Phantom Foul Call of the Year by NBA referee Lauren Holtkamp pic.twitter.com/DWe7Pve0Be

— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) October 28, 2016

Foul? The Blazers are down by 7 with 1.6 seconds left and NBA referee Lauren Holtkamp is going to call a foul on Shabazz Napier...for touching JJ Redick?

I wonder if Chris Paul smiled about this phantom foul or did he just shake his head while watching a pissed off Damian Lillard, who fouled out seconds earlier, and thinking about his history with Holtkamp.

Back in 2015, Chris Paul took a lot of heat for criticizing her during her first year and saying this might not be the right job for her.

“The tech that I get right there was ridiculous,” Paul said after the 2015 game. “I don’t care what nobody says, I don’t care what she says; that’s terrible. There’s no way that can be a tech. We try to get the ball out fast every time down the court, and when we did that, she said, ‘Uh-uh.’ I said, ‘Why, uh-uh?’ And she gave me a tech. That’s ridiculous. If that’s the case, this might not be for her.”

Paul was hit with a $25,000 fine for his comments, which probably explains why he didn't have much to say after a game during the following season, when she hit him with another questionable tech in the final minute of a loss to the Wolves.

“The NBA got my money already,” he said. “I got kids in private school.”

Earlier this year, the LA Times polled a bunch of NBA players and coaches about refs and Holtkamp was named the 2nd worst (behind Scott Foster and before Marc Davis) in the league. I don't know if Damian Lillard was one of the players polled, but I'm sure if you asked him about the results now, he would probably agree.

"I won't comment on the officiating, but obviously I didn't like some of the calls," Blazers coach Terry Stotts said after the 106-114 loss.