[Highlight] Jay Williams says he can’t root for the Thunder because of the foul baiting: “As a fan of the game, I just want to see the game respected. There are times where I watch OKC play, I don’t feel like they respect the process of the game.”
Since it hasn’t already been said (in this thread), but the NBA could stop this if they really wanted to. Just truly enforce the flopping rule. Once players know it’s not going to be called, they won’t do it.
Why can FIBA and the Olympics do it?
It’s just better to watch their basketball games.
Seeing NBA players do that foul baiting shit and not get called was just a breath of fresh air.
It’s so ridiculous seeing the NBA – the league with the absolute best players in the world – have worse officiating…
when a WC or the olympics come around and i really watch something else thats not the NBA (i dont watch the euroluege daily tbh), its uncanny how much better the actual game is, i love it, i get the nba is an entertainment first and basketball second, but they could make a better compromise.
My best friend said it best when we were watching okc - sas the other day, after a foul call he told me: ‘ If i call that foul on a pick up game, you would call me a bitch’.
Legit, imagine playing pickup and getting called for those fouls lol nba softer than your average pickup
You see how they beat up CC in the wnba last year?
The NBA is softer than the W.
I’m surprised the game doesn’t devolve into chaos more often. If they’re going to call BS fouls on ticky-tack contact you might as well make them count and legitimately put them on the ground. Not necessarily saying to send in the goon squad to get flagrant 2s but if the whistle is going to be blown no matter what, you’ve got 6 fouls, use them.
That’s the problem. They call so much soft shit that the standard for a flagrant 1 and 2 has also become way softer than it used to be.
The thing that the NBA forgot is that the entertainment IS basketball lol.
i mean, i get it, i agree with you, but my brother went to the US a while ago and they went to a orlando - bucks game, he knows almost nothing about basketball, his wife and my niece know nothing, and they all told me it was an amazing experience, and i get it, maybe they could make the basketball matter more in the playoffs at least lol
Team USA at the Olympics the other year (where Steph went nuts in the finale) was by far the most fun basketball I’ve ever watched.
Not just because of the talent, but the way the game was played.
Because the refs for those sports aren’t the NBA refs betting on games
Betting is not the reason for calling all of the flopping shit fouls. I agree there are probably corrupt refs but something else is happening here and Silver needs to so something to stop it.
There was almost a full year (if not two) where Chris Paul did the stop for no reason (other than to draw a foul) when in open court to let a trailing defender bump into him ( full on or one shoulder/arm).
Then everyone started doing it, because it was a free foul, maybe free throws if in bonus.
And it went on way too long before the league finally agreed with most fans and said “this isnt natural, its a shit play, someone could get hurt, it hurts the game, we wont reward it”
And players stopped doing it for awhile.
The league could stop the unnecessary and exaggerated flopping in less than 2 weeks if they wanted to…but I swear they think it is actually better* for business when fans have more things to get angry and/or bitch about.
Its so frustrating. And it makes an otherwise likeable guy (like sga) and potentially likeable small market story/team build (okc) completely unwatchable (to me).
Yeah it’s not OLYMPICS BROUGHT TO YOU BY FANDUELS. All these weird ass shooting motions look like an interpretive dance than hooping
You also have to deal with refs from different countries, You got an Eastern Euro or Italian Ref?? Its gonna be a blood bath that game, they not blowing the whistle for nothing.
Nah, because the league want a long series. Thunders getting whooped 2-0 at home gonna crash the rating. More games = league makes more money, which is a conflict of interest with calling the game the right way.
FIBA and WC doesn’t care, everyone have 1 chance.
ikr, FIBA and Olympics are actually fun to watch because it’s actual basketball
Not foul baiting flopping bs every play
Agreed. Sometimes I wonder what the game would look like if the refs weren’t employees OF the NBA.
The amount of engagement they get on this stuff far outweighs what they would if they fixed the problem
That type of engagement isn’t helpful long term. Game views have been on the decline for a couple of seasons
People swear up and down that they don’t watch the games, but yet… this rhetoric is way up and ratings are higher than ever.
Playoff ratings this year are way up
Which has nothing to do with the quality of basketball nor any engagement surrounding OKC/fouls/etc. It’s because of increased availability of games + a change in the way viewers are counted.
