It’s no secret that the Los Angeles Lakers are facing trying times as the season winds down, and things only got worse for them on Wednesday when speculation about Metta World Peace’s knee injury became a reality: he will likely miss the remainder of the season to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee.
Already on a terrible three-game slide, the loss of the team’s best perimeter defender seemed to be the ultimate sign that time may be running out for the Lakers as they headed into Minnesota, clinging to a one-game lead over the Utah Jazz and Dallas Mavericks for the eighth seed of the Western Conference.
Beating the dreadful Minnesota Timberwolves – who are actually respectable at home with a 16-17 record – would be no easy task for a team with a record of 13-23 on the road.
That turned out to be just the case, as the game ended up coming down to the wire. Luckily for the Lakers, the referees swallowed their whistle on a potential game-tying 3-point attempt by Ricky Rubio, when Kobe Bryant appeared to foul the Spanish point guard from behind as he released the shot with the game on the line.
Was it a foul? Judge for yourself: