The Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets opened the 2025–26 NBA season with a slam-bang thriller that showcased hoops at its finest. In the end, the Thunder, led by reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, came away with a 125–124 victory in double overtime—with SGA himself hitting the game-winning free throws.
While SGA and OKC got the W, it looked like they played an unnecessary second overtime. This after the referees missed what would have been a potentially game-altering call at the end of the first overtime.
What Happened?
With the score tied at 115 in the first overtime, Gilgeous-Alexander missed a jumper that would’ve won the game outright for the Thunder. Durant grabbed SGA’s miss with 1.8 seconds remaining and, upon landing, signaled for a timeout.
It was a timeout the Rockets didn’t have, and had it been granted, Houston would’ve been assessed a technical foul. Ball possession would’ve been awarded to the Thunder as well. But the referees didn’t grant the Rockets that timeout, leading to the second overtime.
Afterward, SGA told reporters after the game that Durant “definitely called timeout about three times”—“verbally and physically.” Replays confirm the physical part, with Durant seen making the timeout gesture after grabbing the rebound.
Why Was the Timeout Not Granted?
Also postgame, Crew Chief Zach Zarba was asked in the NBA’s Pool Report interview why the timeout wasn’t called.
Zarba’s response was succinct, to say the least: “None of the three game officials saw Kevin signal that timeout. That’s why it wasn’t granted before the expiration of time.”
That makes sense to a degree. Yet replays also showed that at least two referees could’ve (or should’ve) seen Durant signaling for a timeout.
Whatever the case may be, the timeout that should’ve been called was not called, and what would’ve been Durant’s Chris Webber moment was averted.
It’s a good thing then that OKC won. They saw it. They knew it. The refs didn’t
