By the time the Knicks left for halftime of Game 2 of the Eastern Conference first-round matchup against the Pistons, they were down by six points on the scoreboard and way down in free throw calls. As their rivals finally conquered the match 100-94, Tom Thibodeau was furious at the officiating.
Detroit ended up taking 35 shots from the foul line, in comparison to their opponent’s 19. Even though the series is now even, the New York coach spent most of his postgame interview addressing this issue. “Obviously huge discrepancy in free throws,” Thibodeau said. “Huge. I’ve got to take a look at that.”
According to the Knicks tactician, his point guard Jalen Brunson wasn’t getting the same kind of calls that rival star Cade Cunningham received throughout the contest. New York felt the need to be physical against the Pistons’ All-Star, but struggled as referees whistled fouls constantly.
“I don’t understand how on one side you talk about direct line drives. The guy is getting fouled and it’s not being called,” Tom insisted, even though free throws for those players were even. “And look, I don’t really give a crap how they call the game, as long as it’s consistent on both sides.”
As Cunningham ended 10-for-12, Brunson was 9-for-11. “So, if Cunningham is driving and there is marginal contact and he is getting to the line, then Jalen deserves to be getting to the line. It’s really that simple,” the Knicks head coach made his point.
While Detroit’s Ausar Thompson fouled out of the game, New York actually struggled with officiating during the first half. Their opponents took 14 free throws in the first two quarters, while Jalen attempted the only two given to the Knicks.
“Regardless if fouls are being called or not called, we’ve got to adjust, and I feel like we did that a little too late into the game,” Thibodeau concluded his point. “And so regardless of how it’s reffed, we’ve got to adjust and we’ve got to adapt to that and go on from there.”
