Bill Simmons: “I feel like Shai is getting this whistle that nobody else in the playoffs is getting.”
May 21, 2025
Bill Simmons: “I feel like Shai is getting this whistle that nobody else in the playoffs is getting.”
42 comments
That ref should be sent to Cancun ASAP
“Shai won’t get this whistle in the playoffs!”
*gets the whistle in the playoffs*
😭😭😭
It’s definitely true. But I think it’s more a reflection on how NBA games are officiated than anything
#truth
As a mutual fan watching these games I can’t stand the way Shai plays. It’s painful. He’s so so skilled and yet it’s still painful.
And we will keep talking about it and showing the evidence but nothing will change. Hes the golden boy right now and the league is giving him the whistle on absolutely everything. Caruso can guard Jokic like a hound but you cant even put a body near SGA or he will fall to the ground and get to the line. Shit is fucked.
League needs to start giving technicals for flops. All fouls are reviewed by the league in real time to see if they are flops. If the league judges it to be a flop 5 min later, then at the next dead ball they can announce the technical.
This is overkill but we’re at the point where overkill is needed. Too many players have their game revolve around drawing fouls.
It’s unwatchable when one team can be physical while the other team can’t
You feel? Just say the obvious. He does. The way Dort and Caruso play defense they would foul out in the first quarter guarding Shai. The game is called very unfairly. Offensive players shouldn’t be allowed to play for fouls
He’s the first bump queen. As soon as any defense shows the first sign of physicality he gathers and throws up an ugly shot with nearly no chance of going in. He doesn’t go up at the rim strong and instead is expecting to be bailed consistently. SGA is a small example in a broader spectrum of why I won’t hear that these are the greatest offensive players of all time. It’s been a new league even from 10-12 years ago that allows this like never before
I just want to say I’ve commented this in the past years and been mass downvoted so really peoples opinions are based on whatever just happened I think
Shai is painful to watch
Simmons just got T’d up. Shai will shoot the FT before tipoff.
The problem is the rest of the games have been super physical, which has been pretty nice to watch since it’s been consistently officiated that way. Whatever last night was really sucked. The good news is that was probably the last egregious game with all the attention its getting.
In a real sport this would be 2 minutes for embellishment.
From what I’ve seen, he just doesn’t play through contact at all. As soon as he feels any sort of contact he crumples or throws his body out. He’s so used to getting instantly rewarded and having the time to throw up the circus shots. That’s why it was so nasty in the first half lol cuz he was really expecting the bail out and it never came.
Driving strictly with the intention to get fouled, vs driving to try and find an opening and make it to the basket. It all looks even more silly when you look on the other end and you’re watching the Steel Curtain play defense and not get fouls called on them. It all feels kinda silly lol
Saw the first quarter, saw this bullsht and turned my tv off.
Meanwhile Silver is scratching his head as to why viewership is down.
“Not even sure who initiated the bumps” – spoiler, it’s FTA.
The And One he got off McDaniels(?) was bad. You’re telling me he lost his balance off a small bump like that?
I’m a casual viewer and I’ve loved how they’ve called the playoffs.
Last night was embarrassing and when it was 9-0 in fts near the end of the first you knew how the game was gonna go
OKC fans in denial lol
As a casual I got so bored watching his ho ass flop I literally turned the TV off.
I mean…the man tripped himself and they called it.
It’s really making the Thunder unwatchable and now the WCF unwatchable. I mean seriously, wtf is even the point of watching?
You touch him and it’s a foul. If you guard him well, he flops and they call a foul. He gets to shove you with his arm and create space without getting called for a foul. It’s pretty much impossible to play defense on him even if it’s near perfect.
I hate it man. This just isn’t fun basketball to watch and I have no idea wtf SGA did to earn this level of respect with the refs or why the refs just keep falling for it.
The league is just so broken and favors certain stars over officiating fair games. It’s pathetic and ridiculous.
The issue people have with SGA and the Thunder isnt that they get a good whistle or even that SGA is a “free throw merchant”. I dont even think he is. He isnt like Prime Harden or even Embiid really. The issue is the seemingly inconsistant whistle Shai gets with minimal contact in comparison to the extremely physical defense the Thunder get away with on the other end. Caruso handchecks like its the 90s and Dort bulldozes people, but on the other end Shai will get to the line off 4 phantom fouls in the very same game.
I think the core issue more lies with how things are officated. Its undeniable that SGA fishes for foul calls and people are find that playstyle frustrating and antithetical to the spirit of the game and I dont blame them. Especially watching a player as skilled as SGA who is fun to watch when he is at his best play like that its really a bummer. But its allowed by the league
Facts. It’s that, combined with the fact that they’re allowed to play by far the most physical defense.
Min needs to get very physical the remainder of this series. Especially with SGA, he’s going to continue these shenanigans, make them count.
