NBA Announces Four Mistakes in Lakers' Loss to Rockets

As for the officiating errors in the game, the Lakers actually benefited from two missed calls. One incorrect call went against them, while another was a foul simply called on the wrong player.

With under 1:50 remaining, Rockets guard Reed Sheppard was trying to make a play. Rui Hachimura was in the middle to prevent Houston from easily attacking the rim. The problem is that the Lakers forward stayed in the painted area for more than three seconds.

"Hachimura (LAL) fails to fully clear the lane and is in the paint for longer than three seconds without imminently actively guarding an opponent," the NBA's Last Two Minute Report explained, noting that it was an incorrect non-call.

Furthermore, with 1:32 left to play, Hachimura was called for a foul on Alperen Sengun as he battled for the rebound. Nonetheless, the NBA noted that while Sengun was fouled, it was actually Marcus Smart who hit him and not Hachimura. It was determined to be an incorrect call.

The other incorrect non-call that went in favor of the Lakers occurred with 12 seconds left when Smart was inbounding the ball. It took him more than five seconds to pass the ball, which should have been a violation.

The only wrong call that didn't really benefit the Lakers was the out-of-bounds violation with 6.3 seconds left. The referees awarded possession to Houston despite the fact that it was Tari Eason who touched the ball last.

With the Rockets' win, they have now cut the Lakers' series lead to 3-2 after James and company started with three straight wins.

Sure enough, both teams will be hoping that the officiating won't have much of an impact on the result of their upcoming Game 6, especially as the Lakers look to close out the series while the Rockets aim to force a Game 7.