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Trae irked by new officiating rules: 'A lot of missed calls'

Stephen Gosling / National Basketball Association / Getty

Trae` Young is the latest NBA star to express his frustration with how officials have changed the way they call fouls this season.

Following the Atlanta Hawks' 122-111 loss to the Washington Wizards, Young said he isn't happy with the lack of foul calls across the league.

"There's a lot of missed calls. It's basketball," Young said, according to The Associated Press' Noah Trister. "It's just, it feels that they're (referees) learning, and they're just - I don't know. It's frustrating."

Young has made considerably fewer trips to the charity stripe so far this season; after attempting 8.7 free throws per game last season, he's attempting just 4.4 through five games.

Brooklyn Nets star James Harden has experienced a similar decrease in his free-throw rate, leading to a dip in scoring. Harden said he believes he's being targeted by officials.

Young was quick to point out that the rule changes aren't affecting just him and Harden.

"I saw James said it's about him, but it's not targeting just one player or two players," Young said.

"You can watch basketball. Damian Lillard's never averaged 17 points probably since his rookie year," he added. "There's a couple guys. I mean, (Devin Booker's) averaging 18. There's a lot of things that, when guys are driving straight and guys are getting knocked off balance - it's still a foul, whether they're using their lower body or their hands."

Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma, who finished with 21 points and eight rebounds in Washington's victory, shared a different opinion of the new rules:

The Hawks dropped to 3-2 with Thursday's loss, while the Wizards won their second straight game to improve to 4-1.

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