Heartbroken LA Fans Blast ‘Atrocious’ Refs for Letting Nikola Jokic Get Away With Illegal Action vs Lakers

On March 14, 2025, Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets get fired up for a war, and what a war indeed. The thrilling match in Ball Arena ended with Denver walking off with a 131-126 win on the scoreboard. And Lakers fans? They were pissed. And it wasn’t just the loss, it also had to do with the officiating at Jokic’s moment. Needless to say, social media was in flames at Jokic and the Nuggets.

How did it come down to this? The Lakers were fighting tooth and nail without their star players. It was a career night for Austin Reaves, who acquired 37 points. And Dalton Knecht? He went off with 32. And they had a chance to turn the tables. However, much to their dismay, the end saw one player changing the game’s most important moment. As expected, Nikola Jokic was the man behind it.

With the clock ticking down and the Lakers up 126-123, Jamal Murray needed one shot. Right at that moment, Jokic set a high screen. Nothing crazy, right? That is, until you look closer. Knecht fought through, but Jokic wasn’t going to just stand his ground. With both hands, he shoved Knecht back, extending his arms. Not a bump. Not a little contact. A full-on push!

Jokic pushing Dalton with two hands in his chest and moving on the screen. pic.twitter.com/HIqcLP0t5A

— AllenPaul (@allenpaul102) March 15, 2025

And what happened next? It knocked Knecht off balance, took him completely out of the play. He somehow got a clean look on the go-ahead three with 6.2 seconds left. Ball game.

Lakers fans lost their minds. That’s an offensive foul, right? You have to make that call, that’s a push. But the refs? Silence. No whistle. No review. The Nuggets had their win, and Lakers fans got their latest reason to call the result a joke.

Nikola Jokic sparks outrage as Lakers fans slam officiating disaster

The buzzer sounded, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, every platform you can imagine, all exploded as soon as it did. This wasn’t just frustration. It was anger. This wasn’t just missed call to them. It’s the kind of no-call that turns games. Fans don’t forget, and when the stakes are that high, that’s the sort of thing they don’t just let go.

One fan put it bluntly: “Jokic playing f*****g football.“* And honestly? That’s what it looked like. That screen wasn’t just physical—it had the force of a rugby stiff-arm. Jokic extended, shoved, and took Knecht completely out of the play. In football, that’s a legal block. In basketball? That’s an offensive foul. Or at least, it should be.

Another fan kept it short but said everything in three words: “We got robbed.“ Honestly, if you’ve been watching the Lakers this season, you will know that this feeling is not new. It’s been building up. Think back! LeBron James driving and hacking to the hoop, no whistle. Remember the 7th Nov 2023 game? The Lakers legit had to send clips to the NBA. Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic shared reactions to how referees are swallowing their whistles in critical moments. The Lakers have sent footage before to the league showing clear no calls that could have changed games. But here they were once again. Another night, another controversial call—or lack of one.

There was Murray’s shot then. It was one of the biggest shots of the night but how did he even get that open? One fan wasn’t letting that go unnoticed: “And they say Murray was clutch? The only clutch I saw was Jokic clutching Dalton’s jersey to impede Dalton.” This wasn’t just a matter of a screen. Lakers fans believe Jokic wasn’t merely using his body, but really holding, grabbing, and stopping Knecht from going where he needed to. And if that’s true? That’s a blatant foul. Murray instead walks in, and the Lakers come away empty handed.

Then there’s the bigger picture. This wasn’t just a bad call to some. This was part of a pattern. “The s*** Jokic gets away with is crazy.” This is not the first time fans asked whether Jokic is playing for real and working these fans to breaking point. And then there’s the ever moving screens, the subtle grabs, the physical play that sometimes creeps outside the bounds of basketball, play that, some say, is just a high IQ game of basketball. Others? They describe him getting a pass from the refs. That argument just got a whole lot louder after this game.

Mar 12, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) reacts in the second quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

This one hurts for the Lakers. But not just because of the loss, but rather because of how it happened. Every game really matters when the playoff race is this close. Every call—or missed call—matters. If it were a loss, then it’s not much of a loss when a game swings on something like this. This is a reason to feel like there’s a deck stacked against you.

This is not over one thing for sure. The debate isn’t about to end and neither is the frustration. It is because the next time Nikola Jokic sets a screen in crunch time. Lakers fans will be watching.