The Golden State Warriors defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 128-121 on Saturday at Crypto.com Arena, but the game’s strange conclusion was marred by a 23-minute delay that resulted from a faulty shot clock and a contentious call that disregarded a LeBron James three-pointer.
The most recent chapter in their rivalry appeared to be coming to an exciting finish with fewer than two minutes left and the Lakers trailing the Warriors by only four points.
With 1:50 left, the Lakers were down seven points after James’ three-pointer was ruled to have been out of bounds by officials after he had made it.
Subsequently, there was an issue with the shot clock. Following multiple attempts to restart the game and resolve the issue,
In the final two minutes of the game, the shot clock became stuck, requiring the announcer to announce the remaining seconds on it. Haffey, Sean M./Getty ImagesJames remarked subsequently, per ESPN, “I’ve never seen that be called before like that – in that particular time.” That seemed a little strange. It hindered us somewhat in our momentum.He tried to lead his team to victory in the absence of Anthony Davis, who exited the game with an ιnjury after the first quarter, and finished with 40 points, matching his season high, nine assists, and eight rebounds.Steph Curry, James’ longstanding nemesis, returned to the court after missing three games due to a sprained right ankle and scored 31 points for the Warriors. Klay Thompson finished the game with 26 points off the bench.”The conclusion was strange.” After the game, Warriors coach Steve Kerr informed reporters. You appear to experience clock problems a few times a year. That’s about as severe a situation when the backup unit also fails as I’ve ever encountered. It’s really bad; I have sympathy for the fans.”It was an amazing game, and in the final two minutes, everyone is just kind of staring at each other, not sure what to do.”
When Steph Curry returned from ιnjury, he scored 31 more points. Ashley Landis/Associated PressEven when the Lakers lost Davis and his defensive acumen, the game remained perfectly balanced, giving the Warriors additional opportunities to аttаck from within the paint and score baskets there.However, Kerr claimed in the aftermath that the contest of James’ three-point shot broke up the “flow” of the game and that he would “love to see that rule go away.””We’re working extremely hard to ensure everything is flawless, even at the cost of flow. It doesn’t matter if the man’s foot is half an inch too big. Is that worth altering everything and going back 45 seconds?Though it was “unfortunate what happened,” James justified the call, saying that the referees “have a job to do, and they have to do it the best they can.”