Are the Los Angeles Lakers Getting Cheated?

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Lakers
Courtesy Of Michael E. Lee-Flickr CCO

Blatant No Call vs. Celtics

The Los Angeles Lakers are currently 11th in the Western Conference after a tough loss against the Boston Celtics a few days ago. The Lakers are 4-6 in their last game, and most of their games come down to the wire. Lebron James has been the leader of this team, averaging 34.3 points, 9.4 rebounds, and eight assists over this recent ten-game stretch. The Lakers struggled closing out games in the clutch, but is some of the blame going on the refs? In the Lakers vs. Celtics game, after reviewing the footage, Lebron was fouled attempting a layup to the rim. The layup could have saved the Lakers from going into overtime, where they ended up being defeated.

James and the Lakers let their thoughts be known on how calls have not been going their way for the past few games. James stated, “I don’t get it…. I’m attacking the paint just as much as any of the other guys in the league shooting double digits a night.” James ended the game by shooting 5/6 from the free-throw line. James scored 41 points on 50% field goal efficiency. The Celtics had three players attempt at least 8+ free throws and shot 38 free throws compared to the Lakers’ 20. Anthony Davis released a statement after the game, saying, “We got cheated tonight, honestly.”

Lakers No-Call History

Lakers
Courtesy of Erik Drost-Flickr CCO

The Lakers have had a history of not getting very blatant calls this season. On January 12, the Lakers lost to the Mavericks by 119-115. In the last few seconds of regulation, Troy Brown Jr. shot a three where Tim Hardaway Jr slapped his hand mid-shot. This foul being missed allowed the game to go into overtime. In overtime, Lebron James drove and got grabbed by Christian Wood on the layup, which was another no-call. If he had scored anything off of that drive, it would have given the Lakers the lead with less than 3 seconds left.

Not even a week later, Russell Westbrook faced a similar situation. Westbrook drove and got his wrist grabbed by Joel Embiid on a pass. Westbrook made this pass with two seconds left, and it was again a no-call which turned into a turnover and an immediate loss. The score ended up being 113-112.

Los Angeles has been facing many struggles with manpower and injuries, which have caused the majority of its losses. This officiating is unacceptable, though, and needs to be fixed. Refs are paid too much to keep missing huge calls like this to win games. The Lakers have gotten worse, but this is a problem all around the league. It is revoking teams’ chances to win because of the refs’ lack of awareness which is unfair to the players. Officiating has to change for the overall improvement of the NBA.

By Willie Hurt

Sources:

StatMuse: Celtics vs. Lakers

StatMuse: Lebron’s Last Ten Games

Inset Image Courtesy of Erik Drost’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Michael E. Lee’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License

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