What’s common between James Harden, Dwyane Wade and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander? All three are high-caliber athletes but with a knack for pissing people off. In simpler words, if you imagine somebody taking a dramatic pause, get hit (so very slightly), and yet fall to the floor in a fashion (that will put troupers to shame) earning them charity stripes, it’s probably going to be one of the three. Imagine this: During the 2006 NBA Finals, then-Miami Heat player Wade attempted a mind-boggling 97 free throws in just six games.

And Harden? He ranks fifth in career regular season free throws made—trailing Karl Malone, LeBron James, Moses Malone, and Kobe Bryant—at 9,478 attempts, and 8,164 free throws made. As for Gilgeous-Alexander, he is in a league of his own, too. This season, the Oklahoma City Thunder player led the league in free throws made (7.9) during the regular season and was second in free throw attempts (8.8) after Giannis Antetokounmpo (10.6). Additionally, in 13 postseason appearances this year, the 26-year-old flaunts an average of 8.2 free throws on 9.6 attempts—another live instance of which we just saw days ago.

During Game 1 of the WCF series against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night, the recently crowned league MVP garnered the community’s wrath for foul baiting yet again. At least seven of the 14 foul calls in favor of Shai seemed undeserved. FS1’s Nick Wright straight out said, “Hate it,” while The Ringer‘s Bill Simmons declared, “The touch foul calls SGA gets are really awful.” At one point, even Anthony Edwards seemed done with the free throw merchant as he hilariously tossed the ball at SGA, who was lying on the ground, and got a technical foul for it. Reminds us of Edwards’ dejected monologue from last year: “It’s hard to shut him down. You can’t touch him at any time of the game, so it’s super hard to beat.” But what we if told you, there’s someone ready to beat Shai at his own game?

After the Pacers went up 2-0 on the Knicks with that 114-109 Game 2 win, you’d think we’d all be talking about Pascal Siakam going nuclear for 39, or the Knicks just… not quite getting it done in crunch time. Instead, the internet has latched onto something else entirely: a hilarious moment that has people demanding Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to enter the chat. So, here’s the tea: Courtesy of an X account (“Hater Report”), a video has surfaced, showing Jalen Brunson taking a tumble after Tyrese Haliburton lightly (and we mean it when we use this word) stepped on his foot. Brunson’s reaction?

Let’s just say it was… cinematic. He went down in a way that screamed “Hey ref, you seeing this?!” – a full-on, arms-flailing production that had social media doing what it does best: Losing its collective mind. And the caption from Hater Report? Chef’s kiss: “Dawg Jalen Brunson tried to pull off one of his CRAZIEST FLOPS we’ve seen LMFAOOO. SGA YOU HAVE 24 HOURS TO RESPOND.” 

Brunson’s alleged dive was so next-level, so brazen, that only the reigning champ of drawing phantom fouls could possibly offer a worthy rebuttal. Look, Brunson balled out with 36 points, trying to carry the Knicks. But this one play? It became the biggest thing, especially with the Knicks now staring down a 0-2 barrel. 

But, plenty of folks jumped in to defend Brunson, too.

The internet weighs in: SGA’s shadow looms large

Predictably, the comment section exploded. Some fans zoomed in on the replay, pointing out that Haliburton did make contact with his foot. And not just any foot – the same right ankle that Brunson tweaked earlier in the playoffs when the Garden floor decided to do its own thing. “Do you not see Tyrese Haliburton landing on his foot or?????” one fan shot back, probably pointing at the ankle brace Brunson’s rocking.

Another chimed in, “I think Tyrese stepping on the ankle that took JB a month to recover from probably played a part in him falling?” So, what’s the verdict? Was it a shameless attempt to grift a foul? But what’s more notable was the SGA comparisons coming in hot and heavy. 

“Shai watching that thinking ‘Amateurs’.” And can you even argue? SGA, for all his MVP-level game, has basically written the book on how to get to the line in the modern NBA. You’ve got analysts like Sam Quinn over at CBS Sports calling him “not an ethical hooper,” and pointing out that while others dabble, Shai is “certainly the most successful,” practically living at the charity stripe for a guard.

Then you had the other side of the coin, with another user firing off: “If that was Shai this is a flagrant 2.” 

Some folks were looking at Jalen Brunson’s big fall and seeing bigger problems for the Knicks. One comment really hit: “This is why they’re losing. They rely on these calls in the regular season and struggle when they don’t get them in the playoffs.” And for just pure, unadulterated internet gold, there was this gem: “This is like having bada– kids throwing temper tantrums 😂.”

Of course, the ‘Team Brunson Got Fouled For Real’ crew was loud and proud too. “His bad ankle was stepped on pretty hard dummy,” someone shot back, not holding anything back in defense of their guy. It just proves, when these things happen, everyone sees what they want to see. End of the day, whether Jalen Brunson was auditioning for a role opposite SGA in “Grifters: The Movie,” actually hurt, or somewhere in between, the whole thing just blew up. And that’s the NBA internet for you.