LeBron James irate at refs: 'What f-- do we have a replay center for?' / News - Basketnews.com

LeBron said Russell got clearly hit in the face and the decision to overturn the call in the third quarter didn't make sense to him.

Credit: Justin Ford/Getty Images North America/Getty Images via AFP - Scanpix Credit Justin Ford/Getty Images North America/Getty Images via AFP - Scanpix

The Los Angeles Lakers wasted a 20-point lead and went on to lose against the Denver Nuggets. After the game, LeBron James was mad at the referees.

Player of the Game EFF 47 Nikola Jokic Points 27 Accuracy 9-16 Rebounds 20 Assists 10

The episode that sparked LeBron's rage happened in the third quarter when his teammate D'Angelo Russell drove to the basket and was fouled by Denver's Michael Porter Jr. The Nuggets forward hit Russell in the face during the layup attempt, but the home team decided to challenge it.

After a review, the call was overturned claiming the contact was marginal and did not have a direct impact on the shot. James was mad at the decision.

"I don't understand what's going on in the replay center, to be honest," James said, via Dave McMenamin from ESPN. "I've said it this year, last year, whatever. D-Lo clearly gets hit in the face on a drive. What the f--- do we have a replay center [for] if it's going to go [like that]? It doesn't make sense to me."

"It makes no sense to me. It bothers me," James said. "I'm sorry to now answer your question, but that s--- is like... And then I just saw what happened with the Sixers-Knicks game too. Like, what are we doing? ... It's f---ing stupid."

The Lakers are now down 0-2 in the series, with the next two games set to be played in Los Angeles.

Episode in question:

LeBron's reaction:

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