James Williams has been announced as the official for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder matchup in Round 2 of the NBA playoffs. And fans are concerned. While the Lakers closed out the Houston Rockets in Game 6, the Thunder cleaned out the Phoenix Suns in four games. However, Williams’ record says that the Lakers’ chances are feeble.
Williams has been part of the NBA officials team since the 2009-10 season. Interestingly, he is also notorious for being allegedly inclined towards the Thunder in his officiating. Moreover, his 8-10 record officiating the Lakers is one of the worst. Lakersmuse shared the update on X and wrote:
“JUST IN: James Williams will be a part of the Lakers vs. Thunder Game 1 officiating crew tonight
Zach Zarba and Nick Buchert will be the other two officials tonight”
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander averaged nine free throws per game this season, but with James Williams officiating, his attempts surged to the range of 12-16. With the data pointing to a particular direction, the already-debated issue of officiating in the NBA is getting more attention from fans and analysts.
Fans share concerns for the Lakers before second-round matchup
The Lakers fans took to the comment section to express their disappointment and shared their concerns, as one suggested that Marcus Smart might face the brunt of it:
“yeah bye marcus smart’s getting ejected by halftime”
Another fan wrote on similar lines and wrote:
“Marcus Smart is gonna get ejected for breathing isn’t he”
One more user predicted the outcome of the series and wrote:
“With this f****r, we will definitely lose! James Williams is a OKC glazer.
This Laker fan also predicted the result and wrote:
“Well,,goodbye everyone, it was a great season, we will be back nxt year!”
“Wtf this dude shouldn’t be allowed to be ref in any okc game,” another commented.
The Lakers and the Thunder will be face-to-face in a highly anticipated matchup in the conference semifinals. Luka Doncic is still on his way to recovery and might not be part of the roster for the initial games. That means LeBron James will once again be at the helm of the squad after winning the 42nd playoff series of his career.
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