NBA officials are sometimes criticized for being the center of attention during games. However, when veteran referee Bill Kennedy announces the outcome of a coach’s challenge, he often does so in a way that entertains everyone except the team he is competing against.
Kennedy’s final performance came Friday night in Indianapolis, in the fourth quarter of the Boston Celtics’ 140-122 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
On the play in questionPacers wing Quenton Jackson was whistled for a shooting foul on Celtics guard Anfernee Simons. Indiana coach Rick Carlisle used his coach’s challenge, hoping to overturn the call. After the team of officials viewed the play on the field’s video monitors, Kennedy announced the call in what became his signature style, full of dramatic pauses and carefully enunciated verbiage.
“After reviewing the play, the defensive player is still in motion and makes contact prior to any movement of the offensive player’s leg, resulting in the defensive foul being confirmed and the coach’s challenge failing.”
Can Bill Kennedy review every coaching challenge? 🤣
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– NBC Sports (@NBCSports) December 27, 2025
Friday night’s game wasn’t the first time Kennedy’s resolutions drew attention on social media. In a 140-126 Los Angeles Lakers victory over the Utah Jazz, Kennedy calmly chased Lakers goalkeeper Luka Dončić from center court before explaining the result of a successful challenge by Utah head coach Will Hardy that resulted in a foul against Dončić.
“After reviewing the play, Anderson steals the ball and then gets fouled by Lakers number 77,” Kennedy said. “The ball will be given to Utah from the side with 23 on the shot clock. Coach’s challenge is successful.”
Kennedy, now in his 26th NBA season, has officiated more than 1,400 regular season games and 139 playoff games, including six NBA Finals. His protest verdicts aren’t the only way small aspects of his personality manifest at work.
On his bio page on the National Basketball Referees Association website, Kennedy lists karaoke as his hidden talent and Luther Vandross as his favorite musical artist, alluding to the artist beneath the pinstripes.
The NBA introduced the coach challenge rule at the start of the 2019-20 season. It grants each team one opportunity per game to overturn a personal foul, challenge a goaltending or basket interference call, or overturn an out-of-bounds call when the team’s coaches believe the referees’ initial call was incorrect.
If a challenge is successful, the team retains the opportunity to challenge another call later in the game. In case of failure, the team is penalized with a timeout.
The outcome of a challenge can affect the outcome of a game, but in the dire world of NBA basketball, Kennedy reminds us that it’s always OK to have a little fun.