Flopping should lead to a penalty. If a player is caught flopping he should be ineligible the final 2 mins of the game.
There were definitely calls shai gets on drives that I don’t understand how Randle wasn’t getting on the other
I don’t get why he’s getting a whistle ?? Like what makes him different then everyone else ? I think his game is ugly as fuck
His teammate Caruso is the complete opposite as the guy never gets the whistle for playing UFC fighter on the opposing team’s star player.
It’s just complete dogshit to watch. That is the truth
Don’t listen to bill simmons. He’s been watching the Celtics shoot hundreds of 3s per game all year, he literally doesn’t know what driving to the basket and playing aggressively looks like.
Referees will inevitably miss calls, but it’s better to overlook a genuine foul than to mistakenly call one where contact was insufficient.
So annoying to hear how playoff basketball is different and more physical and then you have this dude getting +1 every drive.
Donovan Mitchell ?
What happened to the Trae Young/James Harden rule they made a couple of years ago?
Where you can’t jump 2 feet into someone to get rewarded with Free Throws (where it isn’t a nomal shot).
Thought I turned on a game to watch Basketball, but it was pathetic how SGA was just out there trying to bump people to have a solo Free Throw Contest.
Hey NBA, that’s not Basketball.
If they are going to call it anyway wolves should lay him out every time.
My Dad is a big OKC fan so I want to not hate them so we can bs about basketball. SGA is unwatchable basketball. He does so many things well that his need to initiate contact then flail like he got shot kills my interest. I know he doesn’t need to do it to be effective and refs just let it continue for reasons I can’t figure out.
Now Minnesota has to gameplan a defense that can’t be at all physical while OKC defenders blur the line between basketball and wrestling more every game.
Agreed… after watching the Warriors/Rockets series, how can anyone even justify this? It’s just a completely different game being called for him than the rest of the league in the playoffs
Yes and also the Wolves were dogshit last night so it’s weird that this is getting so much attention after a game that wasn’t decided by the whistles at all
I mean if you’re gonna get called for a foul for breathing on him might as well start getting super physical
First time I’ve really tried to watch another team play other than my home team. First bucket for OKC was a free throw and set a bad precedent. Even though TWolves were being absolutely mauled in the paint and getting the ball stripped they weren’t getting calls.
Stopped watching after SGA fell to the ground and Wolves challenged the play just so OKC can get the ball back regardless. Was not fun watching OKC getting soft calls left and right while getting away with murder on defense. Hope Wolves win the series, I just can’t stand this OKC teams softness it’s like watching embiid play as a point guard.
42 comments
That ref should be sent to Cancun ASAP
“Shai won’t get this whistle in the playoffs!”
*gets the whistle in the playoffs*
😭😭😭
It’s definitely true. But I think it’s more a reflection on how NBA games are officiated than anything
#truth
As a mutual fan watching these games I can’t stand the way Shai plays. It’s painful. He’s so so skilled and yet it’s still painful.
And we will keep talking about it and showing the evidence but nothing will change. Hes the golden boy right now and the league is giving him the whistle on absolutely everything. Caruso can guard Jokic like a hound but you cant even put a body near SGA or he will fall to the ground and get to the line. Shit is fucked.
League needs to start giving technicals for flops. All fouls are reviewed by the league in real time to see if they are flops. If the league judges it to be a flop 5 min later, then at the next dead ball they can announce the technical.
This is overkill but we’re at the point where overkill is needed. Too many players have their game revolve around drawing fouls.
It’s unwatchable when one team can be physical while the other team can’t
You feel? Just say the obvious. He does. The way Dort and Caruso play defense they would foul out in the first quarter guarding Shai. The game is called very unfairly. Offensive players shouldn’t be allowed to play for fouls
He’s the first bump queen. As soon as any defense shows the first sign of physicality he gathers and throws up an ugly shot with nearly no chance of going in. He doesn’t go up at the rim strong and instead is expecting to be bailed consistently. SGA is a small example in a broader spectrum of why I won’t hear that these are the greatest offensive players of all time. It’s been a new league even from 10-12 years ago that allows this like never before
I just want to say I’ve commented this in the past years and been mass downvoted so really peoples opinions are based on whatever just happened I think
Shai is painful to watch
Simmons just got T’d up. Shai will shoot the FT before tipoff.
The problem is the rest of the games have been super physical, which has been pretty nice to watch since it’s been consistently officiated that way. Whatever last night was really sucked. The good news is that was probably the last egregious game with all the attention its getting.
In a real sport this would be 2 minutes for embellishment.
From what I’ve seen, he just doesn’t play through contact at all. As soon as he feels any sort of contact he crumples or throws his body out. He’s so used to getting instantly rewarded and having the time to throw up the circus shots. That’s why it was so nasty in the first half lol cuz he was really expecting the bail out and it never came.
