The 2016 NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers was among the most heated and enthralling ever. The series witnessed an epic comeback from the Cavs and drama that still leaves fans divided.
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In Game 6 of the Finals, Stephen Curry’s foul on LeBron James in the fourth quarter led to the referees ejecting him from the court. As much as fans drew contention to this decision, Steph’s wife Ayesha Curry was furious about this incident.
Right after the game, Ayesha Curry tweeted: “I’ve lost all respect sorry this is absolutely rigged for money… Or ratings im not sure which. I won’t be silent. Just saw it live sry.” Like many other fans who were following the series, Ayesha Curry was frustrated with the controversial refereeing decisions that made her conclude the league was rigged for money or ratings.
Ayesha Curry stated that she was not among the ones willing to stay silent on this matter. Though she deleted the tweet after a while, analyst Rachel Nichols kept a screenshot of the same, which she later re-posted on her page.
Here’s what Ayesha Curry posted at the end of the game…then deleted, but only after tens of thousands of retweets: pic.twitter.com/dO83u456iX
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) June 17, 2016
The foul call was an extremely frustrating affair for both Curry and Warriors fans. After being flagged for his sixth foul against LBJ in the fourth quarter, Curry could be seen getting agitated and throwing his mouthpiece into the stands. Unfortunately, the mouthpiece hit a courtside fan, following which he was ejected from the game. Though Curry immediately apologized to the fan, the home fans of Cleveland showered the 2x MVP with boos as he left the court.
The Cleveland Cavaliers came back from a 3-1 deficit in the series, to complete a 4-3 comeback in Game 7 of the series. LeBron James’ crucial block against Andre Iguodala, followed by Kyrie Irving’s clutch shots in the fourth quarter of Game 7 sealed the deal for the Cavs. The King had finally lived to his promise to the fans in Cleveland and helped the team win their first championship in 2016.
The Golden State Warriors were increasingly frustrated with refereeing decisions for the 2016 NBA Finals
The 2016 NBA Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers is not something most Warriors fans would remember fondly. In fact, many might even consider the series to have been stolen from them due to controversial refereeing decisions.
In Game 5 of the series, Draymond Green was also ejected following a flagrant foul on LeBron James. The Cavs won the Game 5, garnering more than 20 million viewers for ABC. The results of the game had Ayesha Curry frustrated, who questioned whether referees could get fined for their decisions.
Can refs get fined?
— Ayesha Curry (@ayeshacurry) June 14, 2016
However, Curry seemed to realize that her tweets were attracting some brazen consequences. In a later tweet, she revealed how her father was racially profiled by the police, even being threatened to be arrested. Apologizing for her previous tweets, here is what Ayesha Curry followed up with to explain the situation.
Police racial profiled my father and told him to remove credentials and tried to arrest him. It’s been a long night for me. I apologize:
— Ayesha Curry (@ayeshacurry) June 17, 2016
It is quite understandable for Ayesha Curry to be frustrated in this situation. The Golden State Warriors lost a series that they had almost captured in three games. However, the next year was the one to shine for the Warriors, as Kevin Durant’s addition added another ring to Stephen Curry’s cabinet as the Warriors won the 2017 NBA championship against the same Cavs team, defeating them 4-1.
