CLEVELAND: Stan Van Gundy fired the first salvo on officiating during an in-game television interview Sunday. Now 19-year-old Pistons rookie Stanley Johnson is taking aim at LeBron James.
Johnson complained Monday about the favorable calls the Cavaliers received in Game 1, and specifically James.
He might be a teenager, but he isn’t backing down from the four-time Most Valuable Player.
“I understand he’s a physical guy, but if he wants to grab me and try to throw me to the floor and you call the foul on me, I just don’t understand that,” Johnson told Detroit reporters following the team’s practice on Monday. “I’ve never had a person grab my jersey and try to throw me to the floor and I come up on the wrong end of things like that.
“That kind of woke me up a little bit. From that point on, it was like, ‘It’s on.’ You want to foul? We both can go to the floor next time. … It’s physical basketball. On the other end, when I get an opportunity to throw him on the ground, it is what it is. He would do the same to me.”
Johnson appeared to be complaining about the first foul referee Zach Zarba called on him late in the first quarter.
Replays indicated James grabbed Johnson in the lane and wrapped his right arm around Johnson’s back, yet it was Johnson whistled for the foul.
The play had no lasting impact on the game, but Van Gundy followed shortly after that foul call to complain about James’ favorable treatment.
“They’ve got to understand. LeBron is LeBron,” Van Gundy told ABC after the first quarter. “They’re not going to call offensive fouls on him. He gets to do what he wants.”
Van Gundy backtracked a bit after the game, insisting the calls evened out as the game went on.
“Early on I thought there were two pretty obvious offensive fouls down there on him,” Van Gundy said. “But that’s two calls in an entire game. After that, refereeing had nothing to do with [the game]. They did a good job. It went both ways. I thought they did a really good job. It was decided by the players on the floor, as it should be.”
Van Gundy apparently didn’t backtrack fast or well enough, though. He was fined $25,000 by the league on Monday for his in-game comments.
Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson didn’t seem to agree with Van Gundy’s postgame comments. Jackson charged at referee Derrick Stafford late in the game after Stafford refused to call a foul while Jackson was shooting, earning Jackson a technical at a bad time.
Jackson, the only player with considerable postseason experience on the Pistons’ roster, said Monday he addressed the technical with Van Gundy, but stopped short of saying he regretted his behavior.
The Pistons didn’t seem overwhelmed by the moment despite their lack of postseason experience.
That was particularly true of Johnson, who made all three of his 3-point attempts and who played so well that Van Gundy conceded it was fair to question whether the rookie should’ve played more.
Stars have been accused of receiving preferential treatment on foul calls for years in the NBA, but it’s unique for a teenager to be so bold toward James.
Johnson, however, said he didn’t ask the officials for an explanation on any of the calls.
“He’s LeBron,” Johnson said. “That’s the explanation. That’s what it is.”
The Cavs watched film Monday, but did not speak to reporters. Game 2 is Wednesday at Quicken Loans Arena.
Jason Lloyd can be reached at jlloyd@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Cavs blog at www.ohio.com/cavs. Follow him on Twitter www.twitter.com/JasonLloydABJ.