The New York Knicks are filing a protest with the NBA to dispute their 105-103 loss to the Houston Rockets on Monday.

Officials acknowledged that a foul against Jalen Brunson at the end of the game should not have been called. 

Aaron Holiday, who was originally judged to have been fouled by Brunson, hit two-out-of-three free throws to win the game.

The two teams are not scheduled to play again this season. The Knicks are hoping that either the game restarts with overtime or they are not penalized with a loss.

A protest must prove a "misapplication" of a rule, not just a missed call.

Only six protests have been upheld in league history. 

The New York Knicks had staged a comeback to tie their Monday game against the Houston Rockets at 103. After a scramble play, Jalen Brunson was called for a foul against Aaron Holiday. The Rockets guard hit two-of-three free throws to give Houston a 105-103 victory.

The only problem? The foul on Brunson shouldn't have been called.

Crew Chief Ed Malloy admitted the mistake in a postgame pool report interview. Malloy said that during live action, it appeared that there was illegal lower-body contact. Upon a postgame review, Malloy said that wasn't the case.

"After seeing it during postgame review, the offensive player was able to return to a normal playing position on the floor. The contact which occurred after the release of the ball therefore is incidental and marginal to the shot attempt and should not have been called," Malloy said.

The Houston Rockets have interest in trading for an All-Star should one become available with Donovan Mitchell, Joel Embiid and Zion Williamson mentioned by sources that spoke with Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. 

During a podcast appearance with Zach Lowe on Monday, Tim MacMahon also linked a pursuit of Mitchell to the Rockets. 

With the Cleveland Cavaliers surging over the past few weeks, the future of Mitchell with the franchise isn't likely to be determined until at least this coming offseason.

Houston has also pursued a trade with the Brooklyn Nets for Mikal Bridges.

The Houston Rockets are believed to have offered Jalen Green to the Brooklyn Nets as part of a pick heavy package for Mikal Bridges, sources tell Marc Stein of The Stein Line.

Yahoo's Jake Fischer also had a similar report on Monday about the availability of Green. Talks between the Nets and Rockets didn't gain traction.

Houston's ability to trade the Nets back their future first round picks is thought to be compelling as it would allow Brooklyn to rebuild in a way they can't current since they do not control their own picks. The Nets, however, view Bridges as the type of player other stars would like to play with and at this point too valuable to consider dealing. 

When the Rockets interviewed head coaching candidates last offseason, sources tell Fischer that they wished to discuss which of their young players they would consider trading for a bigger star.

Jalen Green has "generated some trade buzz" leading to the deadline, sources tell ESPN's Zach Lowe.

The Houston Rockets are seeking their first playoff berth since trading away James Harden after the 19-20 season. The Rockets are plus picks and have enough good young players that it could be difficult to pay them all long-term.

Green is averaging 18.4 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists this season as his role has decreased after they reshaped their roster. 

The Houston Rockets have agreed to acquire Steven Adams from the Memphis Grizzlies for Victor Oladipo and three second round picks.

Adams is out for the season following his October knee surgery, but the Rockets expect him to be recovered for next season. Adams will serve as a backup center behind Alperen Sengun. 

The Rockets also had interest in trading for Robert Williams III.

The Boston Celtics and Phoenix Suns have registered interest in Houston Rockets wing Jae'Sean Tate. Both Boston and Phoenix have been looking for rotation upgrades but are limited in what they can offer via trade.

Tate makes $6.5 million this season, with a $7.1 million team option for 2024-25. That reasonable salary for this season is how Boston and Phoenix could deal for Tate.

The Celtics could combine the contracts of minimum-salary players to match Tate's $6.5 million. The Suns could offer a similar deal or could offer Nassir Little as the matching salary in a trade.