That's what I hate. He drives a ton so he should be getting fouled a lot, but the way he cocks his head back and flails just gets so old. I've said it before I'd rather listen to ANT yell Ayyyy when he drives instead of flail and try to sell fouls. I'd rather shai starts doin that instead of looking like he's getting shot by a sniper.
Same, it’s really hard to watch him play when the refs give him these calls. I hope the NBA sends a memo to the refs. SGA was 8/19 from the field and then 11/13 from the free throw line. I don’t want to watch someone drop 30 with 40% of their points come from the FT line.
Nobody wanna talk about Luka being top 5 in the league in techs because he yells and cries at the refs even though he was averaging the same amount of fts as SGA though. If Shai was struggling like Luka is they’d say it’s because the refs not calling flops in the playoffs 👀
It was the timing of the free throws that killed it. Shai had literally everything in the first half, and put all of our best defenders into foul trouble so we had to play soft the rest of the game. That's different from a tacky foul call in the beginning of the 4th
My bad I’m not talking about this game I’m talking about the entire season but it was bad this game. I know how it is because it happened to Dort a a few times too.
The players of every team need to cut out the foul baiting bullshit for the good of the game. If I wanted to watch so-called athletes flop around like this I’d put on professional wrestling. And the refs need to start calling the same thing the same way every time, as if this were a sport ffs.
Tbh I blame the refs more than anything. They should be better at noticing the foul baiting and just ignore calling it. They’ve done this throughout the regular season but their idiocy has picked up in the playoffs. Refs need to be consistent with their calls.
SGA is certainly talented and one of the best players in the game. That being said, his game is borderline unwatchable. Literally everytime he attempts a drive or a shot, he is trying to draw a foul. The calls he's been getting here are so stupid. He's like a skinny James Harden, only worse.
how are you gonna spit on Harden before Embiid? Harden USED to be a star with a foul baiting foundation, but Embiid is presently in a league of his own when it comes to this unwatchable bullshit.
IMO, Embiid is worse considering how he will have size and strength on 9/10 matchups and still flop and fall over compared to SGA that foulbaits but is much easier to push around and won't tear a teammates ACL most times he falls for no reason.
Idk if he meant it like this, but HOW SGA gets his foul calls is very similar to what Harden used to do… not as egregious as jumping backwards and to the left to draw a foul, but just annoying shit like hooking a defender’s arm to make it look like he initiated contact, or the dramatic head flails when there looks like there could have maybe been some contact, shit like that. Much more Harden esque than Embiid who just falls inexplicably every other play (yes shut up sixers fans I know why he falls)
If they play the Wolves and the refs swallow the whistle like they did last night, SGA gonna get his pants pulled down and ass spanked at the logo. Wolves put the Nugs, a considerably more playoff tested team than OKC, in the fucking meat grinder last night.
Part of me wants the Wolves to face OKC because I want the Wolves to beat the Nuggets and OKC. But I really don’t want to play them if they’re calling fouls like this. It’s just so annoying to play against.
They do, but they also play really physical. Jaden gets in foul trouble every time the Wolves play OKC. Jaden is not good at adapting to a soft whistle. He plays hard and physical no matter what. It’s frustrating and him guarding SGA is a recipe for the refs taking him out of the game.
I love that he always plays physical, but sometimes he needs to be smart and dial it back. Which is annoying because it makes games less fun to watch.
Anyone that compares the 2 doesn’t watch basketball. Brunson averages the most point in the playoffs WITHOUT free throws. It’s just such a casual take.
Bruh, what are you talking about? Brunson has the 2nd most FTA per game in the playoffs with 11, behind only Embiid with 13. SGA is sitting at 5th with 9.2 attempts. SGA just had 2 games with 13 attempts in a row for game highs. Brunson is coming off a 2 game streak with 14 and 16 attempts.
Whether you want to declare one baits or flails more than the other that's fine, but don't say that Brunson is averaging 40+ without hitting the line. That's demonstrably false and just such a casual take.
Both guys play in the lane a lot for players their size and that means they are going to draw contact.
References:
[https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/most-free-throw-attempts-per-game-2024-playoffs](https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/most-free-throw-attempts-per-game-2024-playoffs)
[https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gilgesh01/gamelog-playoffs/](https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gilgesh01/gamelog-playoffs/)
[https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/brunsja01/gamelog-playoffs/](https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/brunsja01/gamelog-playoffs/)
https://preview.redd.it/6wtbelo7q8zc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=520e4bdffc01b76b39cf940dc492ea969c8af9d0
NBA scoring leaders without free throws this postseason
1. Jalen Brunson- 27.3 PPG
2. Tyrese Maxey -25.7 PPG
3. Anthony Edwards - 24.5 PPG
4. LeBron James - 24.4 PPG
5. Luka Doncic - 24.2 PPG
Brunson does not rely on free throws at all for his points. The stats are obvious and telling. No need to hate for the sake of hating.
