Los Angeles Lakers
LeBron James‘ Heart was broken after a last-second loss on Monday night, but his mouth certainly worked well – as he spent part of his postgame huddle with media members criticizing NBA officiating.
Shortly after LBJ’s Lakers blew a big lead and lost to the Nuggets, 101-99, in Denver… James answered questions about the L playoff for several minutes.
Eventually, he was asked how difficult it would be to bounce back from the loss – but instead of answering the question, he decided to answer some of the calls made during the game.
Specifically, he was furious because the referees overturned a foul on Michael Porter Jr. – although the replay appears to show that he got it right D’Angelo Russell in the head after a shooting attempt.
MPJ called for a foul here…. #LALvsDEN pic.twitter.com/dUHNIh9wnL
– Rate the Refs app (@Rate_the_Refs) April 23, 2024
@Rate_the_Refs
“D-Lo clearly gets slapped in the face while traveling,” James said angrily into the microphone, “what the fuck do we have a replay center if that’s going to happen – it doesn’t make sense to me.”
“It doesn’t make sense to me,” he added. “It bothers me.”
James said it wasn’t just a problem for his Los Angeles team — he said he noticed it happen in Monday night’s Sixers-Knicks playoff contest as well.
“What are we doing?” said James.
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LeBron – who had 26 points, eight rebounds and 12 assists in the loss – then dropped the microphone and walked away from the dais.
Anthony Davis: “Jamal Murray got it right.” pic.twitter.com/jsiYMmSa8p
-NBA TV (@NBATV) April 23, 2024
@NBATV
Other Lakers weren’t happy either – Russell took to X to write about the overturned call: “It’s a foul we all saw on national television.” Anthony DavisMeanwhile, he did not openly criticize the referees – although it was easy to see that he seemed to want to do so.
LA is now down 0-2 in the series – but will have a chance to get back in the win column at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday night… even if some players’ wallets are a little lighter after some fines for his official comments.