Bingo and that’s all Adam “watch the highlights” Silver cares about, engagement.
Agreed. That’s why I’m at the acceptance stage of this process…ha. I’m no longer holding my breath on whether they’ll address it. Same goes for traveling. This is the NBA now.
They could literally clean everything up in like two weeks (of the regular season) but they choose not to. These players are elite and can adapt very quickly. Two things are needed:
Enforce the flopping rules so you get an escalating fine and a technical after the game. You get like 5 flopping techs and you get an unpaid suspension. That shit would clean up really quick.
Stop the offense initiated fouls. If I’m defending a guy and he plows into me after a gather, or throws his arms into mine when I’m not even in his area, that’s not a shooting foul unless I cross in front of him. If you’re allowing push offs (which I’m generally fine with) then you can’t allow this soft foul shit. Either that, or you keep the soft fouls and call fouls on the bump/shove and shoot, but that would create 100 fouls per game.
With the flopping, I play like 3x per week, and maybe once per month a player will fall to the ground after shooting (either jumpers or drives), yet in the NBA it feels like every second or third shot. And sure, you can’t compare rec play to the NBA, but 0.5% to like 40% difference? That’s a crazy difference and doesn’t account for the players just being better.
I like your proposal here - completely agree the NBA incentives are to take advantage of the refs these days.
Also it’s clear the falling to the ground is intentional because it’s only when a defender is within arms length - the only time a player should go to the ground on a 3 is if he’s bumped.
And the “foul them cuz the refs can’t call every foul” defense.
Thats honestly the biggest issue to me.
I think their reaction at fouls being called on them is worse. Just own it
This and the flopping is the issue for me. I’m a Pistons fan and the Bad Boys and the 04 Pistons obviously played hyper physical defense that at times crossed over into being too physical. But you would never see Rip Hamilton or John Salley or Rodman whining for foul calls or flopping all over the court like a fish out of water. Play physical defense but don’t act like a bunch of whiny babies when that same physicality comes back around.
Yes, most of the physical defensive minded teams expected a slug fest in the mud. That was because they were well prepared and equipped to handle that. Flopping takes away from that toughness and im gonna beat you mentality. You’re literally relying on the refs to save you when you flop. What happens when the refs decide to not call it.
You get game 1 when the refs actually do their jobs correctly. An awesome game where either team could have won. Because the Thunder are still *that good* even without the foulbaiting BS. But when it works it pushes them over the edge.
Brother, those pistons absolutely flopped/sold fouls. Bill Lambier would do literally anything to win. They did not whine to the refs as much as modern players, for sure.
Uhhhhh, Laimbeer is an all time flopper. Where did this notion that the bad boy pistons never flopped come from?
99% of people here weren’t even alive to see the Pistons or MJ play so they run with these made up nostalgic fantasies from YouTube clips
I thought it was so hilarious their fans were chanting “Refs you suck” in Game 1.
It happened in Game 2 as well…
They also chanted it in game 2
Of course they did. I was at an outdoor bar without the sound on but it’s comical at this point
It’s honestly shocking how tone deaf those fans are
They’re from Oklahoma. Not the brightest bulbs
Bulbs aren’t even on. They’re dead last in education.
C’mon now. Every home crowd in the association does the same.
You’d think it’s these people’s first time watching sports
I think this is the biggest issue to me. It extends to every player who does the “AYYY” or throws their arms up after every single uncalled disturbance of their arm hair or every time the whistle gets blown on their own fouls.
And the constant finger twirling for a challenge
Same. The defense is so much worse to me. Just watch Wemby off ball for a few possessions and you can see that they are constantly hugging him, holding his arms, etc
Then when he gets the ball they just straight up slap at his arms constantly and it doesnt get called.
And they do that to every player but of course its more intense on the star players.
It reminds me of how Steph can get bear hugged off ball and that’s somehow okay, but now its the entire Thunder roster doing it to the entire opposing team’s roster.
Let’s not paint the warriors as the patron saints of ethical basketball.
I don’t see why this is an issue honestly. Call the fucking fouls and foul them out. If you don’t call the fouls then might as well have the game played without the refs.