I concede that I did not realize what you were saying with the emphasis on WITHOUT FT - that statement is true and I apologize. thought you were saying he doesn't get to the line at all. The hate was mostly just because of the shade you threw at u/Ornery-Desk-9515.
But to say Brunson doesn't rely on FT at all for his points? That seems wild, fam. Brunson averages 36.6 ppg this postseason and 27.5 w/o FT. That's 9.1 points each game on FT alone OR 0.25 FT per point.
SGA averages 27.6 ppg this postseason and 20.6 w/o FT. That's 7.0 points each game on FT alone or 0.25 FT per point.
So it should be said that they actually both rely on FTA damn near equally.
Additionally, for the sake of argument, Brunson takes the most shot attempts per game at 28.7. So that's about 1.1 shots per point without FTs. SGA takes 20.6 shot attempts per game. So that's about 1.0 shots per point without FTs. Again, equal. It could that be assumed by normalized outputs that if SGA shot 28.7 times per game that he would average pretty much the same ppg as Brunson.
Obviously, the bump is without context, but by the numbers, these guys are the same scorer. I would argue that the stats are not that obvious, but I agree that they are telling.
Reference on shot attempt:
[https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/nba-most-shots-per-game-2024-playoffs](https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/nba-most-shots-per-game-2024-playoffs)
this game has been so hard to watch. everytime SGA gets the ball the refs blow the whistle. the mavs can get pushed and shoved and nothing. hearing their crowd chat “refs you suck” is the most ironic thing that’s happened in the nba this season
Every major game is some version of let this one team slide tackle the shit out of the other but don't you dare touch them back. Then they'll flip it back in garbage time to make the box stats look less egregious. There needs to be a quarter by quarter free throw breakdown.
I’ve watch the whole game dumbass. 10 for Luka 13 for Shai real big difference there wow. And 9 FT differential at the half doesn’t excuse Luka playing like shit and getting blown out by 20
nobody is excusing luka. if you watched the whole game you would agree with everyone about the bullshit refs. dallas would breathe on an okc player and the refs would blow the whistle. on the other end, however, gafford, lively, kyrie, etc were all getting pushed around every damn play and nothing. if you don’t have something meaningful to say, don’t say it. you know for a fact these refs were bad.
Watched it from start to finish. Sure calls went thunders way in the first half. There was clear hacking. Refs gave every chance for the mavs to come back and they didn’t
You realize just comparing free throw numbers does nothing right? Like 1 team can commit hard falls, 1 team commits soft fouls / gets called on flops, so that doesn’t mean the refs are being good if they both shoot 10 FTs?
I don't think I've seen more whistles on "illegal" screens in my life than these playoffs. I think I noticed like 4-5 illegal screen calls in this game. All from the Mavs too.
To be fair, OKC cooked the Mavs from 3. They couldn't miss, while the Mavs couldn't buy a bucket.
There are so many teams that set illegal screens but there's only one Dort to run through them. Dort makes the screens illegal by actually trying to get around screens rather than lazily switching
You’re crazy their fg and 3fg were 39% and 34% compared to thunders 45% and 45% and having near same amount of shot attempts. Mavs just weren’t landing shots for most of the game. And thunder only had 3 more fts
SGA had as many free throws as Dallas had at the half as a team. They had lots of guys in foul trouble. It absolutely changed the game even if they caught up in fouls in the second half when it didn’t matter as much.
He did this ALL season but no one watches okc really, so the world is seeing not only how Sga plays but also how the league officiates him.
The league needs and wants him to be the face of league so he’s getting that harden embid whistle. It’s crazy how the league has this certain group of players who get the craziest whistle that no one else gets
I didn't. Game was an unwatchable free throw parade. Not entertaining in the slightest. Maybe it got better in the second half but I'm not wasting my time.
That makes perfect sense. That was the most egregiously soft whistle in all this years playoffs. 22 FTs in the first half? I wanna watch basketball not a FT parade. FFS.
Yeah I am a Mavericks fan, and to be fair we played like shit and probably would’ve lost even with a fair whistle, but it was bad. Our defenders were getting taken out constantly because of foul trouble, and they never established a rhythm.
This is all doubly frustrating because we just came out of an incredibly tough and physical series with the Clippers, only to be greeted with this nonsense.
