LeBron James is fed up with the way he has been officiated this season, and he might have a point. Despite averaging 14.1 points in the paint, James is only averaging 6.0 free throws per game, the worst rate besides his rookie year.
LeBron James says referees ‘protect the shooter more than the driver.’ He has a point
James’ free throws have dropped even while his drives and points in the paint increase. Is that fair?
Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
James believes that referee protection has shifted to jump shooters while players driving to the rim like him are getting the short end of the stick. After Sunday’s game, where James had 33 points and nearly registered a triple-double but still lost, he spoke out about the referees.
“We’re at a point now where we protect the shooter more than the driver,” James told reporters. “There’s no reason I should be going to the line four times in a game when I drive 100 times to the paint and I’m getting hit and slapped and grabbed and whatever and whatnot. We protect the shooter. That’s what it’s turned into. ‘Chicks dig the long ball,’ and that’s what it’s about.”
On Sunday, James drove the ball 18 times while shooting just four free throws, hitting three. He’s even averaging 11.3 drives per game, per NBA.com’s stats tracking, his second highest total in the past five seasons, despite his falling free throw numbers. Last year, James averaged 6.8 free throws per 36 minutes, almost a full free throw more than he is averaging this season.
When asked, Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue compared him to Shaquille O’Neal, who faced a similar problem.
“He’s the Shaq of guards and forwards,” Lue told reporters. “He’s so strong and so physical, when he goes to the basket, guys are bouncing off of him. Those are still fouls, but he doesn’t get that call because he’s so big and so strong and so physical.”
All this comes during a season where there has been tension between players and officials.
With the league increasingly shifting behind the three-point arc, James’ hypothesis about increased shooter protections is completely plausible, too. Maybe he has just been unlucky, but it does seem like James has a point. Unfortunately, his point while likely come with a fine from the NBA sometime this week.
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