David Adelman believes Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is benefiting from the referees being lenient and inconsistent toward him.
The Oklahoma City Thunder came back in Game 4 to once again tie up their series with the Denver Nuggets. The two sides are back to square one now.
Unlike their Game 2 win, the Thunder genuinely had to fend off the Nuggets for most of the game. The fear Shai Gilgeous-Alexander admitted heading into Game 2 must have been multiplied today.
After the end of Game 3, Gilgeous-Alexander was smiling, which he explained was to not show he was rattled or gotten to by fans.
While Cason Wallace earned the praise of Kendrick Perkins, David Adelman decided to ask questions of the Thunder, specifically their star man.
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David Adelman spoke in his post-game press conference about Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the officiating in this series.
He praised Shai for his ability to draw fouls, but in the same breath criticized the referees for not allowing the Nuggets to guard him with the same physicality that he uses on the offensive end.
“You hope there is a give and take. If Shai’s allowed to use his off arm, which he’s very good at, you hope that they’ll allow us to at least have some impact with his body. It goes both ways.”
“The guy is so hard to guard, regardless. I thought Christian did a great job late-game up and away, showing the referees that his hands were not in there.”
“Because he is a foul artist and an amazing player. That’s one of the big things, you can’t just let him and Jalen stand at the free-throw line the whole game.”
Read More: David Adelman explains what the Nuggets did differently to contain Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in Game 3
It feels as though, in this series, the Nuggets have been very inconsistent when it comes to containing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
In Game 3, they did a brilliant job in limiting him, both while shooting the ball, and from getting to the free-throw line.
But tonight, they let him get 25 points and shoot 12 free throws. If the Nuggets want any chance of competing in Game 5, they cannot allow this to happen again.
The key against Shai is to force him into difficult shots outside of his preferred mid-range attempts. If the Nuggets do that, then they have a chance.
