LeBron James fumes at refs overturning foul on D’Angelo Russell

LeBron James wasn’t holding back his thoughts on the officiating during the Lakers’ 101-99 loss against the Nuggets in Game 2. James referenced an overturned whistle in D’Angelo Russell’s favor in the second half. Russell was hit in the head by Michael Porter Jr. However, the Nuggets successfully won that challenge after Scott Foster overturned the call.

Foster deemed it as “marginal contact.” James was left fuming after the game over that decision as he called out the league official and replay center, saying:

“I don’t understand what’s going on in the replay center, to be honest. What f— do we have a replay center for? It makes no sense to me… What are we doing?”

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Here’s the foul called against Russell that got overturned:

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LeBron James also dealt with a no-call late in the game. A few 50-50 and questionable fouls also went in Denver’s favor, contributed to the Lakers’ loss despite a 20-point lead.

Kendrick Perkins calls for accountability from LeBron James

While the officiating may have been an issue in some situations, it wasn’t the sole reason behind the Lakers’ loss. Kendrick Perkins pointed that out after LeBron James went on a heated rant about the officials on “X.” He demanded accountability from James and the Lakers for blowing a 20-point lead, saying:

“I understand Bron frustration with the Refs but come on man… the Lakers smoked a 20 point lead. The prime example on why you can’t leave the game in the officials hands.”

The Lakers again suffered a second-half meltdown, akin to the Game 1 loss and most of the other eight losses they sustained against Denver amid the 10-game losing streak. LeBron James and Co. were up 20 to start the third quarter, but that lead vanished down the stretch. The Lakers managed only 40 points in the final 24 minutes, shooting 40.5%.

They conceded 57 points on 54.8% shooting from Denver. The Nuggets restored their rebounding advantage, going +8 on the boards. The first half was the opposite, with the Lakers going up 59-44, shooting 56.1% and 8 of 14 from 3. The Nuggets, in that stretch, scored only 44 points on 16 made field goals.

It was LA’s game to win, but several miscues in the second half saw the game slip away from Darvin Ham’s team’s hands. The Lakers must implement running plays throughout the game, or else the Nuggets will punish them for lean stretches every single time.