"Needing the refs to bail you out" - Fans berate Nuggets for nearly losing to LeBron James and Luka Doncic-less Lakers despite 22 FT differential

The LA Lakers and Denver Nuggets delivered another thriller Friday night, despite the Purple and Gold missing eight players, including starters Luka Doncic, LeBron James, Jaxson Hayes and Rui Hachimura. Denver escaped with a 131-126 victory, but it wasn’t without a serious challenge from a depleted Lakers squad.

Along with their missing starters, the Lakers were also without reserves Gabe Vincent, Dorian Finney-Smith, Trey Jemison III and Maxi Kleber. Still, they held their own, even leading 126-123 with 52 seconds left after a Dalton Knecht dunk. But Denver responded with eight unanswered points, as Nikola Jokic converted an and-one, Jamal Murray drilled a clutch 3 and Russell Westbrook sealed it with a steal and dunk in the final seconds.

Despite Denver’s win, fans weren’t impressed, as it took the Nuggets until the final minute to put away a severely short-handed Lakers squad — even with a massive 38-16 advantage in free throw attempts (30-13 in conversions).

“Needing the refs to bail you out vs the Lakers G League team is disgusting,” one fan said.

Jokic, who finished with 28 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals, attempted 17 free throws — one more than the entire Lakers team.

“NBA refs really gave this win to the Nuggets. I’m tired,” another fan said.

One fan specifically criticized the officiating on Murray’s clutch 3, calling out Jokic’s screen that left him wide open:

“I’m sure you can use grab another player and move them to set a screen for your player 👍🏽 Nice job hiding your bias refs.”

“Thank refs for helping the chicken nuggets cause they barely beat the lakers and missing 8 players good jobs!!!” another said.

Here are other fan reactions.

“Denver should be embarrassed the game was even close. Without the officials LA walks away with the win. But refs have been on a roll lately f*****g the Lakers,” a fan said.

“JJ we see you..those nuggets got helped by the refs and they barely beat a shortened lakers with two way players,” another added.

Austin Reaves, Dalton Knecht shine in gritty Lakers effort

With four starters out, the Lakers leaned on Austin Reaves and Dalton Knecht to keep the game competitive.

Reaves came close to a triple-double, posting 37 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds and four steals, while Knecht poured in 32 points — just five shy of his career high.

Shake Milton added 16 points, and Jordan Goodwin chipped in 10 to support LA’s efforts. However, Jokic and Murray’s combined 54 points, along with Christian Braun’s 22 and Russell Westbrook and Aaron Gordon’s 17 apiece, ultimately proved too much.