Officiating is often a touchy subject in any matchup against the defending champions. NBA fans everywhere complain endlessly about the generous whistle that the Oklahoma City Thunder are perceived to have. On Thursday night, JJ Redick shared in those frustrations.
The Los Angeles Lakers lost a disappointing 125-107 ball game to the Thunder in Game 2, dropping to 0-2 in the second-round series. Do not let the final score fool you. This matchup was a lot tighter than it would suggest. For a large chunk of the evening, it really could have been anyone's game.
Thunder fans will immediately run to share their own frustrations with the officiating, or otherwise dismiss how this one could have turned out otherwise by pointing at the final score. There is an obvious disingenuous nature to all of that. Redick was more than fair in criticizing several aspects of the way the game was called.
"They have a few guys that foul on every possession and all the good defenses do. ... There was a stretch where four straight possessions, our guys got absolutely clobbered. ... They're hard enough to play. You've got to be able to just call it if they foul, and they do foul."
JJ Redick is not the first coach to be frustrated by the Thunder's whistle, and he won't be the last
Redick had plenty of points of contention with this one. It did not end with the comments above.
"LeBron [James] has the worst whistle of any star player I've ever seen," Redick said at the postgame press conference.
James' size was something the Lakers coach brought up as a main reason as to why LeBron does not get the calls he deserves. Redick added just how much he felt his star player was 'clobbered' by the Thunder throughout the night. The second-year bench boss also mentioned that James gets hit on the head during his drives more than any other guy he has watched. It just rarely gets called.
In a contest that was as competitive as this one, it is tough to blame Redick and his guys for showing frustration both during the game and after it. There were plenty of weird moments of questionable officiating throughout.
Before Thunder fans draw up the hate mail, no one discounts how great that team is. It was not too long ago that Redick, himself, was comparing Oklahoma City to some of the best teams throughout NBA history. The idea of OKC being elite is not lost on anyone.
Even so, Lakers fans have every reason to feel the frustration of a different standard in what is permittable. Perhaps the hometown environment of Game 3 in Los Angeles will bring a more balanced night in that department.
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