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DALLAS — Utah Jazz coach Will Hardy wasn't too focused in the huddle after he called a timeout in the second quarter of Tuesday's game in Dallas.
At that moment, it was hard for him to care too much about X's and O's, or anything else, considering what had just happened.
Before the timeout, Dallas' Tim Hardaway Jr. quickly backpedaled into the sideline right where Hardy was standing. The Dallas guard stepped on Hardy's foot, twisted his ankle and went down to the court.
Hardy almost looked horror shaken as he apologized and tried to help Hardaway Jr. up.
"That's never what you want to see," Hardy said. "You don't want anybody to ever get hurt, especially when it's on your foot. I was calling a timeout. I was standing out of bounds. Obviously, there's no ill intent there."
The officials, though, did go to monitor to see if Hardy had been on the court during the collision, which led to a unique announcement in the American Airlines Center: "Coach being reviewed for a hostile act."
The uniqueness of the moment drew some laughs from the crowd — as well as some jeers. But for Hardy, it was just a stressful moment — not because he was scared he'd be penalized but because he was worried about Hardaway Jr.
"I love him as a player," Hardy said. "It's not a good feeling for sure. You're nervous that he's really hurt."
When Hardaway Jr. got up and checked back into the game, a small bit of relief sank in for Hardy. The Jazz coach went over to the scorer's table and asked Hardaway Jr. if he was OK. The Dallas guard, who went 7-for-9 from 3-point range, nodded his head and gave a small thumbs up.
"I apologized to him multiple times. I apologized to (Dallas coach) Jason (Kidd) multiple times," Hardy said. "I want to be very clear that that's just one of those freak plays. Tim's a great athlete. He shot that shot and backpedaled so fast after he shot it and just kind of steps right on my foot.
"But, yeah, your heart sinks. If I'm being honest with you guys, it was really hard to concentrate in the timeout with our coaches and our staff because you're just worried that you just seriously hurt somebody."
Hardaway finished the game and scored 24 points for the Mavericks.
"Not my favorite moment of the game, for sure, but I'm glad that he's OK," Hardy said.
