Things got a little testy during the Los Angeles Lakers’ game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. After getting into it with a Thunder fan, Lakers guard Luka Dončić was ejected while the game was tied.
Dončić’s ejection did play a part in the final result, where Oklahoma City came out on top, 136–120. However, his ejection loomed so large that one of his teammates questioned whether it was justified.
Lakers’ Jarred Vanderbilt Felt Luka Dončić’s Ejection Was ‘Personal’ From the Referees
After the game, Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt shared his thoughts on Dončić’s technical fouls — to which one of them came as Dončić was sticking up for Vanderbilt. The Los Angeles forward said he believes the situation went beyond basketball.
“The ref was just like, ‘I don’t want to talk. I will talk to anybody but Luka.’ It seemed a little personal at that point. He was just advocating for me,” per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “…I don’t know what that was about.”
Right now, it’s a “he said, she said” situation, but it’s not hard to see Vanderbilt’s point. As good as Dončić is, he’s known for yelling at referees about calls that go against him or non-calls that don’t. That reputation might make it easier for NBA officials to lose patience with him.
While nights like this one against the Lakers might not have been one of those moments where Dončić was asking for it, the issue is that his track record with officials could make it easier for them to toss him. That becomes even more noticeable during key games — like this one, in particular, against a top team like Oklahoma City.
This could be a problem come playoff time, when the stakes are higher. Dončić not only argues with officials often, but he sometimes gets so caught up in it that he fails to get back on defense. That became an issue during the 2024 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics when he was a member of the Dallas Mavericks.
At the end of the day, bad calls happen in the NBA, and players can’t control them. What could help Dončić is accepting that not every call will go his way. He can be frustrated, but screaming at refs doesn’t help him or his team.
Yet, if NBA referees really are holding something against him, what kind of damage could that do to the Lakers — and do other stars face the same problem?