Caruso is not a star. Dort is not a star. Hartenstein is not a star. Chet is like 1⁄3 of a star. You can’t say no one will watch the game if you foul them out.
If they start setting records for foul outs then I’d actually seek out thunder games to watch. That shit would be hilarious
Exactly. What hartenstein was doing the other night to wemby grabbing and holding him to prevent help defense is in essence cheating. It’s one thing to play hard and up to the line of breaking the rules and sometimes going over. But intentionally stepping well over the line and trying to get away with it as your strategy or game plan is basically just cheating.
Do the refs need to see it and call it? Absolutely. But sports are also about each team respecting the rules and at least trying to follow them, not trying as hard as they can to get away with rule breaking.
Not to mention, Chet deliberately stepping on wembys foot
Everyone does it but it’s usually called at least sometimes. KAT got called for it like 3 times this series already and I’ve been so annoyed by him lmao.
I do like that they’re letting the players play physical defense in the Spurs Thunder series but sometimes it’s too much.
They could if the NBA had the balls. Kick guys out for playing the game wrong. Fouling out is a rule for a reason.
Flood the zone baby!
I’ll do you one, they praise their rough and physical playoff defense with the pulling and cheating and hand checking, but then flop and cry for fouls as soon as it happens to them. Beyond stupid
Hartenstein had 4 fouls midway through the 3rd. What he did from then to the end of the game is considered misdemeanor assault and battery in 38 states. Also, SGA hit the deck on all but 2 FG attempts. But guys… he doesnt foul bait.
Legion of Boom mentality
I understand this in theory but … why couldn’t they call every foul? At least the blatant holding on ones that Hartenstein was committing?
Call it every time he does it, after four quick fouls he’s going to stop right? And if not, he’s surely stopping after the sixth
Pretty simple solution. Call every foul and watch that shit stop immediately after. Lol
Everybody in the league sees it. Yet one fan base thinks it’s hallucinated outrage. Even the role players are trained floppers.
I dont blame the thunder or their fans…I blame the league for allowing it
You can absolutely blame the fans for being intentionally obtuse about what is happening.
fan is short for fanatic…so i can be annoyed by them and think they are wrong, but I understand them blindly supporting their team.
That’s such a played out cop out lol
I cant stand when jalen does it. Not that hard to say.
Whole crowd of idiots chanting “ref you suck” for not calling a flagrant on a shoulder bump.
What are you talking about? The players should also be held accountable lol
You’ve got to remember that these are just simple farmers. These are people of the land. The common clay of the new West. You know… morons.
yeah you can blame both
Yeah 100% of a situation of you can hate the player and the game. If we assume the absolute best intentions in the referees, the referees “shouldn’t” be calling these flops but at the speed of the game at this point, it’s absolutely also the player’s faults for trying to trick the refs on every single play.
I absolutely blame the thunder for being shameless flopping scumbags to a man. Have some dignity
Yeah what the fuck is this passing the blame bullshit?
No I absolutely blame them. Other teams don’t do this.
That Oklahoman op-ed comparing the Thunder to Israel never should have been retracted. It was perfect
That was real?
Yep
god I wish there was archived version somewhere
there is!
https://archive.ph/bLJtX
Thank you for this.
Hahahaha WOW.
Oh my fucking god in heaven, what is that abomination.
eta. Holy fuck I can’t
And yet reaching a mountaintop has a strange way of generating dislike.
“young, disciplined, strategically crafted organization, impeccably drafted and relentlessly adherent to a culture of selflessness and community, suddenly finds itself resented. The greater the Thunder’s success becomes, the more critics seem determined to diminish it or even root for its demise.”
LOL 😂 😂
Holy fucking shit that article is absolutely the most unaware thing
I looked at the archived version. Here’s the author bio (he’s apparently Jewish):
“Eitan Reshef, a native Oklahoman, is a Chicago-based entrepreneur, investor and former advertising agency CEO.”
Ad agency CEO. That’s all you need to know. The lowest of the low scum of the earth.
Didn’t know about it until this comment and just read it.
Holy shit, nothing could encapsulate the delusion more than comparing yourself to a genocidal state and claiming to be the victim.
