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The NBA referee assignment for Game 3 action around the league has been released ahead of Thursday's slate of games. After a big Wednesday night on TNT that ended with the OKC Thunder taking a 2-0 lead, action will resume Thursday afternoon. Three games will happen on Thursday, Apr. 25, starting with NBA TV before the Inside the NBA Crew handles tonight's doubleheader.
Things will begin in Orlando, where the Magic will look to defend homecourt against the Cavaliers after dropping the first two games in Cleveland. Then, the action will switch to TNT, where the Inside the NBA crew will handle broadcasting duties for the double-header.
In the first TNT-broadcast game of the evening, the New York Knicks will play the Philadelphia 76ers. They will look to close the gap on the season series. In the final game of the evening, the Lakers will look to pick up a big Game 3 win against the Denver Nuggets. Denver had made a late-game comeback in Game 2.
With that in mind, let's look at referee assignments for the games on Thursday.
NBA referee assignment for games on Thursday, Apr. 25
NBA referee assignment for Cavaliers vs Magic
The Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Orlando Magic game will begin Thursday's action around the league at 4 p.m. PT (7 p.m. ET). The referee assignment has Scott Foster listed as the crew chief. Curtis Blair will serve as the referee. In addition, Ashley Moyer-Gleich is listed as the umpire, with Eric Dalen being the alternate.
NBA referee assignment for Knicks vs 76ers
The New York Knicks vs. Philadelphia 76ers game will tip off at 4:30 p.m. PT (7:30 p.m. ET). The NBA referee assignment for the game will see Zach Zarba serve as the crew chief, with James Williams listed as the referee. In addition, Kevin Cutler is listed as the umpire and Derrick Collins as the alternate.
NBA referee assignment for Nuggets vs Lakers
The Denver Nuggets vs. LA Lakers game will tip off at 7:00 pm PT (10 p.m. ET). Per the NBA referee assignment, Marc Davis will be the crew chief, with Josh Tiven listed as the referee. In addition, Mark Lindsay is listed as the umpire, with John Butler as the alternate.
Heading up replay center duties will be Mitchell Ervin and Aaron Smith for the evening.
Thursday's action will see the officiating put under the microscope by fans after the 76ers and Lakers Game 2 losses saw controversial no-calls. The Knicks' L2M report indicated that Tyrese Maxey was fouled and that Nick Nurse should have been awarded a timeout.
Although the Lakers gave up a massive lead, they were frustrated with a no-call on D'Angelo Russell's late game. It will be interesting to see how the action unfolds tonight.
