An obscure NBA rule cost the Magic an epic buzzer-beater vs. the Bulls

The Orlando Magic looked like they weren’t going to have much trouble with the Chicago Bulls at the start of their Wednesday night matchup. Orlando opened up a 20-point lead early with with Paolo Banchero hammering the Bulls inside and Orlando’s defense locking down on the perimeter.

Somehow, the Bulls came back — again. Chicago had just wiped away a 20-point deficit in their previous game against the Memphis Grizzlies to steal a win. The formula was similar this time around, with the Bulls raining three-pointers in the third quarter and getting some good fortunate in the form of the Magic going ice cold from deep.

The game came down the final seconds, but Chicago secured the win when Jalen Suggs missed a turnaround jump near the horn of regulation. The Bulls corralled the rebound, and Josh Giddey went to the line for two free throws. He sank the second one, giving the Bulls a three-point lead with just 0.1 seconds left on the clock. Orlando called timeout to advance the ball.

The Magic inbounded the ball to Banchero, who hit a deep three as the buzzer sounded. Overtime? Not quite. As the Magic star and his head coach Jamal Mosley were complaining to the officials, the refs knew that no replay review was necessary because of the Trent Tucker Rule. Watch the play here:

The Trent Tucker rule states that any catch-and-shoot requires at least 0.3 seconds remaining on the shot clock. It is physically impossible to get off a shot in 0.1 seconds, so Banchero’s heave never had a chance.

The rule was ironically born against the Chicago Bulls. The former New York Knicks guard hit a game-winning buzzer-beater against the Bulls in 1990 with 0.1 seconds on the clock. The shot was called good. New Bulls coach Phil Jackson protested the game. He lost the protest, but the Tucker rule — you need at least 0.3 seconds on the clock for a catch-and-shoot — was installed the next season. Here’s the original Trent Tucker shot.

Banchero did everything he could here, catching the ball in the air as if it was a lob, and immediately pushing it out of his hands. Unfortunately for him, it just isn’t possible to make that shot with only one tenth of a second.

What a win for the Bulls, who are suddenly 3-2 playing a fast-paced, three-point heavy style without DeMar DeRozan. Banchero will have more magical moments in his career, but this one just wasn’t meant to be.