Fans Think LeBron James Was Caught Flopping in Lakers Playoff Win

LeBron James may have been caught putting on a show for referees during the Lakers playoff win.

In a newly-surfaced clip showing a second angle of James’ reaction to a foul call on Tuesday, April 22, cameras captured the moment the 40-year-old Lakers star appears to pause his groaning to check if the game officials are watching.

James was hit in the face by Timberwolves forward Julius Randle, 30, in the fourth quarter of Game 2 in Los Angeles’ first-round playoff series, and stayed on the floor for several minutes as referees discussed the call.

But the new angle of James’ reaction certainly seems to show the NBA star playing up his pain for the referees.

Officials initially called a flagrant foul on Randle for the collision with James, but after review the call was downgraded to a common offensive foul against the Minnesota player.

One fan responded to clip claiming James was “caught lackin hard” but added, “let’s not pretend like virtually every superstar doesn’t do the same thing.”

The Lakers, looking to capitalize on their controversial blockbuster trade for former Mavericks star Luka Dončić, defeated the Timberwolves 94-85 in the win to tie the first-round series 1-1. The teams will next face each other on Friday, April 25 in Minnesota.

James also made headlines during Game 2 when rapper Kevin Gates was spotted sitting courtside at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles amid his budding feud with the Lakers star.

Gates, 39, took aim at the athlete’s relationship with wife Savannah James, saying he doesn’t like “the way Savannah look at LeBron, I like the way them white women look at LeBron,” in a video on Instagram.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

After Gates’ comments went viral, LeBron wrote a pointed caption in a post with Savannah on Instagram. The two photos showed Savannah looking at LeBron before the couple went in for a sweet kiss. LeBron captioned the post: “‘Kings don’t concern themselves with the opinions of peasants.’” Where to next Queen?!?! Let’s get it! 👸🏾🖤♾️.”

Savannah and LeBron married in 2013 and have three children together: LeBron “Bronny” James Jr., 20, Bryce Maximus, 17, and Zhuri Nova, 10.