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[Saba Sports News] Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will be eager to put Saturday night’s performance behind him.
The Oklahoma City Thunder suffered their worst loss of the season in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals, getting blown out 143-101 by the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center in Minneapolis.
With a chance to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the series, the Thunder instead collapsed — trailing by 20 after the first quarter and scoring just 41 points by halftime.
Their series lead now sits at 2-1 heading into Monday’s pivotal Game 4, also in Minnesota.
Adding insult to injury, Gilgeous-Alexander was mocked by the home crowd during the second quarter while shooting free throws.
With the Timberwolves already leading 56-29, fans at Target Center chanted a stinging three-word jab, “Free throw merchant!”
The insult, which implies that Gilgeous-Alexander overly relies on drawing fouls rather than creating clean offense, has gained traction — especially after ESPN’s Doris Burke used the same phrase during Game 1.
The taunt reflects growing criticism from some fans frustrated with the MVP runner-up’s foul-drawing tendencies.
Gilgeous-Alexander, who led the NBA in scoring this season at 32.7 points per game, was held to just 14 points on 4-of-13 shooting and attempted only four free throws — far below his norm.
Road playoff environments are never friendly, but with frustration building around his style of play, the chants in Minnesota were probably inevitable. Now, Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder will look to bounce back and regain control of the series.