LeBron and Redick slam Game 4 officiating

LeBron James and JJ Redick turned the focus from Houston’s Game 4 win to the whistle after the Rockets beat the Lakers 115-96 on Sunday night. (espn.com) (sports.yahoo.com) Houston avoided elimination and cut Los Angeles’ series lead to 3-1 behind 23 points from Amen Thompson and 20 from Tari Eason. Game 5 is Wednesday, April 29, in Los Angeles. (espn.com) (nba.com) The loudest complaints centered on referee James Williams, who was criticized publicly after a game that included a flagrant foul 2, two more ejections and postgame confrontations. (sports.yahoo.com) (espn.com) Deandre Ayton was ejected with about 5:30 left in the third quarter after officials ruled his contact to Alperen Sengun’s head a flagrant foul 2. Late in the fourth, Adou Thiero and Aaron Holiday were also tossed after getting tangled up. (espn.com 1) (espn.com 2) Ime Udoka also questioned the officiating after the game, making the dispute unusual because criticism came from the winning coach as well as the losing side. (sports.yahoo.com) The Lakers had basketball reasons to be upset, too. They turned the ball over 23 times, made only five 3-pointers and got 10 points from James on 2-of-9 shooting. (espn.com) James said the turnovers “killed” Los Angeles from start to finish, even as he linked the loss to missed calls and the game’s uneven tone. (espn.com) (sports.yahoo.com) The league responded quickly to the postgame fallout. On Monday, April 27, the NBA fined Marcus Smart $35,000 for questioning the integrity of game officials and Luke Kennard $25,000 for directing inappropriate language at officials. (official.nba.com) That left the officiating story with an official paper trail before the series shifted back to Los Angeles, where the Lakers will try to close out Houston in Game 5. (official.nba.com) (nba.com)