The NBA‘s tanking debate picked up steam this week after Sacramento Kings head coach Doug Christie made a puzzling late-game decision against the Golden State Warriors.

The Kings held a one-point lead with just over three minutes remaining when Christie called for an intentional foul on Seth Curry. The timing raised eyebrows since Sacramento was already in the penalty, sending Golden State to the free-throw line.

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The Warriors went on to win 110-105, handing the Kings their 59th loss of the season. The move sparked immediate criticism and prompted the league to launch an investigation.

NBA reaches decision on Kings coach Doug Christie investigation

Questions swirled about whether Christie deliberately tried to lose the game, especially given Sacramento’s depleted roster and position in the standings. The NBA wrapped up its review on Thursday and released findings that cleared Christie of any intentional wrongdoing.

“The NBA has completed an investigation of the Sacramento Kings and Head Coach Doug Christie’s decision to foul intentionally late in the team’s game against the Golden State Warriors on April 7,” the statement read.

“The league’s investigation determined that Christie mistakenly believed that the Warriors were not in the penalty and therefore instructed his team to foul in an attempt to stop the clock and utilize one of the team’s remaining timeouts. The investigation found that Christie made no intentional effort to give the Warriors a shooting foul, or to cause the Kings to lose the game.”

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According to the league’s findings, Christie thought Golden State was not yet in the penalty. He wanted to stop the clock and save a timeout, a standard late-game tactic. The mistake came down to a mental lapse rather than any deliberate strategy to tank.

The Kings entered the matchup severely undermanned. Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and De’Andre Hunter all sat out following season-ending surgeries. DeMar DeRozan and Russell Westbrook were also unavailable Tuesday night.

Sacramento leaned heavily on younger players down the stretch of the season, but team sources insisted there was no lack of effort despite the roster situation.