The Supersonics were promised to Oklahoma 3,000 years ago
you know its fucked up when the players start flopping around more than in soccer. what they do in soccer is actually slightly believable, the shit you see in the nba is wild
In soccer you can’t even flop for pens or red cards anymore without automatic review (obviously this is not perfect, but it’s still pretty good). NBA you get two challenges a night then it’s open season for the other team to do what they want
The role players are actually trained hitmen who were signed just to injure star players
It’s both, ok? We all see it.
You’d be crying a different tune if the Spurs did this to Thunder stars. There’s a reason why the bad boys Pistons are infamous and disliked….decades later.
The only people that hate the Bad Boy Pistons are bulls/MJ fans
The only people who didn’t hate the Bad Boy Pistons are Pistons fans and people who weren’t alive at the time, is closer to the truth. They were a widely hated team.
Blazers fan here, Portland lost to the dirty bad boys in ‘90 and they’re equally hated here.
Pull up the Alex Caruso tape pre vs post Thunder
Foul baiting isn’t the right term. Foul baiting is when a player uses awkward or unnatural actions for the purpose of hunting fouls. It’s hard to watch because it often results in disjointed offense where a player is barely even attempting to generate an open shot, but the term suggests they are drawing actual fouls.
What OKC is doing is flopping. They are pretending to be fouled when they are not. Flopping is not simply hard to watch, it is cheating.
tbf they’re doing both, sometimes on the same play.
Watching Hartenstein hook Wemby, spin and then fall over is a perfect encapsulation of everything wrong with their team
It’d be easier to swallow if calls were consistent. Not some preferential treatment or historical data on the player.
The act of playing for the foul is just so terrible to watch. We should never reward players who are not first and foremost trying to get the ball in the basket.
Some fans will point to games where known foulbaiters have a low number of free throws. But if you are actually watching the game of guys like Brunson and Shai, you can see how the threat of foulbaiting causes the defenders to guard them less intensely, allowing them more space to work.
Defenders should be able to contest without worrying that they will “foul” then the offensive player lunges unnaturally into them.
Watching Shai fall down slowly after every shot is just embarrassing to see as any type of sports fan, stuff is pathetic. Looks like a baby giraffe.
Foul baiting is basketball moves with the intent to get fouled.
OKC flops, which is non-basketball moves with the intent to create the appearance of a foul.
This is the problem
Yes, this. Heck, old school guys all tried to get fouls while trying to score.
SGA tries to fake a foul while only sorta trying to score. And seemingly with some of the worst acting ever. And the refs reward whatbis obviously a non-foul.
Sometimes the “attempt to score” looks like Wemby and CP3 at the skills competition, “basket’s over there somewhere”. Rewarding that is seriously egregious.
Shai does that, though. There’s nothing natural about falling down for no reason and flailing like a dying fish on every single shot he takes.
He’s at late stage satire levels of comically pathetic flailing and Gumby like collapse after nearly EVERY fga these days lol. Like, it’s sort of almost inconceivably preposterous the whole thing
Isn’t flopping just an unnatural action to get a foul call? Seems like it’s just arguing semantics
foul baiting is trying to trick your opponent into fouling you
flopping is trying to trick the ref into believing you were fouled
This is basically what all basketball fans think who aren’t biased Thunder fans
Is Windhorst the designated OKC defender? I usually like his takes but his radical loyalty to the thunder is wild to me. On his podcast a few months ago he was trying to describe the beauty of Oklahoma City/what there is to do and I was like how much are they paying this guy lol
I don’t think Windhorst has ever actually played ball. I don’t think he’s been physically active. Might be he can’t tell what flopping is cause he’s never experienced playing a sport
Idk for me his physical shape doesn’t really have anything to do with it. His time reporting on LeBron and others would have made him plenty aware of how the game is played. It’s just that since OKC became a thing, he is nonstop defending them and I don’t get it. I think he genuinely loves both the team and the city or he’s getting paid a bunch by their PR
Windhorst clearly is being told what to say by ESPN. I’ve seen his entire line of thinking change this year in how he talks about the Cavs. He’s a homer, and has been since he grew up there. He goes on the Cleveland sports radio stations every week to talk about the Cavs. Yet suddenly in the Pistons series he was saying things completely different than he’d been saying all year, and now going into the Knicks series.
