‘We got cheated’: Lakers fume over referee decision in overtime loss to Celtics
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The head referee in the Los Angeles Lakers‘ 125-121 overtime loss to the Celtics on Saturday admitted to missing a shooting foul by Jayson Tatum against LeBron James in the final seconds of regulation.
The Lakers saw this as another defeat caused by poor officiating, following similar recent losses to Dallas, Philadelphia, and Sacramento. James, who is sixth in the league in scoring with 30.2 points per game, averaged only 6.2 free throw attempts per game, the lowest among the league’s top eight scorers. He and the Lakers felt targeted by the string of poor officiating, and Coach Darvin Ham asked for more consistency from the referees.
The Lakers also suggested several changes to improve the officiating, including adding more officials or changing the challenge rule. Anthony Davis called for more accountability from the officials and suggested fining them for missed calls.
The Lakers were also frustrated with two technical fouls called against them, one against Dennis Schroder in the third quarter and another against Patrick Beverley at the start of overtime.
