Chris Paul Criticizes Female Referee: 'This Might Not Be for Her'

— -- Los Angeles Clippers All-Star guard Chris Paul was critical of referee Lauren Holtkamp – one of the NBA's two active female NBA refs – following his team's 105-94 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers Thursday.

The criticism stemmed from Paul's being assessed a technical during the third quarter of the game, one of the Clippers' five technical fouls.

The technical occurred with 10:17 in the third quarter. The Clippers were attempting to inbound the ball quickly when Holtkamp stepped in. Paul questioned her and was slapped with the technical.

"The tech I got was ridiculous," Paul said. "That's terrible. There's no way that can be a technical. We try to get the ball out fast every time down the court. When we did that, she said, 'Uh-uh.' I said, 'Why uh-uh?' and she gave me a technical. That's ridiculous. If that's the case, this might not be for her."

Social media users responded to the comment, with some people accusing Paul of sexism and others defending him, arguing that he was commenting on the referee’s lack of NBA experience instead of her gender. This is Holtkamp’s first season in the NBA, after moving up from the NBA Developmental League.

Holtkamp is the third full-time female ref in NBA history, following Violet Palmer and Dee Kantner.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.