Driving strictly with the intention to get fouled, vs driving to try and find an opening and make it to the basket. It all looks even more silly when you look on the other end and you’re watching the Steel Curtain play defense and not get fouls called on them. It all feels kinda silly lol
Saw the first quarter, saw this bullsht and turned my tv off.
Meanwhile Silver is scratching his head as to why viewership is down.
“Not even sure who initiated the bumps” – spoiler, it’s FTA.
The And One he got off McDaniels(?) was bad. You’re telling me he lost his balance off a small bump like that?
I’m a casual viewer and I’ve loved how they’ve called the playoffs.
Last night was embarrassing and when it was 9-0 in fts near the end of the first you knew how the game was gonna go
OKC fans in denial lol
As a casual I got so bored watching his ho ass flop I literally turned the TV off.
I mean…the man tripped himself and they called it.
It’s really making the Thunder unwatchable and now the WCF unwatchable. I mean seriously, wtf is even the point of watching?
You touch him and it’s a foul. If you guard him well, he flops and they call a foul. He gets to shove you with his arm and create space without getting called for a foul. It’s pretty much impossible to play defense on him even if it’s near perfect.
I hate it man. This just isn’t fun basketball to watch and I have no idea wtf SGA did to earn this level of respect with the refs or why the refs just keep falling for it.
The league is just so broken and favors certain stars over officiating fair games. It’s pathetic and ridiculous.
The issue people have with SGA and the Thunder isnt that they get a good whistle or even that SGA is a “free throw merchant”. I dont even think he is. He isnt like Prime Harden or even Embiid really. The issue is the seemingly inconsistant whistle Shai gets with minimal contact in comparison to the extremely physical defense the Thunder get away with on the other end. Caruso handchecks like its the 90s and Dort bulldozes people, but on the other end Shai will get to the line off 4 phantom fouls in the very same game.
I think the core issue more lies with how things are officated. Its undeniable that SGA fishes for foul calls and people are find that playstyle frustrating and antithetical to the spirit of the game and I dont blame them. Especially watching a player as skilled as SGA who is fun to watch when he is at his best play like that its really a bummer. But its allowed by the league
Facts. It’s that, combined with the fact that they’re allowed to play by far the most physical defense.
Min needs to get very physical the remainder of this series. Especially with SGA, he’s going to continue these shenanigans, make them count.
Flopping should lead to a penalty. If a player is caught flopping he should be ineligible the final 2 mins of the game.
There were definitely calls shai gets on drives that I don’t understand how Randle wasn’t getting on the other
I don’t get why he’s getting a whistle ?? Like what makes him different then everyone else ? I think his game is ugly as fuck
His teammate Caruso is the complete opposite as the guy never gets the whistle for playing UFC fighter on the opposing team’s star player.
It’s just complete dogshit to watch. That is the truth
Don’t listen to bill simmons. He’s been watching the Celtics shoot hundreds of 3s per game all year, he literally doesn’t know what driving to the basket and playing aggressively looks like.
Referees will inevitably miss calls, but it’s better to overlook a genuine foul than to mistakenly call one where contact was insufficient.
So annoying to hear how playoff basketball is different and more physical and then you have this dude getting +1 every drive.
Donovan Mitchell ?
What happened to the Trae Young/James Harden rule they made a couple of years ago?
Where you can’t jump 2 feet into someone to get rewarded with Free Throws (where it isn’t a nomal shot).
Thought I turned on a game to watch Basketball, but it was pathetic how SGA was just out there trying to bump people to have a solo Free Throw Contest.
Hey NBA, that’s not Basketball.
If they are going to call it anyway wolves should lay him out every time.
My Dad is a big OKC fan so I want to not hate them so we can bs about basketball. SGA is unwatchable basketball. He does so many things well that his need to initiate contact then flail like he got shot kills my interest. I know he doesn’t need to do it to be effective and refs just let it continue for reasons I can’t figure out.
Now Minnesota has to gameplan a defense that can’t be at all physical while OKC defenders blur the line between basketball and wrestling more every game.
Agreed… after watching the Warriors/Rockets series, how can anyone even justify this? It’s just a completely different game being called for him than the rest of the league in the playoffs
Yes and also the Wolves were dogshit last night so it’s weird that this is getting so much attention after a game that wasn’t decided by the whistles at all
I mean if you’re gonna get called for a foul for breathing on him might as well start getting super physical
First time I’ve really tried to watch another team play other than my home team. First bucket for OKC was a free throw and set a bad precedent. Even though TWolves were being absolutely mauled in the paint and getting the ball stripped they weren’t getting calls.
Stopped watching after SGA fell to the ground and Wolves challenged the play just so OKC can get the ball back regardless. Was not fun watching OKC getting soft calls left and right while getting away with murder on defense. Hope Wolves win the series, I just can’t stand this OKC teams softness it’s like watching embiid play as a point guard.