavaliers called a timeout, and what followed was a complete brain fade on the part of some players and the officials.
The officials somehow incorrectly gave the ball to the Mavericks’ Caleb Martin, right under the basket they were attacking. Martin inbounded the ball to Brandon Williams, who then proceeded to head toward the wrong basket.
The refs gave the ball to the WRONG team… who then attacked the WRONG basket 😭 pic.twitter.com/Yc6VfT3IvL
— BrickCenter (@BrickCenter_) March 14, 2026
Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson was understandably puzzled by what was going on and notified the officials, who halted play. It’s incredible how such a big mistake can be made at this level, and fans had a field day as they reacted to it.
“How does this even happen at this level? Officiating is getting worse every year,” a fan was critical of the officials.
“Dallas is tanking so hard they’re trying to score for the other team,” one joked about the Mavericks trying to lose games.
“Just one more reason why the NBA is a joke,” one individual dislikes the NBA even further now.
“A professional who gets paid a million dollars can’t even find the right basket?” one fan asked.
“Pathetic, embarrassing, refs should be fined like players are for doing dumb s***,” one fan is calling for the referees to get fined.
You wonder who this is a worse look for. For starters, the officials should have immediately realized their mistake. Then, Martin and Williams went the wrong way despite having played a few minutes in the quarter. They should have known where their basket was. Lastly, Cavaliers’ Craig Porter Jr. was guarding Williams when he should have known it was their ball, and that they were going the wrong way.
This was just a comedy of errors all around. You wonder if these three were paying any attention to what the coaches were saying during the timeout.
Atkinson could afford to smile about all this, as the Cavaliers had already run away with the game by that point. They were up 99-77 and went on to win 138-105.
Evan Mobley was the star of the show with 29 points (12-15 FG), seven rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Cavaliers superstar Donovan Mitchell also chipped in with 24 points (11-16 FG), two rebounds, eight assists, and two steals as they improved to 41-26 on the season.
As for the Mavericks, Cooper Flagg led the way with 25 points (8-16 FG), four rebounds, and five assists. They had ended an eight-game losing streak by beating the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday, but were unable to rack up back-to-back wins.
The Mavericks have now dropped to 22-45 and will take on the Cavaliers again on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET, but at Rocket Arena.
