Knicks livid with refs over favorable Shai Gilgeous-Alexander whistles…
Jalen Brunson, at the end of his availability with the media, revealed that he suffered a black eye.
“Probably a no-call,” Brunson said about the way it was absorbed.
That sentiment was thematic. The Knicks had been left angered by the referees during and after their 103-100 loss to the Thunder on Wednesday night time at Madison Square Garden.
Whether justified or not, the Thunder have developed a status as a team that will get away with physicality on the defensive end and advantages from a pleasant whistle on the offensive end. It often leaves opponents pissed off and ends in fixed complaints about officiating.
The Knicks grew to become the latest offender. Coach Mike Brown, unprompted, instructed that the refs had been duped by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
“SGA, he’s a tough cover,” Brown said. “He does a great job of convincing the referees, probably better than anyone in the league, that he’s getting hit.”
Gilgeous-Alexander took seven free throws and made all of them. Brunson took six and made 4.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander drives up courtroom as Landry Shamet defends during the fourth quarter of the Knicks’ 103-100 loss to the Thunder at the Garden on March 4, 2025. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
In the first quarter, Brunson appeared to have drawn a clear cost on Gilgeous-Alexander but it surely wasn’t called. It would have been Gilgeous-Alexander’s third foul.
Brown, usually cordial with officers, was uncharacteristically incensed. He took a number of steps onto the courtroom and yelled at crew chief Brian Forte.
Head coach Mike Brown reacts on the baseline during the second quarter of the Knicks’ loss to the Thunder. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Then, on the next defensive possession for the Knicks, Brown misplaced it after Mohamed Diawara was called for a foul and commenced barking proper at Forte, who promptly gave him a technical foul — Brown’s first of the season. He needed to be held again by Rick Brunson.
“You guys saw the play,” Brown said. “SGA had two fouls and Jalen was there, and he ran him over. Just like the name that they made on OG [Anunoby, later in the game]. I don’t perceive why that was a no-call. But that ought to’ve been his third, the bucket shouldn’t have counted and we should always’ve gone the other approach with the basketball.
Jalen Brunson reacts on the courtroom during the third quarter of the Knicks’ loss to the Thunder at the Garden. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
“So to see that, knowing that Jalen is standing there and he’s putting his body on the line, and our guys are fighting their asses off to try to win the ballgame, it didn’t sit well with me, obviously.”
Later in the fourth quarter, Karl-Anthony Towns was not glad with the name for his fifth foul, which was assessed after a Thunder challenge. Towns fouled out a few minutes later.
“It’s obviously frustrating,” Towns said. “You want to win the game and you want to be out there with your teammates. It’s unfortunate. It’s unfortunate that it was called.”
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