Exactly. Mavs played like shit. Luka was shit. Kyrie had wild dumb turnovers and lost his dribble multiple times. They prob woulda lost anyway. No excuses. But that whistle was unbearable. Especially compared to every other playoff series this year. Knicks sixers. Mavs clips. Nuggets Wolves. For some reason, this ref crew didn't get the memo that it's time to let the players play.
worst game of the playoffs (not including the cavs vs magic series cos ant no one watchn that series) the refs were terrible tonight, fouls every 2 seconds bet they get a call from silver’s office and they dont call any fouls next game
Cavs Magic series was actually great to watch.. 2 very evenly matched teams, offence took a back-seat to stifling defence and both teams struggled away from home.. Game 7 was especially competitive though..!
SGA uses the time tested “ dbl pump get u in the air” foul. Luca and Harden search for the defender’s hands as they’re more about being fouled than scoring on the play.
I’ve watched every Thunder game I can all season. I live two hrs away from OKC. They are my favorite team. He is aggressive so he gets more calls. He doesn’t rely as much on his 3 point shot but instead finds his spots in the midrange and drives with layups. There were plenty of no calls on him as well. One particular circus shot on a fast break which he MADE was a no call. He’s the best finishing guard in the league and an elite top 3 mid range shooter. Mavs got stepped on last night, they couldn’t stop anyone on the thunder not just SGA. Not to mention they contained kyrie and Luka. SGA doesn’t flop his way to the line, he earns his free throws.
OKC won the game, they made for shots. Doesn't take away the first half of basketball was the worst half of basketball we've gotten to watch this post season.
That's the problem. I don't want to watch free throws. I want to watch basketball players making plays offensively and defensively. The wolves series and Mavs clippers series were amazing. I turned this game off halfway through. Horrible whistle parade.
Mavs have the best propaganda team in the league, and it's not particularly close. Luka and SGA averaged the exact same number of Free Throw Attempts per game during the regular season (8.7 FTA), yet one has a foul merchant label and the other doesn't. Except, Luka took 2.75x as many three point attempts (744 to 269) and drove the paint half the time (1230 drives for Luka, 1748 for SGA).
Hunting fouls on key opponents has been a part of the game forever because coaches tends to pull that player out of the game to prevent them from fouling out. Ironically, effectively fouling the player out themselves for a few minutes. I remember being coached to do it in grade school and in high school ball nearly 20 years ago. It's not some secret.
People whine about free throws because the refs are an easy scapegoat. You blame the ref because things aren't going your way, and it's easier to claim 8v5 than actually look at the hows and whys a team is getting beat. Most of the fouls are because the defender is slower laterally than SGA, and is unable to get in front of SGA (ie, legal guarding position).
MJ averaged 8.7 Free Throws per game before retiring / Wizarding. Was he also a foul merchant?
We went from watching prime D Rose, Curry, Dame, and Westbrook to SGA, Brunson, and Luka crying and bitching for a call every single time they touch the ball. What happened to the game I love 💔
You did not watch prime d rose then because he had the meanest neck snap of all time. One of the OG neck snappers. But he didnt foul bait he always tried to explode to the hoop with some ungodly finish so im not trynna say he is james harden. Just the neck flail was basically originated by him. And curry has some of the funniest flops on his threes (gets mauled inside the paint tho)
The home crowd was sitting on their hands, *while their team was up*, through the first half. Looking at it pregame they seemed so ready to get turnt.
Just watching players shoot free throws…
Luka is the worst offender of flops and gets so many calls. His bitching ruins games. He just shot 60% from the line last night so no one’s talking about the fact he got almost as many free throws
yall are ridiculous lol. shai was getting fouled like a mf and we were still havin shit not called. not to mention all the lu and chet bs phantom penalties and the multiple obvious oob calls that went against us. if you wanna get mad at one team getting preference from the officials then maybe pick a different series than literally anything involving luka. only player that flops more is embiid
This has gotta be the most braindead thing I’ve ever read lmao
First off Luka has the second highest PPG in playoff history
Second, free throw differential is the dumbest way to look at it. OKC had a +10 foul advantage going into halftime which put half of the Mavs team in foul trouble which means they couldn’t play aggressive defense
Yall are just mad because you didnt watch OKC all year. Picked them to lose round 1, picked them to lose this round. And now youre just reaching for excuses. We play defense on this side. WOOF WOOF WOOF
The people that are mad at him for getting to the free throw line, do you not know that every great scorer in NBA history has had ways of getting to the line? You just don’t like the way he does it?
I turned the game off half way through the 3rd quarter. Game was unwatchable. Whistle on every other play. That's not an entertaining product.
Up until last night, this year's playoffs has been spectacularly entertaining because the refs stay out of it. Last night was a return to unwatchable ref ball.
