At the end of Game 4, Nuggets head coach Mike Malone was a bit frustrated with some no-call calls to Jamal Murray. He said what he thought of the post-game presser.
With LeBron James and the Lakers reaching out to the NBA for more free-throw calls, Mike Malone’s post-game presser was racy, as ‘The King’ went to the free throw line 14 times.
The Nuggets stayed close behind the Lakers during the second half of Game 4, but never threatened to take an advantage.
They finished the fourth quarter shooting poorly from the field and failed to convert a single field goal attempt. The Lakers’ offensive rebound also killed them throughout the game.
Mike Malone criticizes LeBron and Lakers for using influence in the NBA
There were a couple of occasions in the fourth quarter where LeBron James got away with making contact with Jamal Murray’s shooting hand on his drives.
The referees either seemed to miss them or were giving LeBron James a superstar treatment and allowing him to get away with it.
After the Lakers complaint, LeBron James went to the charity band 14 times today, something that would surely upset the Nuggets.
Mike Malone was quick to attack the Lakers by confirming that the Nuggets would also approach the NBA for more free throws now.
Also read: Lakers approach the NBA due to lack of free throws for LeBron James
Nuggets coach Mike Malone: ”I’m going to have to go through the right channels like they did to get more free throws.”
– Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) September 25, 2020
There is little doubt that those 4 free throws had the potential to turn the score in favor of the Nuggets. A couple of fouls on LeBron could also have prompted Frank Vogel to remove him from Jamal Murray duty and entrust him to Danny Green.
The Lakers came out ahead down the stretch, to their credit. LeBron continued to be aggressive driving the ball into the paint. They did not show the signs of fatigue that were evident in the final period of Game 4.
Although Dwight Howard did not play a single minute in the fourth quarter, his dominance of the offensive crystal solidified his lead and gave them control over the outcome of the game.
