On Monday night, the LA Lakers found themselves in a neck-and-neck matchup with the Miami Heat. They ended up losing the game by one, and some feel officiating played a big role in that.
Following their loss to the Heat, the Lakers sent a complaint to the league office regarding the refs that night. In their notice, they cited how the refs handled LeBron James. LA feels their star forward should have got more foul calls than he did.
This is the second time in as many seasons where the LA Lakers filed a complaint with the league regarding officials. Ironically enough, the first instance also had to do with LeBron James. They felt the refs missed a foul call in the final seconds of a game with the Boston Celtics that would have changed the outcome of the game.
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Despite feeling he didn't get enough calls, LeBron still put together a dominant showing against the Miami Heat. He finished the game with 30 points, four rebounds, three assists and three blocks. LeBron is known for his ability to get to the line, but he only attempted four free-throws in this game.
LeBron James speaks out on officiating in Lakers vs. Heat
The LA Lakers were not the only ones to speak out about the officiating of Monday's game. LeBron James also took to social media to plead his case.
While the complaint is centered around calls made in the final two minutes, LeBron opens up on why it goes deeper than that. He feels the game is not decided in the final two minutes. Instead, how things play out through the course of a game have an impact on the final outcome.
Since the game was decided by one point, a lot of calls are likely to be put under the microscope. LeBron's foul calls are a focus point due to his volume being lower than it typically is.
Even at this stage of his career, LeBron is able to get to the line at a high rate. Prior to the matchup in Miami, he attempted at least six free-throws in three of LA's four games. In their overtime win against the LA Clippers, he got to the line ten times.
For the past five seasons, LeBron's average free-throw attempts per game has hovered around six. Given the circumstance that this was a close game, four is a low number of attempts for a star like him.
Now, all LA can do is wait for a response from the league office. When they filed a complaint last year, the officials ended up admitting they were wrong.
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