Same player. Same game. Same shot. Similar contact. Two very different outcomes.
Why Shai Gilgeous-Alexander falls a lot: Because it works
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With two minutes left in the first quarter of Game 4 in the Western Conference finals, Oklahoma City Thunder star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander possessed the ball, defended by San Antonio Spurs star guard De’Aaron Fox. Operating from the right elbow, SGA took a hard dribble and then a stepback midrange jumper. Fox closed out his airspace, contested the shot and made contact with Gilgeous-Alexander.
The shot did not go in, but a whistle blew. Foul. Two free throws.