NBA Admits Missed Calls Involving LeBron James, Marcus Smart in Lakers' Win

The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Houston Rockets on their home court Friday night, winning 112-108 in overtime to go up 3-0 in their best-of-seven-game playoff series.

Without his starting teammates, Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic, LeBron James came up big once again. King James scored 29 points, 13 rebounds, and eight assists to lead the way for his team.

Marcus Smart was also a key player in the Lakers’ victory, filling out the stat sheet with 21 points, 10 assists, 4 rebounds, 5 steals, and 2 blocks. When all was said and done, LeBron and company put themselves one win away from a sweep, with Kevin Durant watching from the sidelines due to injury concerns.

Read more:LeBron James Reacts to Historic Pass to Bronny James in Win Over Rockets

However, according to the NBA, referees missed several big calls that would’ve impacted the outcome of last night’s game in Houston. In fact, the first one, involving Smart, might have meant the game never even went to overtime.

With 25.4 seconds remaining on the clock, Smart sank a key free throw that made the score 101-98. With that score, LeBron James was able to hit a massive three-pointer moments later, which tied things up and sent it to the extra five minutes.

However, the NBA found that Smart should’ve been whistled for a lane violation on his free throw, which would’ve canceled it and left the score 101-97.

The other call involved LeBron stepping out of bounds with under 1:30 to go in overtime. At the time of the missed call, it was only a two-point game, so every call would’ve been significant for the Rockets’ chances at getting a win.

With two missed calls in a game that either team could’ve won, it will certainly give Houston’s fans something to gripe about, as this isn’t the first time referees have made mistakes. However, their team also played two of the three playoff games against the Lakers with their main superstar, Kevin Durant, on the bench.

The recent admissions by the NBA come several days after Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker ripped the referees after his team’s Game 2 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, including questioning a technical foul called on him that was later rescinded by the league.

Booker still received a $35,000 fine for his remarks about the officials, including calling out referee James Williams by name. As of this writing, Booker and the Suns were losing by double digits to the Thunder and were about to be down 0-3 in their series, much like the Rockets.

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This story was originally published April 25, 2026 at 6:09 PM.