Pacers: LeBron James' block on Victor Oladipo was 'clearly' goaltending

LeBron James gave the Cleveland Cavaliers a dramatic Game 5 victory with a game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer. But the Indiana Pacers think the game should have ended differently.

James' shot gave the Cavs a 98-95 win and a 3-2 series lead, but on the possession before, with the scored tied, James blocked a driving layup attempt by Pacers guard Victor Oladipo. However, the ball appeared to hit the backboard before James touched it — a goaltending violation.

No violation was called, the Cavs got the rebound and called timeout, setting up James' game-winner. Predictably, the participants differed on how the block should have been called. Oladipo even thought he was fouled before the shot.

"I got a step on him," Oladipo said. "I felt like I even got grabbed on the way to the rim, tried to shoot a layup, it hit the backboard, then he blocked it. ... It was a goaltend. It's hard to even speak on it. It just sucks, honestly. It really sucks. Even though we fought our way back, we tied the game up, that layup was huge.

"Give him credit where credit is due. The (three-pointer) was big-time. Definitely huge. But who's to say they even run that play? We don't know what happens. It's unfortunate. It really sucks that they missed that."

Pacers guard Lance Stephenson said goaltending "clearly" should have been called.

"Of course, I thought it was goaltending," Stephenson said. "We should've got the ref's attention. When you look at it on the replay, it's clearly goaltending."

The Pacers did not complain to officials on the court. Speaking on NBATV after the game, Joe Borgia, NBA senior vice president of replay and referee operations, said the play could not be reviewed because goaltending was not called on the floor.

For his part, James cracked a coy smile and added a bit of levity to the conversation when he was asked about the block.

"I definitely thought it was a goaltend," James said sarcastically. "Of course I didn't think it was a goaltend. I try to make plays like that all the time."