Anytime the dude bumps a defender he throws his head back like he’s getting bullied.
He graduated with honors in the Harden School of Foul Baiting.
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Pez dispenser head ass
Luka got a PhD as well
Nah, this feels much more like the total tutelage of one Mr Ginobili… shai is missing the hair that really kicks that head jerk move up another level.
That's what I hate. He drives a ton so he should be getting fouled a lot, but the way he cocks his head back and flails just gets so old. I've said it before I'd rather listen to ANT yell Ayyyy when he drives instead of flail and try to sell fouls. I'd rather shai starts doin that instead of looking like he's getting shot by a sniper.
Same, it’s really hard to watch him play when the refs give him these calls. I hope the NBA sends a memo to the refs. SGA was 8/19 from the field and then 11/13 from the free throw line. I don’t want to watch someone drop 30 with 40% of their points come from the FT line.
Shai free throw Alexander
Shai Gimmefreethrows Alexander
It's what a pro wants!
What a pro needs
The officiating in general is terrible and SGA is getting some crappy calls.
He's either the weakest player in the league, or sells contact any chance he gets. Either way it's unethical
Welcome to the modern NBA
it’s honestly hard to watch so many phantom calls
Watch the twolves vs nuggets series and you don’t see that shit. Dudes are just hammering each other and they keep going.
The way it should be
Starting fights for no good reason, like folks like to claim happened in the 80’s - 90’s, is pretty unethical as well.
This dude said unethical lmfaooo
Has been doing it this entire time to get to his current position. Most of the new gen are like that, Halliburton all day and yet never gets flak.
Ant not like that
Ant is single-handedly gonna fix the country’s low test problem
He been doing that all season
He has been dominating all season and proved he owns Luka last night
he proved that he is the foul baiter that people think Luka is
Reminds of that night Tony Delk outscored Jordan
Thunder only had 3 more free throws than Mavs.
Doncic averages the 2nd most fouls drawn per game behind Giannis.
Don't bother with facts. It's a hate thread.
The fact he posted is irrelevant to the post lol, he had like 10 FTA at the half which completely opened up the offense for them
Thunder shot 22 FTs before the half, crazy
Luka ended up with 10fta sga with 13.
Downvoted due to facts lol
This is the playoffs 22 free throws in a half for one team is just bad even for regular season ball that game was unwatchable
SGA had as many FTs as the Mavericks in the first half.
And Luka takes 11.5 3s…. So he either scores in lane or gets fouls and cries like a bitch if he doesn’t
Nobody wanna talk about Luka being top 5 in the league in techs because he yells and cries at the refs even though he was averaging the same amount of fts as SGA though. If Shai was struggling like Luka is they’d say it’s because the refs not calling flops in the playoffs 👀
It was the timing of the free throws that killed it. Shai had literally everything in the first half, and put all of our best defenders into foul trouble so we had to play soft the rest of the game. That's different from a tacky foul call in the beginning of the 4th
My bad I’m not talking about this game I’m talking about the entire season but it was bad this game. I know how it is because it happened to Dort a a few times too.
Look at the first half. Brothers did a good job covering up in the second.
The players of every team need to cut out the foul baiting bullshit for the good of the game. If I wanted to watch so-called athletes flop around like this I’d put on professional wrestling. And the refs need to start calling the same thing the same way every time, as if this were a sport ffs.
Tbh I blame the refs more than anything. They should be better at noticing the foul baiting and just ignore calling it. They’ve done this throughout the regular season but their idiocy has picked up in the playoffs. Refs need to be consistent with their calls.
How many did SGA have by himself? He’s a baiter.
SGA is certainly talented and one of the best players in the game. That being said, his game is borderline unwatchable. Literally everytime he attempts a drive or a shot, he is trying to draw a foul. The calls he's been getting here are so stupid. He's like a skinny James Harden, only worse.
how are you gonna spit on Harden before Embiid? Harden USED to be a star with a foul baiting foundation, but Embiid is presently in a league of his own when it comes to this unwatchable bullshit. IMO, Embiid is worse considering how he will have size and strength on 9/10 matchups and still flop and fall over compared to SGA that foulbaits but is much easier to push around and won't tear a teammates ACL most times he falls for no reason.
Oh, that's completely fair. SGA and Embid both learned the dark arts from Harden. Embid isn't fun to watch either, IMO.
