The Minnesota Timberwolves took a 3-1 lead over the Los Angeles Lakers in their first-round NBA playoff series on Sunday, but many think it would be tied at 2 had it not been for a few questionable calls.
Minnesota left the Target Center with a 116-113 win after overcoming multiple double-digit deficits, but what seemingly everyone was talking about after was the officiating.
In fact, the role the officials played in the outcome had Lakers coach JJ Redick on edge after, and he wasn’t afraid to make it known.
One play in particular that fired up Redick happened in the fourth quarter when star guard Luka Doncic was tripped by Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels near midcourt. There was no foul called.
To start with, Luka got tripped,” Redick said. “That was a blatant trip. He doesn’t just fall on his own. We rewatched it; he gets tripped. So we should have been at the free-throw line. It’s not an excuse for why we lost, but he got fouled. We had a chance to go up.
But that play wasn’t the most controversial of the night. With 10 seconds left in the game and Minnesota holding a one-point lead, Anthony Edwards drove to the basket and had the ball swiped out of his hands by LeBron James as it rolled out of bounds.
Edwards was awarded and made two free throws to extend the lead to three before Austin Reaves missed a crucial 3-pointer in the waning seconds. After the game, James voiced his frustration with the officiating, implying the foul should have never been called.
That play happens all the time, you know,” James told reporters. “Hand is part of the ball, that’s what they say. I felt like a hand was a part of that ball. I was able to get his hand on top of the ball, the ball stripped down, and out on him. Seen that play over and over before, but it is what it is.”
As frustrated as Reddick and the Lakers players were with what happened on the court, their fans were just as irate. Many of them called on the NBA and commissioner Adam Silver to conduct an investigation into the officials.
