Over the past few years, OKC Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has built a reputation as the league's newest free-throw merchant, a label designated for players who rely heavily on their charity-stripe activity to boost their scoring numbers.
Despite the bevy of cases brought against and facts that flat-out disprove such rhetoric, Shai continues to be shrouded in such a label.
Shockingly, however, ahead of Oklahoma City's semifinal series against the Lakers, it seems one of his primary foes, Austin Reaves, is actively looking to shut down this narrative once and for all.
During a recent practice media session, the two-guard was asked about both his and Gilgeous-Alexander's innate ability to draw a whistle.
While he acknowledged that such a topic can be deemed as "tough" to talk about because "everybody blows it out of proportion," when it comes to Gilgeous-Alexander's 9.0 free throw attempts per game in the regular season and 12.3 so far in this year's playoffs, Reaves chalks it up to how "he wants to win and is gonna do whatever it takes to win. If it's shoot 20 free throws, so be it."
Reaves is the latest prominent figure from the sport to indicate the Thunder star's foul-drawing ability as a skill rather than an unethical act, with former NBA guard-turned-analyst Lou Williams noting that his foul-baiting is a direct result of defenses fearing his scoring prowess, saying, "That's why [defenders] respect the head fake" and "why they're running up and trying to guard him the way that they are."
Austin Reaves sings different tune on Thunder star than LeBron James
Reaves' comments stand in stark contrast to his fellow Lakers teammate, LeBron James' take on Gilgeous-Alexander's ability to draw calls.
Back in December, the future Hall of Famer claimed during an episode of the Mind The Game Podcastthat perhaps the best game plan when it comes to stopping the Thunder superstar is to "keep him off the free throw line."
What this sentiment seems to suggest is that Gilgeous-Alexander's greatest on-court weapon is his foul-line scoring which, based on the numbers, is far from the case.
Put the rock in his hands and dare him to buy a bucket, and it's virtually an automatic make with the fact that he ranked first in the league in isolation points (522) and effective field goal percentage (56.4) among those who attempted a minimum of 200 such shots.
On top of this, take away all of his points generated from the foul line this past regular season (equates to 1,577), and Shai still finds himself sporting more total points than elite scoring weapons like Cade Cunningham (1531) and Karl-Anthony Towns (1504).
Without question, Gilgeous-Alexander is far more than a free-throw scorer, and, one way or another, the Lakers will come to this realization in their forthcoming semifinal matchup.
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