I think its because the thunder are good. I don’t think windy cares about quality of the game, he knows that shae is MVP and other players on this team are going to be in the league a long time and he wants to keep on their good side because they could become valuable relationships in the future. Windy isn’t an idiot but I think he cares more about maintaining those relationships than about bball at all.
Yeah and I’ve seen a lot of people push back on the “complaining” but it’s kind of hard not to notice. There’s just so much embellishment on nearly every play. And as a fan who also plays, it’s not fun to watch. For example, nobody plays like this in pickup unless you want to get clowned on. It’s just such a disconnect from the sport I love and the product on the court when you see this stuff.
And I understand it’s not entirely the players fault. They’re taking advantage of the system they’re given. We’d probably all do it if it led to success. However, it’s a pretty clear problem and makes for an ugly product. The NBA needs to fix it and, quite frankly, it seems like a pretty solvable issue if the NBA actually wanted to end this.
I was literally telling my wife this yesterday while showing videos of all the shady shit the thunder we’re doing. I’ve played for 30 years now, and once I really started playing pick up in my early 20s, the only time I’m calling a foul is if I’m hit in the head or you literally knocked me to the ground. Playing in leagues and for the school, I get that there’s more to it than that, but watching these guys flop around and playing like pussies really ruins it for me. Then on top of that, you have the announcers circle jerking all over SGA. I’m embarrassed to watch it, they are professionals, and they’re cheating the system which is unprofessional on my opinion.
You’d get clowned off the court if you fell after shooting as much as SGA did in game 2
I’m a neutral fan rooting for the Spurs and I don’t have an issue with anything the Thunder is doing.
Wild to me. But I support voicing a different opinion
Getting a bit hard on this sub. Everyone just HATES the Thunder. I find both teams “likable.” I went into this series just wanting good games (which I’m getting) but I do find myself rooting for the Spurs. There will always be a Steve Kerr and Popp connection.
This is an Adam Silver problem, not a Thunder problem. The entire NBA is a mess right now. Tanking, flopping, load management, the regular season effort given by players. Worst era of NBA in my lifetime.
Oversaturation of gambling issues.
Silver is desperate for the next marketable face of the NBA to replace Curry and LeBron and had put his money on SGA, so the Thunder are his darlings and nothing will change.
Too bad money doesn’t determine the next face of the league — the people do. And it’s clearly Wemby
Omelette du Fromage
Crazy cause iHart is going to seriously injure his actual biggest next cash cow. I’m convinced he owes Shay’s parents money or something lol
No it’s also a Thunder problem, I hate people excusing them just because the broader system is also a problem.
Fuck teams afraid to just play ball.
And the fact that it’s successful basically means that once one team does it, you either copy them or give them an advantage.
Right now, Wemby is choosing the latter - ethical basketball. I’m not sure he’ll reach his goal unless he changes. I hope that’s not the case, but that seems to be what the NBA wants him to do.
The arm holding is the worst thing that has happened to this game and I feel like harden started it. Offensive players using their off ball arm to hold and lock the defenders to draw a foul. Off ball arm locking to prevent movement on both offense and defense. And the refs simply can’t watch each matchup on the floor in enough detail to determine in real time who is at fault.
It’s ridiculous how many times a game you see two guys tangled and both throw up their hands and look at the ref to see who it is gonna be on. I feel like that just wasn’t a thing back even just a few years ago. At least not so routine. Harden started it and others have taken up the mantle.
Harden definitely isn’t the first to do anything, he’s definitely one of the first to exploit for a whistle. It’s like all of Kobe’s rip through plays.
Chris Paul was bad about it too, but again not to the extent of my glorious king James harden
It’s both
No one is forcing OKC to be a dirty team
And the league should work to prevent exploitation of rules
As much as I love iHart I’m deeply disappointed in his play recently. Do better Isaiah.
Load management feels like more of an issue of too many games tho
Didn’t he say Wemby’s foul the last series was not a big deal?
The idiots on here are eating it up because its against okc. Its not as if castle head flings every drive to the rim and he is allowed to commit murder on shai on defense.