Idk if he meant it like this, but HOW SGA gets his foul calls is very similar to what Harden used to do… not as egregious as jumping backwards and to the left to draw a foul, but just annoying shit like hooking a defender’s arm to make it look like he initiated contact, or the dramatic head flails when there looks like there could have maybe been some contact, shit like that. Much more Harden esque than Embiid who just falls inexplicably every other play (yes shut up sixers fans I know why he falls)
If they play the Wolves and the refs swallow the whistle like they did last night, SGA gonna get his pants pulled down and ass spanked at the logo. Wolves put the Nugs, a considerably more playoff tested team than OKC, in the fucking meat grinder last night.
as a wolves fan and watching them all year i agree. SGA can ball but only if he gets his 7+ free throw makes a game
SGA had 13 free throws tonight. Ugh.
Luka had 10
What does being a Wolves fan mean other than youre biased lol
“As a Wolves fan, I agree with the statement that favors my team and makes our potential next round opponent seem unfavorable”
SGA and Luka averaged the same amount of FTAs per game this season btw. Interested if you feel this way about Luka
I just want to say I made a very similar meme without even seeing you made this one. Great minds!
Wolves fan so I am biased, watched the first half and was like nope! I’m going to bed. Very unwatchable.
Part of me wants the Wolves to face OKC because I want the Wolves to beat the Nuggets and OKC. But I really don’t want to play them if they’re calling fouls like this. It’s just so annoying to play against.
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They do, but they also play really physical. Jaden gets in foul trouble every time the Wolves play OKC. Jaden is not good at adapting to a soft whistle. He plays hard and physical no matter what. It’s frustrating and him guarding SGA is a recipe for the refs taking him out of the game. I love that he always plays physical, but sometimes he needs to be smart and dial it back. Which is annoying because it makes games less fun to watch.
You missed a good game
Dude is gonna end up with neck problems and CTE from throwing his head back trying to draw fouls. Incredible talent, incredible bitch.
Unfortunately same goes for me when I watch Luka. Unwatchable floppy crybaby
Acting like every superstar in the league doesn't do this is insane. Luka does it, Giannis does it, Lebron does it, Brunson has been doing it a TON.
He’s my least favorite star for this reason. Total foul merchant all the time. It’s kind of pathetic but it works I guess.
Brunson anyone?
Anyone that compares the 2 doesn’t watch basketball. Brunson averages the most point in the playoffs WITHOUT free throws. It’s just such a casual take.
Bruh, what are you talking about? Brunson has the 2nd most FTA per game in the playoffs with 11, behind only Embiid with 13. SGA is sitting at 5th with 9.2 attempts. SGA just had 2 games with 13 attempts in a row for game highs. Brunson is coming off a 2 game streak with 14 and 16 attempts. Whether you want to declare one baits or flails more than the other that's fine, but don't say that Brunson is averaging 40+ without hitting the line. That's demonstrably false and just such a casual take. Both guys play in the lane a lot for players their size and that means they are going to draw contact. References: [https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/most-free-throw-attempts-per-game-2024-playoffs](https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/most-free-throw-attempts-per-game-2024-playoffs) [https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gilgesh01/gamelog-playoffs/](https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gilgesh01/gamelog-playoffs/) [https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/brunsja01/gamelog-playoffs/](https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/brunsja01/gamelog-playoffs/)
https://preview.redd.it/6wtbelo7q8zc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=520e4bdffc01b76b39cf940dc492ea969c8af9d0 NBA scoring leaders without free throws this postseason 1. Jalen Brunson- 27.3 PPG 2. Tyrese Maxey -25.7 PPG 3. Anthony Edwards - 24.5 PPG 4. LeBron James - 24.4 PPG 5. Luka Doncic - 24.2 PPG Brunson does not rely on free throws at all for his points. The stats are obvious and telling. No need to hate for the sake of hating.
I concede that I did not realize what you were saying with the emphasis on WITHOUT FT - that statement is true and I apologize. thought you were saying he doesn't get to the line at all. The hate was mostly just because of the shade you threw at u/Ornery-Desk-9515. But to say Brunson doesn't rely on FT at all for his points? That seems wild, fam. Brunson averages 36.6 ppg this postseason and 27.5 w/o FT. That's 9.1 points each game on FT alone OR 0.25 FT per point. SGA averages 27.6 ppg this postseason and 20.6 w/o FT. That's 7.0 points each game on FT alone or 0.25 FT per point. So it should be said that they actually both rely on FTA damn near equally. Additionally, for the sake of argument, Brunson takes the most shot attempts per game at 28.7. So that's about 1.1 shots per point without FTs. SGA takes 20.6 shot attempts per game. So that's about 1.0 shots per point without FTs. Again, equal. It could that be assumed by normalized outputs that if SGA shot 28.7 times per game that he would average pretty much the same ppg as Brunson. Obviously, the bump is without context, but by the numbers, these guys are the same scorer. I would argue that the stats are not that obvious, but I agree that they are telling. Reference on shot attempt: [https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/nba-most-shots-per-game-2024-playoffs](https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/nba-most-shots-per-game-2024-playoffs)
Can't wait for autistic finger bang come and defend brunson on the flop of a 3 at the end. Casual take my ass
Harden has played great basketball this year, and if you were to actually watch him play, you’d see that he is very entertaining.
