Lakers confront officials after Game 2 loss; JJ Redick, Austin Reaves call out refs
There are three certainties in life: death, taxes and frustration with the way the Oklahoma City Thunder are officiated. It’s become one of the stories of their rise to the top of the NBA: The better they get, the angrier their opponents get at the things they’re allowed to get away with.
As usual, the Thunder controlled Thursday night’s Game 2 with their extremely physical defense, forcing 20 Lakers turnovers. They also won the free throw margin, 26-21, which is rare for a Laker team that attempted the second-most free throws per game in the regular season while allowing the third-most. Despite making nine of his 18 shots at or near the basket, LeBron James only attempted four free throws in the game; Factoring in the one attempt he had in the first game, he’s only managed five so far in the series.
By the end of Game 2, the Lakers were seemingly fed up. Austin Reaves was caught on video in a heated confrontation with official John Goble about midway through the fourth quarter, then, after the final buzzer, a group of Lakers led by Reaves confronted the officials at midcourt.
After the game, Reaves explained the initial blowup between him and Goble, citing an interaction that occurred as he attempted to move to match a Thunder player while lining up for a jump ball between Jaxson Hayes and Chet Holmgren with 6:06 left in the fourth quarter. “He turned around and just yelled in my face, thinking it was disrespectful,” Reaves said. “At the end of the day, we’re grown men and I just didn’t feel like he needed to scream in my face like that. I told him that if I did that to him first, I would have gotten a tech. I felt like the only reason I didn’t get a tech was because he knew he was wrong. I just felt disrespected.”
Although Reaves was upset by one specific incident, Lakers coach JJ Redick expressed broader frustration. “I said sarcastically the other day that they were the most disruptive team without fouling. They have a few guys who foul on every possession, and all good defenses do that,” he said. “SGA had like, I don’t even know, a contact foul on a drive. There was a stretch where, like, four possessions in a row, our guys were completely hit. They were trying to make an entry pass to Jaxson and Jaylin Williams was grabbing his jersey with both arms, and (it ended up being) a turnover. They’re pretty tough to play. They’re pretty tough to play. You’ve got to be able to just call it if they foul. And they make a mistake.
Afterward, Redick shared another, more pointed criticism, though not specifically against the Thunder, instead arguing that James is not officiated appropriately against anyone. “LeBron has the worst whistle of any star player I’ve ever seen,” Redick said. “I’ve been with him for two years now. Again, the smaller guys, because they can be theatrical, they usually foul more. And the bigger players that are built like LeBron, it’s tough for them. They get beat up, and he got beat up again tonight. It’s not a new thing, it’s not specific to this crew or this series. He gets fouled a lot. The guy gets hit in the head more than any player I’ve seen on drives and he’s rarely called on.”
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When James was asked about Redick’s comment that he was getting the worst whistle of any star, James simply replied, “I don’t know,” probably trying to avoid a fine. After all, he wouldn’t be the first star to pull one after a game against the Thunder in the playoffs.
This is the second Game 2 the Thunder have played in the postseason, and in both cases there was officiating-related controversy afterward. Devin Booker was a fine of $35,000 after Phoenix’s Game 2 loss to the Thunder for calling out a specific referee during his postgame press conference. “In 11 years, I haven’t called a referee by name, but James [Williams] “It was terrible tonight from start to finish,” Booker said. “It’s bad for the sport, bad for the integrity of the sport. People are going to start looking at this as WWE if they’re not held accountable.”
One of his teammates, Dillon Brooks, voiced another common complaint: that the Thunder fail too much. “When I watched it when Michael Jordan was playing, or whoever, when LeBron (James) was younger, it was physical basketball,” Brooks said. “I don’t understand why all the falls and flops and all those things are allowed when we get to the playoffs. Leave that for the (regular) season, for the fans. It’s about who’s the better team, who’s the better team. [smarter] team. Don’t decide plays on free throws.”
The officiating has become one of the defining stories of this race in Oklahoma City. They have what is statistically one of the best defenses of all time, but there is a prevailing belief among fans and, apparently, players and coaches, that they get away with a level of defensive physicality that other teams don’t have. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is likely to win his second straight MVP award, but his ability to draw fouls is what drives his opponents crazy. Opponents have complained about the way the Thunder are officiated all season. Not much has changed and the Thunder have yet to lose a playoff game. If someone wants to challenge them in a meaningful way, it probably won’t come through drastic changes to their whistle.