Jay Williams is a first class dumbass and people are glomming on this take because most of the media is not supporting of their narratives about this series.
Talking about respect. Like how he respected his contract with his employer? Crashing like an idiot on a motorcycle. They didn’t even have to pay his ass but they did anyway. Screwed the Bulls over. Whatever Jay.
What foul? Do you mean the flagrant he got tossed for? If iHart got fouled out by the half like he should have, nobody would be angry about this low brow ‘basketball’ OKC plays
that’s not disproving what he’s saying? nothing you said changes the fact that he said Wemby’s elbow on Naz Reid wasn’t a big deal
Engagement bait. Now I’m convinced this is a media campaign.
Seriously what are we doing here
The fact that people are watching First Take and clapping like seals is all you need to know.
This “fan of the game” / “respect basketball” BS is so stupid.
It’s not like the Spurs are clean themselves – Castle flops like crazy, Wemby flops too, etc. They’re grabbing SGA all game. And even if Wemby’s elbow was a 1 time thing, it was the dirtiest action in this playoffs. Yes, the Thunder/SGA flop and foul bait a lot, but it’s getting overblown. And often when SGA falls on shots, it looks more like protecting himself rather than foul baiting, so I don’t buy that either.
Overall, this narrative and framing of the Spurs vs. Thunder as “good vs. evil” and “ethical vs. non-ethical” is just stupid.
I’m not surprised to see Jay Williams saying it, though. As much as I wish this pro-SA/anti-OKC circlejerk were just an online thing, plenty of people I know in real life are on that train too, so it’s a very real phenomenon. I get why people don’t like OKC – I don’t like them either – but the hate train has become beyond excessive and is out of control at this point. Ironically, this sub – which generally despises talking heads – is eating this up… I’m sure ESPN realized that this talking point was going to hit like crack.
Been seeing a surprising amount of Warriors fans sticking up for this OKC squad. Im guessing you remember a thing or two about being the most hated team in the league lmao.
As a Raps fan I too remember being hated by r/nba. Those were the good old days.
It is they shoot the least amount of free throws out of the remaining playoff teams. People really can’t think for themselves in today’s world.
When I see the Thunder play, it’s literally how every team plays for the past 10 years. You guys over react to it for some odd reason, where was this energy for the 2020-2024 lakers where they were getting 40 free throws a game and still lost?
If you went to go play pickup ball and there was a guy who initiated contact on every possession and then flopped and called a foul every time.. that guy would get his ass kicked or no one would play with him. Yet in the pros we give them a trophy
Don’t say that to this sub.
Most haven’t played pickup ball
My apologies I forgot where I was
This is the highest form of pandering
Call the game by the rules. I’d pay may money to watch a game end in the middle of the second quarter because both teams ran out of players.
The foul baiting argument is blown out of proportion lol
It is. I’ve watched the NBA for 20+ years now and OKC is far from the most egregious team I’ve seen getting away with this shit. The crying on this sub lately has been so annoying
They push these narratives on big platforms because it gets interactions from the smooth brains out there. It’s clearly working
Cause we have eyes lol
True
I love his point. It’s legal, and it’s effective but it’s not inspirational or entertaining. I can recognize that something works and still not root for it.
Here’s an analogy: Frivolous lawsuits are legal and effective. And everyone hates it and those lawyers are the scum of the earth.
So are the Thunder.
….no notes. This is exactly like that.
need a rule about posting 1st take on here…oh wait this is just espn these days.
The discourse around this is so annoying and it’s really why NBA coverage is among the worst of the professional leagues. The Thunder aren’t doing anything more egregious that was Prime Harden or CP3 did. D Wade and Kobe used to get defenders to jump in the air and just jump into them. Flopping/foul baiting has existed forever. OKC isn’t doing anything new.
Good ball has been played but the discourse would have you thinking OKC is doing MMA on defense and ballet on offense. Do they play physical and sell? Yes. Is it a disrespect to the game and the end of basketball? No.
Both teams clearly have foul baiting tendencies, I can’t believe the discourse on both sides has become this disingenuous and ridiculous. The fact that these two juggernauts will inevitably be the top two for the foreseeable future is bleak for anyone trying to have an honest discussion of the sport.
