For multiple years now, there has been a long-stading narrative surrounding the OKC Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and his plentiful trips to the free-throw line. He's been attacked by many and has been called names like "flopper" and "free-throw merchant" by entire stadiums.
All the while, he and the rest of Thunder camp have remained relatively silent. That is, until general manager Sam Presti unleashed possibly one of the most bulletproof defenses of any player in recent memory.
"We think all the time, or we hear all the time about the things people don't like about the NBA... One, players don't play defense. Shai's a two-way player... Second, all NBA players do is complain, b****, and moan... He's gotten three technical fouls this year - none for complaining... The other thing is load management... Shai plays every night... Next one is, all they do is shoot threes... He's brought the mid-range back to an art form... It's also one of the reasons he gets fouled a lot," Presti said in his first press conference since the end of the season.
Presti wasn't done there. He dropped a pair of cold one-liners, accusing opposing coaches of turning their postgame press conferences into a "bully pulpit" and explaining how Shai is always playing against six defenders (the additional being social media).
He also acknowledged SGA's accessibility, mentioning his proclivity to sign autographs before every game in an age where NBA players tend to distance themselves from fans.
The near-seven-minute tirade sounded straight from the heart of a man who genuinely cares about his star. Hopefully, that passion may change the narrative that has been haunting the two-time MVP.
Thunder GM may have just brought perspective back into the picture
The monologue was every bit sentimental, but it was also well thought out. His bullet-pointed list of the things people dislike about the NBA clearly doesn't fit Gilgeous-Alexander... But it does bring other names to mind that might need to be subjected to more scrutiny.
Lakers star Luka Doncic fits the bill to near perfection. Doncic is widely thought of as a defensive liability, and he might be public enemy number one when it comes to complaining about fouls. In fact, it appears the entire Lakers team has embodied that persona. Despite Luka being injured for the Western Conference Semifinals, the rest of the team, led by fellow guard Austin Reaves, threw up their hands in frustration after every drive as they suffered a sweep at the hands of the Thunder.
Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets might be equally bad when it comes to foul baiting, and the list is not limited to those two. Jaylen Brown, LeBron James, and Draymond Green are just a few more clear examples of players who whine about officiating more than SGA.
Presti's words, as convincing as they were, may not be enough to silence every Shai critic out there. But they were certainly enough to force fans and pundits alike to question whether they are truly focused on the right issues.
Maybe next season, the league can move on from lambasting a player who plays hard and loves his teammates and shift its attention to the players who actually deserve the criticism. There are plenty of egos, bad attitudes, and whiners to go around in the NBA, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander simply isn't one of them.
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