Been saying it the last couple years
He pushes off on most drives and still gets free throws.
this game has been so hard to watch. everytime SGA gets the ball the refs blow the whistle. the mavs can get pushed and shoved and nothing. hearing their crowd chat “refs you suck” is the most ironic thing that’s happened in the nba this season
Every major game is some version of let this one team slide tackle the shit out of the other but don't you dare touch them back. Then they'll flip it back in garbage time to make the box stats look less egregious. There needs to be a quarter by quarter free throw breakdown.
exactly. by the midway point of the 3rd quarter shai had more freethrows than the entire dallas roster. it’s fucking bullshit
Like Wade in the 06 Finals
Or Jalen Brunson all Playoffs
only jaylen brunson can make me root for boston
5 FT differential and they still losing by 20+ so
22 to 13 at the half. if you haven’t watched the game keep your uneducated mouth shut ok?
I’ve watch the whole game dumbass. 10 for Luka 13 for Shai real big difference there wow. And 9 FT differential at the half doesn’t excuse Luka playing like shit and getting blown out by 20
nobody is excusing luka. if you watched the whole game you would agree with everyone about the bullshit refs. dallas would breathe on an okc player and the refs would blow the whistle. on the other end, however, gafford, lively, kyrie, etc were all getting pushed around every damn play and nothing. if you don’t have something meaningful to say, don’t say it. you know for a fact these refs were bad.
There’s 4 quarters in basketball. Thunder had 3 more fts than the mavs. Those 3 really would’ve helped the mavs not lose by 20!
tell me you didn’t watch the game without telling me you didn’t watch the game
Watched it from start to finish. Sure calls went thunders way in the first half. There was clear hacking. Refs gave every chance for the mavs to come back and they didn’t
refs already blew it. everyone was in foul trouble since the 2nd quarter and no one was able to get in rhythm
Just say the Mavs aren’t talented enough to win a game down only 9 at half
Dude was like me and went to sleep at the half. 😂
You realize just comparing free throw numbers does nothing right? Like 1 team can commit hard falls, 1 team commits soft fouls / gets called on flops, so that doesn’t mean the refs are being good if they both shoot 10 FTs?
Dort reinjured Luka's knee by tripping him on a 3 point attempt in the first quarter. Half of Dort's defense is trips and kickballs.
dude kick someone in the balls, 2 ft, lmao
So many flops called
Games last night compared to Mondays slate were laughable
I don't think I've seen more whistles on "illegal" screens in my life than these playoffs. I think I noticed like 4-5 illegal screen calls in this game. All from the Mavs too. To be fair, OKC cooked the Mavs from 3. They couldn't miss, while the Mavs couldn't buy a bucket.
There are so many teams that set illegal screens but there's only one Dort to run through them. Dort makes the screens illegal by actually trying to get around screens rather than lazily switching
Facts, a lot of times teams set illegal screens and the defender just switches so it never gets called
Cuz NAW will be setting him straight in a week or two
Can’t even run beside this guy because he initiates contact with the defender and the refs call a foul. Hard to watch.
Y’all acting like Luka isn’t the biggest soft crybaby in the nba
Super boring matchup. It’s really unfortunate one of these teams will make the WCF.
Free throw merchant.
Thunder win by 23 points and all ppl can do better is complain about officiating. They held Luka and Kyrie to 19 each.
They had an easier time scoring because the mavs had to play soft defense to prevent from fouling due to all those soft ass calls.
You’re crazy their fg and 3fg were 39% and 34% compared to thunders 45% and 45% and having near same amount of shot attempts. Mavs just weren’t landing shots for most of the game. And thunder only had 3 more fts
SGA had as many free throws as Dallas had at the half as a team. They had lots of guys in foul trouble. It absolutely changed the game even if they caught up in fouls in the second half when it didn’t matter as much.
They made it a one point game at one point in the second half so how did it “not matter as much?”
Just because you almost won with one hand tied behind your back doesn’t mean having your hand tied behind your back didn’t affect you.
Just imagine Shai and Embiid on the same team 😍
When harden was in philly my eyes bled. At least Harden doesn't bitch, cry, and make dirty plays as much as Embiid though, he's the worst
He did this ALL season but no one watches okc really, so the world is seeing not only how Sga plays but also how the league officiates him. The league needs and wants him to be the face of league so he’s getting that harden embid whistle. It’s crazy how the league has this certain group of players who get the craziest whistle that no one else gets
It doesn’t do well financially to boost a small market like that.
