© Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
LeBron James shot just two free throws in his team’s Game 3 loss in the Western Conference Finals, and the Lakers were not happy about it.
So unhappy, that they have presented a case to the NBA’s front office about his lack of free throws, according to the Los Angeles Times.
“We’re dealing with the fouls through the proper channels with the league,” Lakers coach Frank Vogel said in a videoconference to media on Wednesday. “I think he’s gone to the basket very aggressively, and I’ll just leave it at that.”
LeBron James has only taken 10 free throws through the first three games of the series, good for 3.3 attempts per game. In the bubble prior to the Western Conference Finals James was getting to the charity stripe 7.6 times a game on average. Over 252 career playoff games he’s averaged exactly nine free throws a game.
In Game 1 vs. the Nuggets – a Lakers blowout win – Los Angeles shot almost 10 more free throws than Denver (37-28), but since then things have changed. Game 2 the Nuggets had the big advantage (33-19), and they also shot more in Game 3 on Tuesday night (29-22).
With Denver winning that Game 3 somewhat comfortably, we now have a series on our hands. The two teams play Game 4 on Thursday night, and we’ll all be able to see how effective the formal complaint will be.