Cleveland Cavaliers once again squared off against the Golden State Warriors on a Christmas day, but they ended up losing another game. It was a close contest and winner was decided in the last minute, but LeBron James and the Cavaliers believe that officiating was bad. The referees made a few bad calls down the stretch, which is what ended up costing the Cavaliers a lot.
James and the Cavaliers were right as the NBA admitted that the referees should have made different calls. The calls the referees made favored the Warriors, but the NBA's report indicates that three calls in the last two minutes should have favored Cleveland.
At the end, the Cavaliers ended up losing the game by seven points, and LeBron James decided to talk about officiating and put the NBA referees on blast.
LeBron is not happy with officiating
One of the calls the referees missed was the foul Kevin Durant committed against LeBron James. With under 30 seconds left in the game, the Cavaliers were down by only three points and they had a possession. LeBron drove to the rim against Durant, but the Warriors forward blocked him and the ball went out of bounds off James. However, it was clear that Durant fouled the four-time MVP.
So, one more time... foul or no foul on this late LeBron James drive on Kevin Durant? pic.twitter.com/0licmNwUmM
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) December 25, 2017
If the referees called a foul on Durant, LeBron could have gotten his team within only one point, making the game much more interesting and intense.
At the end, Golden State was given a possession and Cleveland failed to score for the rest of the game.
“When you see the ref right there on the baseline looking at the whole play and you go up to him and he says there’s no call multiple times in crunch time, that’s the frustrating part,” LeBron said. “For me it’s even more frustrating because I know how I’m officiated at times.” James referred to how NBA referees officiate him as he doesn't draw as many fouls as he should.
His strength and athleticism make him unstoppable, but they also make him extremely tough to officiate.
Cavaliers ready to bounce back
After losing three of their last four games, the Cleveland Cavaliers are ready to bounce back. They will play against the Utah Jazz in what will be their final game of this year. At the moment, the Cavaliers are 24-11, and they could move up to the second spot in the East before the year ends.
LeBron James hasn't won a game in Utah since 2010, so we will see if he will snap this unlucky streak Saturday night. The Cavaliers will open 2018 at home as they will host the Portland Trail Blazers.
