On his 39th birthday, star LeBron James and his Los Angeles Lakers teammates lost a close, controversial loss to the Western leader Minnesota Timberwolves.
This is a very good and dramatic match taking place on December 31 (Vietnam time), with the top stars of the two teams such as Edwards, Rudy Robert (Minnesota) Anthony Davis, and LeBron James (Lakers). are still the most prominent players on the field. The drama was heightened when the match only had a few seconds left after LeBron James scored a point.
When the score was 104-107 in favor of Minnesota, Anthony Davis launched a quick counterattack for LeBron James and the 39-year-old star decided to throw 3 points to equalize the score. However, the referees thought that the Lakers star let his foot touch the 3-point line before launching the shot and only recognized 2 points. Because this was an important situation that could determine the outcome of the match, the referee team asked to review the video.
After a long period of review, the referee team finally upheld the decision. After the controversial situation, the Minnesota team continued to attack and scored 1 more point to end the match with a score of 108-106 in the anger of LeBron James.
“It was a 3-point play. My feet are behind the line. You can see the space between my toes and the three-point line. I find it very confusing with the slow-motion system. What’s the point of it appearing when it’s slow and the referees still make the wrong decision?” LeBron James expressed dissatisfaction with the referee’s decision.
Meanwhile, referee Tony Brothers explained: “On the field, the ball was initially counted as 2 points. After reviewing the video, we have no evidence clear enough to change the decision.” “That’s why the ball still only counts as 2 points.”
This defeat leaves the Lakers team still ranked 9th in the Western region. On New Year’s Day, January 1, 2024, the Lakers will have a trip to the New Orleans Pelicans team.