"It's not tennis" - Steve Kerr criticises replay review system after Lakers vs Warriors
Steve Kerr wasn't pleased with the way the fourth quarter panned out during the Golden State Warriors vs LA Lakers skirmish on Saturday. While the former notched up a much-needed 128-121 win, the final stretch involved ample drama with multiple replays for decisions. The shot clock incident also paused the game for a good bit of time. One instance saw LeBron James' three-pointer called off after his foot was shown to have touched the baseline. Another was a possession call after Draymond Green pushed the ball out of bounds. Both calls that were subject to challenge halted the game and saw Kerr frustrated with the officiating.
In addition to long replay reviews, the final two minutes of the game took more than 23 minutes of real-time and saw raucous yells from the crowd. Speaking to the media after the win, Steve Kerr shared his two cents on the whole shebang.
"I'm not a fan of replays. I think we should have replays for just buzzer-beaters, and that's it. The whole goal of the replays is to try to get everything right, but there are a 100 plays at each end... every night it's subjective. It's not tennis."
Ultimately, it was the Warriors who propped up a 128-121 win to make it 35-31 and move back to the ninth spot in the West. The Lakers dropped a rung below with 36-32.
"Love to see that rule go away": Steve Kerr on LeBron James' disallowed three-pointer
One of the key moments of the game was when the Warriors led the Lakers 124-117, and with less than two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, LeBron James made a three-point attempt that went through to make it 124-120. However, the officials took a lengthy amount of time to determine whether the 4x NBA champion had indeed stepped out of bounds.
The referees later disallowed the three-pointer with the scoreboard reading 124-117. Steve Kerr was asked about the decision and the head coach didn't mince words.
"I also don't like the rule that you can go back and look at an out-of-bounds. LeBron's three, that seems to happen once or twice a year. Love to see that rule go away."
If the three-pointer was allowed, perhaps the game would have been a lot closer than it ended for both parties. With James looking in pristine form throughout with 40 points, the outcome could very well have surely been a different one for Golden State. Now Steve Kerr and the Warriors will hope to keep their winning streak going.