Recently, Timberwolves coach Chris Finch seemingly outed himself as a strong supporter of the "free throw merchant" moniker bestowed upon OKC Thunder star, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
At least, that's what his post-game comments following Minnesota's latest win over Oklahoma City seem to suggest.
During his after-hours media session, the headman voiced his displeasure about playing this Thunder squad in 2024-25, claiming it to be a "frustrating" matchup because "they foul all the time."
However, this is far from the most notable quote from his presser, as he would also find himself going after OKC's superstar guard by proclaiming "you can't really touch Shai," otherwise the officiating team will blow the whistle and send him to the charity stripe.
Since Finch dropped these remarks, many fans and media pundits have come out of the woodwork to share their takes on the topic. What should be to the delight of Thunder fans, just recently a few former NBA veterans publicly came to the defense of Gilgeous-Alexander, as they quickly pointed out the hypocrisy of the Wolves coach's complaints.
Chris Finch has no leg to stand on with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander slander
In a February 25 edition of FanDuel's Run it Back, former 17-year veteran Lou Williams revealed that it was he and his teammates who taught Shai Gilgeous-Alexander "how to draw fouls" during his one-year stint with the LA Clippers back in 2018-19, calling it "a game within a game."
That said, though he acknowledged that Finch "should be frustrated with this," he strongly believes that the Wolves coach would be singing a completely different tune if they had the guard's skills within their arsenal.
"He wouldn't complain like this if he had Shai as one of his guys. It's a game inside of the game. If you can get an easy six-to-ten points a game on the free throw line and you know how to do it, by all means use that to your advantage," Williams said.
Fellow commentator and ex-nine-year pro, Chandler Parson, would go on to take things a step further by reminding people that Finch, himself, used to be an assistant on the Rockets (2011-16), a team that, when led by a prime James Harden, regularly ranked within the top-five in free throws, with the All-Star, specifically, leading the league in attempts in three of their four years together.
"He's been around this before... He wasn't mad then, don't you dare be mad now," Parsons said.
As the response to his comments suggests, Finch's vocalized frustrations are not only seen as hypocritical but, frankly, a tad exaggerated.
On the season, the Thunder cornerstone ranks second in the league in free throw attempts with 8.9 per game.
While this may seem like a generous average on the surface, when taking into account the fact that he leads the league in drives by a sizable margin (1,141, 113 more than the second-place Jalen Brunson) there's a strong case to be made that SGA may not even be getting the amount of calls he deserves.
Either way, a player's ability to get to the free throw line is not only a skill but, as Williams alluded to, something that's seen by those around the league as "a game within the game."
As the folks at Run it Back seem to be suggesting, Chris Finch's comments may be a sign of jealousy more than anything else.