From the Golden State great win in Portland on Wednesday Things went a little better on Thursday.
One point better, to be precise.
The NBA discovered a scoring error, with the Warriors not getting a free throw that De’Anthony Melton made with two minutes left in the third quarter. The league announced the error Thursday and changed the final score from 139-104 to 140-104.
Statisticians at the game recorded that Melton had missed both free throws in that series, even though Melton made the first.
It became the fourth 140-point season opener in Warriors franchise history. Golden State scored 162 points – an NBA record for an opener – against Denver in 1990, the San Francisco Warriors scored 144 against Seattle in 1967 and San Francisco scored 140 against Detroit in 1962.
In both cases, this was the most points Portland allowed in an opener. The Trail Blazers gave up 129 against Cleveland to open the 1974-75 season – in a four-overtime game.
It was also Golden State’s biggest ever win in an opener and Portland’s biggest loss to start a season. The extra point on Thursday made things a little better for the Warriors, a little worse for the Trail Blazers.
Scoring errors are rare in NBA games, with teams employing several game night statisticians and league officials who also watch the statistics of all games in real time.