There are folks here unironically supporting ESPN but will be there to hit back at them when they say something they don’t like. They ask who the network is meant to appeal to but it’s clearly the lapdogs who engage and agree with this nonsense (yes, you).
I wonder if the folks here agreeing with Jay realize that they are the ones being pandered to by ESPN. ESPN knew this talking point would hit like crack among the peanut gallery. Yall are eating it up, just like they wanted.
This shit is manufactured and overblown
I disagree with what windhorst said. I think Shae would be better served by staying on his feet and going for the rebound or getting back on defense or back into position to shoot if the center grabs him a board. Laying on the floor is just bad fundamentally as well as ethically
Man Wemby falls more than anyone
How dare you blaspheme the holy righteous name of Wemby. Enjoy that elbow you’re about to catch. He has a right to defend himself you know.
They literally just made another post comparing data on flopping and falling down lol wemby was so far behind shai
Lol bro bet the house on the Spurs
It’s not just the thunder…it’s happening all over the league. They just do it more. We all see the incessant flopping. NBA let that shit happen instead of calling techs like they said they would
The thunder are on a different level
There are teams that flop. There are teams that play physical defense.
Thunder is one of the only teams in the league who are notorious for both.
Decade later and I still genuinely can’t believe Brian Windhorst managed to make a career off the back of creepily following LeBron around
I don’t follow NBA writ large closely enough these days to know if he’s any good as a pundit, but I feel like every time I see him in a clip he’s giving the most “total garbage but *technically* not totally incorrect” takes like this
Hate to break it to to you JWill but all 4 teams do the same bs
The NBA has turned into international football levels of ref manipulation and it’s not fun to watch
The thing with okc is that they are already so good in terms of roster construction. The flopping just shows us that they rather take the easy way out or the path of least resistance to win the game. Its a smack in the face towards the fans and actual people who watch the game. OKC plays a style of basketball that is catered to box score watchers and people who only watch the highlights.
Unwatchable
This subreddit is cooked
It’s basically the OKC culture
What is the “process of the game”? No team respects it
Losing while respecting the game is still losing.
Win at all costs.
Dont like the flopping? Do something about it.
Dawg you shouldn’t be watching the NBA then.
When the counter argument is basically to shrug and say “yeah, but they win games” then, in my opinion, you admit the game is broken in that area and you fix it. The NHL has rules against embellishment, soccer gives out yellow cards for embellishment, the NBA needs to take steps to curb the foul baiting. There is only one fan base that embraces that style of play and that is because “you guys are just mad you aren’t winning’
Shrugging, saying it wins games and then smuggly acting like that settles the argument is almost as infuriating as the foul baiting itself.
Shoot, flop, then take your free throws or cry to the refs is atrocious basketball.
this is so fucking boring holy shit you motherfuckers should be sick of this . We’re seeing the best series in years and this is what it’s being boiled down to
I think we just need to sticky a crying thread in r/nba for you guys. The amount of threads you post about this is asinine.
They posting Getup clips like we are supposed to give a fuck 🤣
Speaking for the people - he’s saying what we are all thinking
Finally someone from the mainstream media is calling it out. It seems like they’re scared to do it for some reason
Thunder have a real Houston Astros culture situation going.
Why would J Williams not support his own team?
This the same guy that tweeted congratulations to Ime Udoka for becoming the “first head coach of color for the Celtics,” while forgetting that they’d hired Bill Russell—the literal first Black head coach in NBA history—and then tried to claim his account was “hacked” when everyone called him out on it?
lmao thats your response huh
This criticism doesn’t even address the issue lol
What that got to do with the Thunder flopping?
Yes. Exactly. 100%
Free Throws Drawn per game during 2026 playoffs
Knicks 26.25
Cavs 25.67
Spurs 24.57
OKC 22.83
Please tell me how OKC is the the worst at foul baiting, but also simultaneously getting significantly less foul calls than all the other remaining teams in the playoffs?
They are 11th out of 16 for all playoff teams.
If foul baiting is how they win games, they’re doing it worse than every other team and still winning.
NBA players have been flopping for years. Lazy take.