LeBron James absolutely lost it after the referees missed an obvious foul from Jayson Tatum that would have given the Los Angeles Lakers the chance to win against the Boston Celtics at the death of time.
With the scores tied at 105-105 with less than five seconds remaining in the game, James took matters into his own hands and attacked the basket for the potential game-winning lay-up. LeBron missed it, but only because Tatum clearly whacked him.
Unfortunately, the referees didn't call a foul that would have warranted two free throws and paved the way for the Lakers to win. Of course James was shocked that there was no whistle, and he was furious and just frustrated that the game was taken away from them.
LeBron James absolutely fuming that he didn't get the foul call at the end of Lakers-Celtics 😳pic.twitter.com/vuTiEHEBJh
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) January 29, 2023
The Lakers put up a fight in OT, but in the end, the Celtics edged them 125-121.
Nonetheless, the game shouldn't have been extended in the first place if the game was officiated correctly. Patrick Beverley got whistled for a technical foul for showing the refs a camera with the photo of the clear hit on LeBron James by Jayson Tatum, but the officials couldn't even blow their whistle on more important matters.
Naturally the whole NBA Twitterverse had similar sentiments–except for the Celtics' fan base since they benefited. There are a lot of angry reactions on the disappointing turn of events, though nothing can be done now to overturn it.
The Lakers really needed the win to improve their chances of making the playoffs, and there's no doubt they deserved to win. Now, they will have to work extra hard to get back to Play-in contention.
Follow Us
Subscribe