Jason Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
The Los Angeles Lakers and head coach Davon Hamm certainly thought they let one get away with it against the Miami Heat. The Lakers have to address a lot of self-inflicted problems, but the team also has issues with officiating and how the game was played tonight.
D’Angelo Russell had two rushing technicals and was ejected in the fourth quarter, Ham also had one, and the Lakers were held off by a questionable delay of game Got another one and it ended up being a one point deficit.
Hamm later lamented the lack of consistency among officials and communication, noting that sometimes he was unable to get explanations for certain calls over the phone. Spectrum Sports Network:
“I think it’s just a difference of opinion. Even if I get hit with a technical foul, you know generally, I’ve been in this league a long time, you have a captain and his guys that really control the game, which I want. Just an explanation sometimes, but once I got the hang of it, it wasn’t explained the rest of the game. Miami plays a physical basketball, but we’re not complaining about how physical they are, we just want balance And consistency, that’s it.”
Hamm also noted that LeBron James did not shoot free throws that night, despite seemingly reaching out to Lakers coaches multiple times to insist that the superstar was not failing in these games:
“I saw LeBron make four free throws, the number of times he attacked the rim, the number of times he got slapped on the arm, I saw it all. He didn’t fail to not get called, he didn’t fail. I watched it. He comes in strong. We’re talking about hitting the downhill hard, hitting the rim hard and not relying on the whistle. Go try it and if your whistle is great, if not, try to get the bucket first. Explain some plays that I felt should have gone the other way or shouldn’t have been called. “
ESPN’s Dave McMenamin says the Lakers will even go a step further and contact the league office to ask about officiating, specifically the way James officiates:
The Los Angeles Lakers contacted the NBA league office on Tuesday about multiple missed foul calls during Monday’s 108-107 loss to the Miami Heat, sources told ESPN.
According to sources, the main focus of the Lakers’ dispute is the way LeBron James officiates. The Lakers shared multiple clips showing what they believed was clear illegal contact on James by a Heat guard that went unnoticed by referees.
It’s a clear sign that the Lakers are tired of LeBron’s approach to officiating. While Ham knows the referees are doing their best to make things right, the Lakers coach believes there should always be communication between referees and coaches and doesn’t think he’s done that in Miami:
“It’s just not, I don’t think I talked to the crew chief the rest of the time after I got tech, which is kind of crazy, but it is what it is. I come from a world where we say, ‘Don’t ask, don’t expect, don’t beg.’ . I know they’re trying to get things right, just like we’re trying to coach the right way, our guys are trying to play the right way, but there are things that need to be communicated. “That’s a big part of our game , we can make the game as special as possible. “
Many people always point to referees as the reason for a loss in a close game, but sometimes that can be exaggerated. However, on this night, the Lakers did have some questionable moments against them, and while it wasn’t the only reason they lost, it definitely didn’t help and made the uphill climb that much more difficult.
Lakers’ LeBron James discusses officiating inconsistencies
James also had issues with referees during the Lakers’ loss to the Heat that were similar to Ham’s.
LeBron noted the inconsistency among the officials, and while he was given an explanation, unlike Ham, the Lakers star said their explanation didn’t match what actually happened on the court. LeBron also lamented the technical issues and game delays that led to the Heat’s four-point deficit in the fourth quarter.
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