Devin Booker’s ejection from Tuesday night’s match against the Lakers made headlines for not only being controversial but also for how the fans and (LeBron James) acted in the aftermath.
While much of the details are still murky, Twitter has been trying to piece it together all night…
https://twitter.com/LA_HighLights24/status/1366973540684111876
We know that the ejection is the result of Book having received a pair of technicals in the second half. Initially, it was believed that Book said something completely outrageous, as video footage of LeBron James during the incident seemed to indicate as such.
In reality, the Suns star got flagged for pretty minor crimes — once for talking smack, and then again for what seems like passing the ball a little too hard at an official.
In case you missed Devin Booker receiving one of the softest pair of technicals + ejection in NBA history pic.twitter.com/2V9dVeyMsk
— Matt Petersen (@TheMattPetersen) March 3, 2021
Needless to say, the situation is unworthy of having a great player like that thrown out, and fans expressed their anger with the situation.
If this wasn’t real, I’d actually find this funny
— John Mitchell (@johnmitchell244) March 3, 2021
The nba gotta get this under control this is bullshit
— Jason Roundtree (@Bepostive) March 3, 2021
WTH is going on. How in the hell does an official EJECT @DevinBooker31 over something so innocuous??? The @NBA has got to start doing something about this. No fans due to Covid, we’re still loving how competitive this game is. We want Booker on the court vs the @Lakers! #BullS$&
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) March 3, 2021
That Devin Booker ejection is ridiculous. No one is tuning in for the referees. What a joke. The officiating is a major issue. Adam Silver needs to do something about it.
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnor) March 3, 2021
DEVIN BOOKER EJECTED FOR (PROFANELY?) ARGUING A FOUL CALL. Now the Lakers should win this game fairly easily.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) March 3, 2021
https://twitter.com/DrGuru_/status/1366972779569029122
Devin Booker gets absolutely NO respect. There’s no star in the league that gets ejected with that short of a leash. Bullshit
— Brandon Awadis (@brawadis) March 3, 2021
Man, the official really decided to go all Enrico Pallazzo in throwing out Devin Booker. Remember, fans watch on television to see officials throw stars out of games.
— Jason Smith (@howaboutafresca) March 3, 2021
The Suns did end up winning the game in the end, beating L.A. 114-104. But it’d be a lie to say the game wasn’t negatively impacted by Booker’s absence.
The refs clearly made the wrong call by having him thrown out of the game, and it’s not the first time something like that has happened. It’s becoming clear that the league is going to have to step in and establish some kind of accountability with the officiating, or else they might continue to suffer scrutiny from their audience.
