New York Knicks coach Mike Brown launched a scathing critique of the officiating following his team’s 115-111 loss to the San Antonio Spurs in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, specifically pointing to a significant disparity in free throw attempts during the second half. The Spurs were awarded 24 free throws in the final two quarters compared to the Knicks’ eight.
"I never thought I’d see that in an NBA Finals game, and I saw it tonight," Brown stated after the Monday night defeat, which cut the Knicks’ series lead to 2-1.
The loss marked the end of New York’s impressive 13-game postseason winning streak and its first defeat in 46 days.
While acknowledging the Spurs’ strong performance and his own team’s shortcomings, Brown insisted that the officiating played a pivotal role in the outcome.
"San Antonio is a great team. They are a great team, OK. It’s going to lower our odds big time, big time, if we play Game 4 and in the second half, they get 24 free-throw attempts to our eight. Maybe we were fouling. Maybe we were fouling. But they fouled, too."
He elaborated on the perceived imbalance: "There were a lot of things that we didn’t do that we did in Game 1 and Game 2," Brown added.
"But to go 24 free-throw attempts in the second half, that’s 48 for the game, if you think about the way they called that second half, compared to eight. All the shots we took, we got fouled four times, roughly, for eight free-throw attempts."
The foul trouble directly impacted the Knicks, with Mikal Bridges heading to the bench early after picking up two quick fouls, and Jalen Brunson following suit in the third quarter with his fourth. The Spurs capitalized, shooting 14 free throws in the third quarter alone, while the Knicks attempted just three.
Brown expressed hope for future games, saying, "Hopefully, they will see some more fouls called against them, so it’s not 24-8. This is a four-point ballgame. Four-point ballgame. One-possession ballgame going down the stretch. It’s tough to overcome." The final free throw tally saw the Spurs convert 25 of 32 attempts, while the Knicks made 18 of 22.
However, not everyone on the Knicks roster shared Brown’s assessment. When informed of his coach’s comments, center Karl-Anthony Towns dismissed the notion that officiating was the deciding factor.
"That didn’t cost us the game," Towns asserted. "Turned the ball over. Didn’t execute. Didn’t do what got us 13 straight wins in a row. That’s how you lose a game."
