Matthew J.D. Philips

@NateDuncanNBA @jrborman13 I would also suggest this is a build up situation given how the last game was refereed as well. Games in this series had been trending toward out control and kind of manifested in that moment.

I don't think it's about a "bad whistle" overall. In that moment, you feel like you have to swing wildly to get away if they're going to just let a guy grab one of your arms with 2 hands with no call. He's clearly responsible for getting out of control, but I think most refs would feel they could have avoided that situation by not missing the call.

I respect the sentiment but Anthony Edwards doesn't lash out at opponents physically because he gets a bad whistle

@KevinGraySports He makes me feel amused by having people crying about him constantly, tying themselves in knots to point out some league conspiracy to prop him & OKC up, and in general being upset that his/their play is a winning formula. Reminds me of Duncan discourse growing up 😂

The best way I can describe Luka Dončić (besides an absolute playoff soul-snatching killer) is that he makes me FEEL something when I watch him play Whether you love or hate Luka he elicits a reaction; SGA is a great basketball player, but Shai doesn’t make me FEEL anything in that way (he just pisses people off with his foul grifting) there’s no indelible playoff moments that stand out…

@JustEsBaraheni If he does all the same stuff, but dunked on some people every now and then, or any of the other fun to watch stuff I mentioned, nobody would care about the foul stuff honestly. Shai is essentially modern Duncan, in the sense that he has no desire to be on highlight reels

@JustEsBaraheni I think what hurts him is that most of the other guys have spectacular highlights you can point to. Buzzer beaters. Dunks. High flying plays. Flashy passes. Electric long range shooting. When you think of Shai highlights, literally nothing particularly exhilarating comes to mind

Is SGA the only player in NBA history who has a legit claim to Best In The World and NOT be appreciated as such because of the over-indexing on a quality that basically every all-time great has had?

@Generationexp @BarryOnHere So the argument is that the league via the refs are looking to prop up Ajay Mitchell at the expense of... *Checks Notes* ... LeBron James and The Los Angeles Lakers. Is that right? May I ask, to what end?

@BarryOnHere It’s starting to feel like certain players aren’t getting the same calls out there.

Ajay Mitchell gets a better whistle than LeBron James. #Disgusting #Rigged

Hot Take! Most phantom fouls are not meant to fool refs. Players are conditioned to embellish contact or you won't get calls. Players are also most often just getting to spots & using moves they've used 10000x over. More often than not, they're anticipating contact & embellishing

@FlaggMavs What about situations where there's flopping and also a foul? Or is it impossible to flop if a foul occurred, no matter how much you embellished it?

If you want to get rid of flopping the solution is incredibly simple. $10k fine for your first offense $25k fine for your second offense $50k fine for a third offense $100k fine for your fourth offense 3 game suspension for fifth offense Make the NBA watchable again

The NBA's plan is diabolical in it's simplicity: Step 1: Disproportionately call fouls in favor of the revenue driving market Oklahoma City and their Canadian MVP/Star. Step 2: Step 3: Profit! The inventive structure is clear and inexcusable!

@SamQuinnCBS Unless you either want endless reviews, or to do away with touch fouling altogether. These calls are all based on what a referee sees and how they interpret it. You can't legislate that in any meaningful way

@SamQuinnCBS I disagree with the framing generally. Many of these calls are indeed fouls. There aren't as many calls as people are imagining simply aren't fouls that are being called such. I think the complaint is inconsistency. And there's simply no way to legislate that out

JJ's right. Drawing fouls is explicitly a skill. However, I think a lot of fans feel it's a skill the NBA should try to legislate out of the game. It's a bit like tanking in that it's a viable strategy to exploit the rules, so it's on the NBA to make the rules less exploitable. Some players are just naturally going to get to the line more than others through their playing style. Guys who attack the basket should get to the line more than jump shooters. That's fine. But there's a gamesmanship to foul-drawing that I think most fans dislike. The rules shouldn't reward making it look like your defender broke the rules. It's a skill but I'm not sure it should be.

@BarryOnHere He's right! It's obvious to anyone watching that the NBA & their officials are doing everything in their power to artificially prop up The Thunder! They are doing this blatant cheating to the detriment of LeBron James & LA, in favor of 🇨🇦 Shai & Oklahoma City clearly for profit

*taps microphone* It's obvious to anybody who isn't an OKC/SGA supporter that OKC benefits from a massive double standard from the referees. Teams are simply not allowed to play them with the same level of physicality that they are allowed to play against their opponents. This particularly applies to SGA more than anybody else. Everybody focuses on the fouls called, but it's the fouls NOT called that are more impactful. However, there's no stat to track non-calls because it will always be "subjective". This dilemma creates endless arguments. But watching the games, we all see it. OKC doesn't NEED the whistle they get to be a great team, but that whistle does take them to a level of dominance that feels artificial and impossible to fully respect no matter how much they win.

I'm happy he's back in the league.... But man... He should still be in Toronto

@HelloHalima I can see Jamal fitting with Scottie and CMB... But they definitely not getting CMB in a deal

@RaptorsShaq I could see him as a great fit spacing-wise with Scottie and CMB lineups honestly

I’ve seen the mock trades, Jamal Murray is a no for me sorry

@HelloHalima They'll take some combination of BI, IQ, Dick and Poeltl and like it. If we must I could see throwing in a protected 2027 1st Round Pick.

@tomhaberstroh @YahooSports Denver will unequivocally not be getting CMB in any package for Murray. Raptors would be getting Murray to play with Scottie & CMB. I feel pretty confident saying CMB is a Raptors cornerstone along with Scottie, and they'd be more likely to part with future pick(s)

NEW @YahooSports: The Denver Nuggets may have no choice but to trade Jamal Murray to upgrade the weak supporting cast. Here are three trade ideas in the aftermath of Denver’s early exit: sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/tr…

@Orange_n_Blues @tomhaberstroh @YahooSports CMB and RJ for Murray?!

@tomhaberstroh @YahooSports As a Nuggets fan, this needs to happen. The Toronto option is the best by far and seems to be fair to both. CMB would be an ideal fit in Denver.

🔮 If OKC loses to Wemby this year, I wouldn’t be surprised if Jokic ends up there. Gives Denver a real ability to reset with all the assets OKC has and gives OKC the weapon they need to compete w/ Wemby while Shai at height of his powers. A top player that would extend there too

@JustEsBaraheni Would be a great fit shooting/offensively with Scottie and CMB. Would help lineups with the two of them immensely on O

Talk soon

The framing of this is unbelievable. Like you are losing something that no team ever has ever had or been promised. What exactly is any team losing in this situation? Like saying "There's no reason someone should lose their pizza just because they ate all the slices"