Hall of Famer Reggie Miller was not happy with a soft technical foul called against the Houston Rockets in their Monday matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Lakers led the Rockets 93-89 with under six minutes left inside Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, Calif. Houston wing Tari Eason executed a killer crossover to get a dunk, cutting the lead to just two.
Tari Eason with the nasty cross & FLUSH. 😤
HOU-LAL | 4Q on TNT pic.twitter.com/Xhms7LAduY
— NBA (@NBA) April 1, 2025
NBA referee Tre Maddox calling a Rockets-Lakers game
Eason was understandably fired up after his slam. He seemed to mutter something as he skipped back down the court. Whatever Eason said did not sit well with referee Tre Maddox, who whistled him for a technical foul.
Miller was incensed over the ruling. The former Indiana Pacers great called Maddox out as the TNT broadcast showed a replay of the incident.
“Oh, come on!” Miller said while watching the replay. “Come on, man! Are you kidding me? Come on, Tre Maddox. You’re better than that. This is the NBA. I can see it in college, high school. Stop it.”
Reggie Miller unloads on referee Tre Maddox for calling a tech on Tari Eason for daring to show emotion pic.twitter.com/nQSK4PAlZ3
— CJ Fogler 🫡 (@cjzero) April 1, 2025
Miller’s gripes seemed even more valid given that Eason’s show of passion appeared to be directed toward his own bench rather than any Lakers defenders.
Luka Doncic sank the technical free throw to extend the Lakers’ lead to three.
The extra point proved to be critical in a game that went down to the wire. The Rockets trailed by just two points with 20 seconds left in the contest. The Lakers closed the game out at the line to win 104-98.