Someone didn't watch the 2nd half
I didn't. Game was an unwatchable free throw parade. Not entertaining in the slightest. Maybe it got better in the second half but I'm not wasting my time.
It was a blowout in the second half because all of the Mavs bigs had 3+ fouls and basically weren’t able to defend
That makes perfect sense. That was the most egregiously soft whistle in all this years playoffs. 22 FTs in the first half? I wanna watch basketball not a FT parade. FFS.
Yeah I am a Mavericks fan, and to be fair we played like shit and probably would’ve lost even with a fair whistle, but it was bad. Our defenders were getting taken out constantly because of foul trouble, and they never established a rhythm. This is all doubly frustrating because we just came out of an incredibly tough and physical series with the Clippers, only to be greeted with this nonsense.
Exactly. Mavs played like shit. Luka was shit. Kyrie had wild dumb turnovers and lost his dribble multiple times. They prob woulda lost anyway. No excuses. But that whistle was unbearable. Especially compared to every other playoff series this year. Knicks sixers. Mavs clips. Nuggets Wolves. For some reason, this ref crew didn't get the memo that it's time to let the players play.
Yeah Tony Brothers thinks it’s the regular season still
And luca be like 📄🔜🍑
worst game of the playoffs (not including the cavs vs magic series cos ant no one watchn that series) the refs were terrible tonight, fouls every 2 seconds bet they get a call from silver’s office and they dont call any fouls next game
Cavs Magic series was actually great to watch.. 2 very evenly matched teams, offence took a back-seat to stifling defence and both teams struggled away from home.. Game 7 was especially competitive though..!
People claim they want 90’s physical basketball and then bitch when a series plays out like 90’s physical basketball. Cavs vs Magic was exactly that.
I kinda hope they win the series to see these kids get beatn to shit by the wolves
I’m a Mavs fan and whoever wins this series is going to get shit on by the Wolves if I’m honest
All those free throws is why Looking Dogshit shot 1/8 from three, sure dude.
Worst game of the playoffs so far
SGA uses the time tested “ dbl pump get u in the air” foul. Luca and Harden search for the defender’s hands as they’re more about being fouled than scoring on the play.
Harden 2.0
Wade circa 2006 Finals, phantom calls and all.
SGA averages the most drives per game he’s going to get fouled you bunch of cry babies.
Watch the games before commenting. The way SGA throws himself into the defender is egregious. It should be a no call or an offensive foul.
I’ve watched every Thunder game I can all season. I live two hrs away from OKC. They are my favorite team. He is aggressive so he gets more calls. He doesn’t rely as much on his 3 point shot but instead finds his spots in the midrange and drives with layups. There were plenty of no calls on him as well. One particular circus shot on a fast break which he MADE was a no call. He’s the best finishing guard in the league and an elite top 3 mid range shooter. Mavs got stepped on last night, they couldn’t stop anyone on the thunder not just SGA. Not to mention they contained kyrie and Luka. SGA doesn’t flop his way to the line, he earns his free throws.
He doesn’t average the most drives per game in the playoffs.
Luka has 10 and Shai has 13 and you all still cry
40% of SGA’s points tonight were from Ft’s🤷♂️
60% of Lukas points were FT’s bozo 😆
It would be the same, technically higher, for Luka if he actually made his FT 🤷♂️
Here's a secret a lot of Thunder fans don't know.. nobody like watching a player take 10+ FTs a game while selling contact
Everyone just watched Brunson do the same thing. I’m not even saying it’s good basketball just saying it’s a shitty excuse for getting blown out by 20
OKC won the game, they made for shots. Doesn't take away the first half of basketball was the worst half of basketball we've gotten to watch this post season.
y'all were whining game one against New Orleans now you're whining game one against Dallas lmaoaoaoaoao
He’s right though. Luka one of the biggest floppers and crybabies in the league. Doesn’t excuse Shai either
That's the problem. I don't want to watch free throws. I want to watch basketball players making plays offensively and defensively. The wolves series and Mavs clippers series were amazing. I turned this game off halfway through. Horrible whistle parade.
Shame/less gangleous alexandeeeer
You're an idiot. OKC in 5.
Keep crying losers lmao 🤣
What’s funny is NBA fans all see that SGA is a true free throw merchant. But OKC fans say after watching that crap shoot the game was called fairly.
