The labels of reigning MVP and defending champion look shiny until you notice the parentheses next to them that read free-throw merchant. That’s probably what Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wakes up to. But it doesn’t bother him much, because his value is defined by the words outside those brackets. Carrying that winning mindset into the NBA Cup semifinal against the Spurs, Shai did what he’s been doing all season, took control, but couldn’t lead the Thunder to victory, 111-109.

“Shai is a great foul creator,” NBA legend Steve Nash said. “They [Thunder] are very efficient at playing the referees as well.”And Dirk Nowitzki also appeared to agree with the argument. That label follows Shai everywhere: the idea that he bends the game by drawing contact and forcing whistles, often putting defenders in impossible positions.

The numbers only fuel the talk. Gilgeous-Alexander led the league last season with 606 free-throw attempts, and he isn’t far behind that pace this year either. So far this season, Shai has already taken 238 trips to the line.

Just last week against Dallas, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander reminded everyone how much of his offense flows from the free-throw line. He shot 10-of-12 overall, but it was his 11-of-12 night at the stripe that tilted the game and helped Oklahoma City cruise toward 22–1 before the fourth. When it got tight, Shai doubled down, scoring 16 points in the third quarter, with four more free throws sealing the run.

Earlier this season, he had already turned heads against the Pacers, finishing with 23-of-26 from the line and 15-of-31 shooting, setting new career highs for both free throws made and attempted in a single game.

Gilgeous-Alexander now owns the mark for most free throws attempted across the first two games of a season, with 40 combined attempts. And while the numbers fuel the “free-throw merchant” label, the bigger issue isn’t foul-baiting, it’s that it keeps working. That puts the pressure back on the league.

The NBA has already attempted to address the issue, introducing a technical foul for flopping before the 2023–24 season and later making it permanent. While flops aren’t directly reviewable, officials can still call them if a replay is triggered through a challenge.

The NBA, under Commissioner Adam Silver, has been working to rebalance the game after years of rules emphasizing “freedom of movement” that favored offense, leading to historically high scoring but complaints about reduced defensive intensity and excessive foul-baiting/flopping.

Silver has publicly acknowledged that the league “overcalibrated” toward offense in recent years, making it too difficult for defenders to play physically without fouling. Silver noted that while fans love scoring, they also want to see “physical defense” and hard play, without returning to the overly rough 1990s era.

To address this:

• Defenders can be more hands-on or bumpier without automatic fouls, as long as it doesn’t severely impede progress.
• This aims to restore competitive balance, reward strong defense, and make games more engaging by reducing uninterrupted offensive dominance.

This directly targets “gaming the system,” where offensive players initiate contact, lean in, or theatrically fall to draw calls. The changes encourage no-calls on minor or player-initiated contact, reducing rewards for exaggeration.

Despite Adam Silver’s implementation, SGA remains one of the league’s top foul-drawers, averaging high free-throw attempts (often 10 or more per game) through elite drives, off-arm usage, and selling contact.

Still, the stats suggest the criticism may be overstated. Shai has ranked second in free-throw attempts behind Giannis Antetokounmpo over each of the last two seasons, but his 9.2 attempts per game in last year’s postseason don’t stand out historically.

Research from Tom Haberstroh shows his 110 free throws over 12 playoff games rank just 406th all-time.

That’s why his scoring deserves respect, not dismissal. Steve Nash recently went as far as drawing a bold parallel, saying, “Offensively, this guy is getting into the heir statistically of people like Michael Jordan. I know that is sacrilegious to say, but look at some of these numbers.”

It’s also why Victor Wembanyama approached the matchup with caution.

Victor Wembanyama names Shai Gilgeous-Alexander the best player

A couple of nights earlier, Victor Wembanyama didn’t hesitate when talking about Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He called him the best player in the league, though he was visibly torn between Shai and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

But that respect was still clear just hours before the NBA Cup semifinal, when Wemby made his focus known, saying, “The reigning MVP is on that court, so he’s our main focus. Anybody is hard to guard when you have to help on the MVP.”

While fans were busy circling a Wemby–Chet Holmgren showdown, Wembanyama had his eyes locked on Shai.

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Oklahoma City has earned that level of attention all season. The Thunder opened the year with eight straight wins, including two double-overtime thrillers, then bounced back from an early November loss to the Blazers by ripping off 16 consecutive victories to reach Vegas with NBA Cup hopes alive.

Shai has been right at the center of it, once again sitting atop the MVP conversation.

Among all 30-point scorers in league history, SGA owns the best true shooting percentage for a season at 69.0%, ranks second all-time in three-point percentage at 44.0%, and sits sixth in field-goal percentage inside the arc at 60.0%. Being cautious around him wasn’t optional, but it was necessary.

And on this night, that caution paid off. The Spurs handed the Thunder their second loss of the season in Wembanyama’s return, snapping Oklahoma City’s 16-game winning streak and dropping their record to 24–2. San Antonio now moves on to face the Knicks in the final.