Casual NBA fans may not know the detailed intricacies of what constitutes a travel in today’s game. However, the entire NBA world had the same opinion on the referees’ missed call in the Cleveland Cavaliers-Milwaukee Bucks matchup on March 17.
NBA World Shocked by Missed Travel Call During Cavaliers-Bucks Game
Cleveland beat Milwaukee 123-116, bouncing back after a bad loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Evan Mobley and James Harden each dropped 27 points, and Mobley grabbed 15 boards in the victory. Kevin Porter Jr. led the Bucks with 25 points and 10 assists.
The outcome did not shock anyone, as the Cavaliers came in as heavy favorites with Giannis Antetokounmpo unavailable. However, one play certainly caught the fans’ and analysts’ attention. Milwaukee center Jericho Sims had the ball at the top of the 3-point arc. He then took four mini hops, lifting both feet off the ground, before handing the ball off to guard Ryan Rollins. The referees botched an obvious call, and the NBA world wasted no time pointing fingers at the officials.
Media personality Kristopher London took to X/Twitter to express his thoughts on the play.
“I’ll never understand how guys play the right way their entire life, but as soon as they sign an NBA contract, they start hooping like this 😂,” he wrote.
Sports fan Hana agreed with London’s stance, asking, “As an NBA player, how do you even do this?”
As an NBA player, how do you even do this? https://t.co/9O1ClsEvxh
— Hana 🏀 (@HanaHoops) March 18, 2026
Sims’ uncalled travel sparked debate regarding the modern NBA. Former podcast host Wes Clements had a sarcastic response to the play. He made fun of the league’s “gather step” rule, which allows offensive players to take two steps after taking an additional step while picking up the ball.
“Let me guess. This is that new ‘Gather’ rule, so this is legal from all the defenders of the new @NBA 😂😂😂😂😂,” he wrote.
Let me guess this is that new “Gather” rule so this is legal from all the defenders of the new @NBA 😂😂😂😂😂 https://t.co/cjPAgxDkVW
— Wes C (@WesClements22) March 18, 2026
Boxing reporter Steve Kim expressed a similar sentiment.
“That’s not a travel. That’s ‘the hop step.’ It’s the evolution of modern basketball,” he said.
Popular parody accounts like Hater Report and BrickCenter had a field day with the play.
“Apparently, this is NOT a travel. NBA refs are BLIND lmao,” Hater Report posted on X.
“The NBA really stopped calling travels 💀,” said BrickCenter.
Cavaliers fan account Ferret Allen could not believe his eyes during the play, stating, “I’m probably just seeing things, I guess.”
It is almost impossible for officials to make every correct call over the course of a 48-minute game. However, when they miss obvious infractions like Sims’ travel, it makes it hard to defend their decisions.