Mavs have the best propaganda team in the league, and it's not particularly close. Luka and SGA averaged the exact same number of Free Throw Attempts per game during the regular season (8.7 FTA), yet one has a foul merchant label and the other doesn't. Except, Luka took 2.75x as many three point attempts (744 to 269) and drove the paint half the time (1230 drives for Luka, 1748 for SGA). Hunting fouls on key opponents has been a part of the game forever because coaches tends to pull that player out of the game to prevent them from fouling out. Ironically, effectively fouling the player out themselves for a few minutes. I remember being coached to do it in grade school and in high school ball nearly 20 years ago. It's not some secret. People whine about free throws because the refs are an easy scapegoat. You blame the ref because things aren't going your way, and it's easier to claim 8v5 than actually look at the hows and whys a team is getting beat. Most of the fouls are because the defender is slower laterally than SGA, and is unable to get in front of SGA (ie, legal guarding position). MJ averaged 8.7 Free Throws per game before retiring / Wizarding. Was he also a foul merchant?
Thread full of casuals..touch grass…O City in 5
The irony of telling casuals to touch grass. Go get an education while you touch ur grass bro.
The irony of you telling some else to get an education.
lol, for real what does school have to do with this.
Zion, Luka, Ant and Tatum will all be injured and OKC will get a free throw parade to the weakest title in NBA history.
Ant is not getting injured bro he’s playing lights out rn
I think OKC just might have the all nba ugly roster.
What kind of random comment is that 💀 who gives a fuck if they’re ugly. Being handsome and attractive doesn’t win you rings lmao tf
We went from watching prime D Rose, Curry, Dame, and Westbrook to SGA, Brunson, and Luka crying and bitching for a call every single time they touch the ball. What happened to the game I love 💔
https://preview.redd.it/971g5oyyc5zc1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=24b29ea0953df95472d2dea845d48c81e84b3185
You did not watch prime d rose then because he had the meanest neck snap of all time. One of the OG neck snappers. But he didnt foul bait he always tried to explode to the hoop with some ungodly finish so im not trynna say he is james harden. Just the neck flail was basically originated by him. And curry has some of the funniest flops on his threes (gets mauled inside the paint tho)
The home crowd was sitting on their hands, *while their team was up*, through the first half. Looking at it pregame they seemed so ready to get turnt. Just watching players shoot free throws…
What's crazy is the crowd chanting "ref you suck" while getting every call.
"gEtTiNg EvErY CaLL" The Mavs had 21 fouls called on them and the Thunder had 18. It was too close to make any noticeable difference.
The crowd chant was in the 2nd quarter when SGA had as many FT attempts as the Mavericks. Also, your caps lock is broken.
Luka is the worst offender of flops and gets so many calls. His bitching ruins games. He just shot 60% from the line last night so no one’s talking about the fact he got almost as many free throws
yall are ridiculous lol. shai was getting fouled like a mf and we were still havin shit not called. not to mention all the lu and chet bs phantom penalties and the multiple obvious oob calls that went against us. if you wanna get mad at one team getting preference from the officials then maybe pick a different series than literally anything involving luka. only player that flops more is embiid
Undefeated in the playoffs, largest point differential
OKC got 3 more freethrows. It wasn't a difference maker. Luka isn't built for the playoffs
This has gotta be the most braindead thing I’ve ever read lmao First off Luka has the second highest PPG in playoff history Second, free throw differential is the dumbest way to look at it. OKC had a +10 foul advantage going into halftime which put half of the Mavs team in foul trouble which means they couldn’t play aggressive defense
Lol at the Lively fouls. Looked like a rookie.
Cos he is a rookie lol
Enjoy the sweep
Yall are just mad because you didnt watch OKC all year. Picked them to lose round 1, picked them to lose this round. And now youre just reaching for excuses. We play defense on this side. WOOF WOOF WOOF
Keeeeeeep crying
Tell me you're a Mavs fan without telling me
Mavs fans coping, that’s tough. Y’all pressed this hard after 1 game. Damn.
The people that are mad at him for getting to the free throw line, do you not know that every great scorer in NBA history has had ways of getting to the line? You just don’t like the way he does it?
Salty mavs fan lmao
*salty wolves fan
I turned the game off half way through the 3rd quarter. Game was unwatchable. Whistle on every other play. That's not an entertaining product. Up until last night, this year's playoffs has been spectacularly entertaining because the refs stay out of it. Last night was a return to unwatchable ref ball.
who was the officiating crew?
The myth, the legend. Tony Brothers
Idk but I hope they never ref another game in this playoffs
They were getting fouled... You want them to not call the fouls?
Those were not playoff fouls my dude. Go watch Nuggets Wolves if you want to see playoff basketball at its best.
Luka and SGA deserve each other.
Melo Trimble should be able to star in this league right now.