While the OKC Thunder watch the NBA Finals from the couch, the San Antonio Spurs find themselves in a hole after a Game 1 loss to the Knicks.
Though they fell short, they maintained supremacy in a key area. It's an advantage they have been tapping into all postseason, and it's something that the Thunder have received immense amounts of scrutiny for.
They shot 25 free throws to New York's 18 despite intentionally sending them to the line in the final seconds of the game.
The reality is the Spurs have boasted a favorable whistle since the beginning of the playoffs. They have had more trips to the line in every series, and out of their 19 playoff games, they have been on the wrong side of the free-throw disparity in just five of them.
Yet there has been nothing but crickets regarding the issue.
Thunder can't seem to pass the free-throw torch
No matter how often San Antonio goes to the line, the NBA world refuses to crown them as the real free-throw merchants. Apparently, that title is destined to remain in Oklahoma City.
The only problem is that the Thunder rank 11th out of 16 playoff teams in free-throw attempts. The regular season was no different, as they ranked 17th in the league.
Spearheaded by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC has been subject to unmitigated scrutiny regarding foul calls, both online and in opposing locker rooms. It has gotten so out of hand that head coaches have spent significant portions of their postgame interviews discussing the topic.
After nearly every Thunder win, social media walls would light up with the latest SGA flop with the same tired narrative attached to it.
The lambasting arguably reached its height in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals, when every fan in the Frost Bank Center chanted "flopper" whenever Shai went to the line.
The title hardly makes sense, as most great scorers in history have averaged as many, if not more, free throws per game than the reigning MVP, and he has been defended by current and former players alike as of late.
But all is still quiet on the San Antonio front, as no one appears to question the "ethics" by which Victor Wembanyama and his Spurs squad get their points.
Even when guard Stephon Castle openly admitted to selling calls, no one seemed to bat an eye.
Perhaps if they win the championship, the world will begin to turn on them as it did Oklahoma City. But for now, Wemby remains the NBA's golden boy, and the Spurs as a whole seem to be impervious to any kind of scrutiny.
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