Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic was not happy with the performance of the officials in the game against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Raptors fell to the Lakers 131-132 as Anthony Davis scored 41 with 14 free throws and Los Angeles shot 23 free throws in the 4th quarter.
“How is it possible that Scottie Barnes, who is an All-Star caliber player in this league, he goes every single time to the rim with force without flopping, he gets two free throws for the whole game. How is that possible?,” Rajakovic noted.
“How will you explain that to me? They had to win tonight. If that’s the case, just let us know so we don’t show up for the game. That was not fair tonight. It’s not happening for the first time with us. Scottie Barnes is an All-Star and will be the face of the league, what’s happening right now this season, it’s complete crap.”
Raptors HC Darko Rajakovic was heated in the postgame presser, unhappy with the Lakers 23 free throw attempts in the 4Q pic.twitter.com/1xvoXrUM6k
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 10, 2024
Toronto only shot two free throws in the 4th quarter and the finished the contest against the Lakers with a 36-13 disparity.
“No. There’s no explanation. They come out there, review it, and see what they want to see. They don’t want to hear us, the players. They just don’t want to protect us. Over the game, they got 36 free throws. In the fourth quarter, they got 23 free throws. What are we talking about? How are we supposed to play?”
NBA fans have repeatedly expressed their frustration on the fact that there is inconsistency in the way that the games are being officiated. In any case, the Raptors believe that the calls late in the game favored the Lakers and helped them secure the game.
Toronto had made a bunch of intentional fouls which inflated the Lakers free throw number but the issue run deeper as numerous teams and players have expressed their rage with the way that NBA officials handles games.
