I am not saying the NBA is not rigged.
I am saying that it makes no sense for the NBA to screw the Lakers multiple times. LeBron is the most well-known player in the world, The Lakers are likely the most influential team in the league, and Bron is about to break Kareem’s scoring record.
It is in the NBA’s best interests that the Lakers are good, and if the Lakers were in the NBA Finals every year, it would mean massive ratings for the league.
If you hooked Adam Silver up to a lie detector, he would say he would rather the Grizzlies or Nuggets in the Finals over LeBron and the Lakers.
We have to call this what it is, very bad officiating, and the only reason it is being exposed more is that it is happening to the Lakers. If this were happening to the Kings, no one would know.
The head referee in the Los Angeles Lakers‘ 125-121 overtime loss to the Celtics on Saturday admitted there was a missed shooting foul by Jayson Tatum against LeBron James in the final seconds of regulation, leaving L.A. seething about another defeat tied to officiating.
The Lakers had a golden opportunity to knock off the league-leading Celtics when James drove to the hoop with the score tied with 4.0 seconds remaining. He got all the way to the basket when he attempted a left-handed layup and was smacked on the arm by Tatum, missing the shot just before time expired.
James immediately turned to the referee stationed along the baseline, grabbing his arm to indicate where the contact occurred. He hopped up and down, slapped the hardwood, held his hands on his head in disbelief and finally dropped to his knees in the paint and put his head down into his arms on the floor.
“There was contact,” crew chief Eric Lewis said to a pool reporter after the game. “At the time, during the game, we did not see a foul. The crew missed the play.”
The admission was the latest in what the Lakers see as a series of poor officiating in their games, bringing to mind recent losses to Dallas, Philadelphia and Sacramento when calls did not go in their favor.
“It’s one of the best games we’ve played all year, and for it to fall on somebody else’s judgment or nonjudgment is ridiculous,” James said. “It’s ridiculous.
As you can imagine, social media lost their minds over this.
Flip the pages for the Tweets.
