The Timberwolves picked up a big victory on Monday in a battle between two of the top teams in the Western Conference, defeating the Thunder in Oklahoma City by a score of 107-101. According to Wolves star Anthony Edwards, Minnesota got the win despite a “terrible” performance from the game’s referees.
“I’m going to take the fine, because the refs did not give us no calls tonight,” Edwards said on the Timberwolves’ television broadcast after the game, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN. Edwards continued to criticize the officiating after heading to the locker room, bringing it up without prompting during a conversation with MacMahon.
“The refs was bad tonight. Yeah, they was terrible. We was playing 8-on-5,” said Edwards, who felt he deserved far more than the four free throws he received. “The cat got their tongue tonight, so it’s all good. It’s not fair, but it’s all good.”
Following a January 20 home loss to Oklahoma City, Edwards griped about the whistle that All-Star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was getting, telling reporters at the time that “you can’t touch him any time of the game” and adding that it was difficult to beat the Thunder “when they’re getting calls like that.”
As MacMahon notes, Gilgeous-Alexander went to the foul line 16 times on Monday, shooting one more free throw than the 15 Minnesota attempted as a team. Edwards referred to the Thunder star as “super good,” but suggested that he was benefiting from fouls that weren’t being called both ways.
“I haven’t earned (referees’ respect) yet, so it’s OK,” Edwards said. “But I think tonight was bad from the refs. It was terrible. We didn’t get no calls as a team. I got fouled multiple times, and I’m walking up to the ref telling him, ‘Hey, can you watch this?’ They just shaking their head. Yeah. And then soon somebody come down from their team and get bumped, it’s a foul. So I just feel like it wasn’t a fair game tonight from the jump. And so that’s why I’m super happy we won the game.”
While Edwards was willing to risk a fine from the NBA league office by expressing his frustration after the game, he didn’t let that frustration affect his performance on the court. The Wolves guard scored a team-high 27 points on 10-of-20 shooting in his 40 minutes of action.
“He was poised,” teammate Rudy Gobert said, per MacMahon. “He didn’t get the calls but kept his poise, trusted his teammates and made the right play I think 95% of the time, which is amazing.”
Right or wrong, you won anyway and are now gonna be fined. Bad choice buddy.
I watched this one and Edwards is completely on point. If this were a national TV game he’d probably be getting more support because people will just note the minimal overall FT advantage for the Thunder. Truth is Edwards was driving to the bucket and consistently drawing notably more contact than Shai. If you watched the game and were told the two stars had 16 FTAs and 4 FTAs, you’d swear it was Edwards who had 16. Shai’s an elite scorer but wasn’t driving or drawing much contact in this one while operating mostly in the midrange. He was getting superstar marginal whistles while Edwards was actually getting his attempts impacted by contact. It shouldn’t be about “earning a reputation” – fouls are fouls and fair officiating in this one would’ve resulted in a more lopsided Twolves win which apparently some people didn’t want for I’m not sure what reason (not like OKC is some big market team)… Regardless Edwards can afford the fine and is smartly looking to the future and hoping to get a more even playing field in the high stakes games to come later this season.
people who don’t watch the games will always claim the Refs do not give one team the advantage.
He’s getting 13.5mill this year & will sign a max deal this offseason 5yrs/206mill. I think he can afford a 25k fine.
I disagree. The fine will be picked up by the team on this one. Backdoor. He wasn’t wrong. Problem is that the refs in basketball more than any other sport has entire games that are one sided. I’d take the fine. Chump change. Calling out someone for not doing their job is as American as Apple pie. I’d like to read the report on the refs officiating. NBA only reports last few minutes publicly.
the 2 minute report is a joke. They cover for officials. Marginal contact instead of saying they missed the call. Or they use the natural motion instead of saying a foul happened and wasn’t called.
The one in the last Lakers-GSW game is a perfect example. Multiple “marginal contact”and “incidental” mentions of Lakers on Warriors.
You think that fine matters to Edwards? That’s pocket change for him
Refs deserve far more criticism than they get, so good on Edwards for blasting them in the media.
Now if only the players would start name dropping exactly which officials are the ones who are miserable after the games then maybe the officials would learn to stop being so awful at their jobs
Not a bad choice at all… he said he was willing to pay. He is also right- did you see the game?
At least you can win without refs help, unlike Lakers.
Now you said that get prepared to lose some games now
I really didn’t see it unevenly called one way or the other. OKC had a few drives to the hoop that weren’t called either and gobert draped all over Chet and nothing. Not sure why he’s crying so much. His team won.
Says the OKC fan
Maybe but my point still stands….he acts like his team didn’t get any bs calls themselves and they certainly did.
In an alternate timeline, I imagine a bunch of players and coaches coming together on a specific day to call out the refs, and continuing to do so day after day until the league gives in and takes the issue seriously. Call it a protest of sorts.
The sad thing is the above would work because a) collective action is power, b) there is no way the league would want an ongoing embarrassment like that, and c) levying escalating fines against a sizable portion of the players would just make the league look bad and draw ire from the fans. Of course, it’s never going to happen because no one has the stones to risk repeated fines, nor does anyone care enough about the issue to take a real stance.
There’s been a growing trend from coaches calling out one sided rigging this season – Mike Brown’s laptop play review the best among them.
I think with the coaches starting to get paid a lot more and the fact they have become more of a union on their own, rather then one forced into existence like the players…
Makes it likely we’ll see it at some point soon from the coaches, at least publicly float the idea, if there is no changes made by the NBA… As there is only so many times you can repeat the same words…
Where are the conspiracy guys that think Silver has the refs working like evil puppets for Fan Duel? Im always interested in reading that unhinged malarkey!
Officiating is horrible, but its important to place the blame where its deserved. At least if there is actual desire to improve the situation. This is on the league.
The Refs, generally, are victims, trying to implement Silver’s constant rule changes, almost all being disguised as points of emphasis. As with all things Silver, there is a vastness to the number of changes and their nuances. The themes are, and always have been, the same, principally, elevate stars consistent with their marketing, and elevate offense, particularly the most aesthetic kind. Home teams should be kept in the game if feasible. So, maybe most Refs can’t quite decipher the constant rule changes, at least sufficiently to implement them consistently in real time. But anyone can decipher the themes. When in doubt, the Refs will play to them.
I don’t buy it…
Well, its been going on since the 1980’s, and it certainly hasn’t escaped ex-players and coaches, including those in the broadcast booth. But it doesn’t require purchase.