“It’s a Different Sport”: LeBron James Complains About the Change of Officiating Between Regular Season and Playoffs

Today’s NBA players have a lot to worry about. They have to get themselves in peak physical shape and work tirelessly on their craft. They play a grueling 82-game schedule while also juggling media responsibilities, trade rumors, and more. Unfortunately, they also suit up each night, not knowing what they’ll get from that night’s officiating crew.

NBA refereeing is a mixed bag. Some officials have good reputations, some don’t, but even among the “good” ones, there can be a wide chasm in how they call a game. Some call it tight, others are more apt to let some things slide. These things can evolve during the season, but as any NBA fan could attest, the playoffs are an entirely different matter.

The latest episode of Mind The Game focused on officiating in the league, and LeBron James and Steve Nash touched on a variety of ref-related topics. One of them was how the whistles change in the postseason, and how difficult that is to adjust to as a player.

“We do this all year,” LeBron said, “and then in the postseason, they let the s*** go, and it takes you two or three, four playoff games, if you’re lucky, to adjust. It’s like, what are we doing?”

“You go September through mid-April of ‘this is how it’s going to be called,’ and then boom, it completely changes. It’s a different sport, man.”

LeBron’s Lakers always seem to be at the top of the league when it comes to free throw attempts, so a relaxed playoff whistle doesn’t do him any favors. He’s not wrong in wanting some consistency, though. After all, if the NBA wants the playoffs officiated more loosely, why wouldn’t that also be the best way to do it in the regular season?

Offensive efficiency is at an all-time high, and for all but the very best defenses, there’s simply not much that can be done to stop some of the best scorers and the most potent offensive attacks in the game. The playoffs provide a more even playing field since defenders can get away with more, and as a result, scores tend to come down. Seeing a team fall short of 100 points is rare in the regular season, but it usually happens plenty in the playoffs.

LeBron and Nash covered many other sides of the refereeing coin on this episode, from talking about the gather step to ball-handlers extending their off arm. They also covered how the rules have changed over the years, and LeBron gave an example from a Lakers-Spurs game of a call that was egregiously overlooked. For anyone looking for some honest insight into the state of the league’s officiating, this was a great episode.