New York Knicks head coach Mike Brown turned the spotlight on the officiating as the chief reason why the Knicks were unable to virtually seal the NBA Finals with a 3-0 lead.

In the San Antonio Spurs' tough 115-111 victory, Victor Wembanyama and co. went to the free throw line 24 times in the second half, as compared to the Knicks making the trip only 8 times.

Brown highlighted this issue in the postgame media availability, also warning about the Knicks' Game 4 outlook if refereeing decisions go on in such a manner through the rest of the series.

"I never thought I’d be in the NBA Finals and see a team get 24 free-throw attempts in the second half to another team’s eight. I don’t think I complain much about officials or, you know, the fairness when it comes to the free-throw attempts. San Antonio is a great team,” Brown said.

“If they do this in Game 4, where it's 24-8 in the second half, it's going to be tough for us to win,” Brown added.

Overall in the contest, the Spurs went to the free-throw line 32 times, scoring 25 of them. The Knicks, on the other hand, were 18-of-22 from the foul line.

The Spurs' free-throw blitz was led by none other than Wembanyama, as the Frenchman went to the line 9 times, scoring 8 of them.

After an inefficient first two games, the Frenchman returned from his slump in some fashion, scoring 32 points with 11-of-18 from the field, 6 assists, and 8 rebounds.

Apart from the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Stephon Castle also benefited from freebies, as he finished the game with 23 points on 8-of-14 efficiency, 5 assists, 5 rebounds, and 5-for-6 from the stripe.

While this was the first time Brown commented on officiating this series, the whistle has been an issue throughout.

Officiating Has Been a Running Issue Throughout Knicks vs Spurs

Game 3 was not the first time the topic of the whistle has come up in the NBA Finals. In the first game, the Spurs had 12 free throw attempts at halftime, while the Knicks had only 3.

Meanwhile, San Antonio was once again shooting more from the line in Game 2. In addition to the ongoing controversy, the league appointed referee John Goble for Game 3.

Goble is not a new name when it comes to issues surrounding officiating, as he has previously been the subject of rumors about potential suspensions, and his name has been mentioned in online controversies.

Brown will himself be under the attention of the league after such comments, but with the NBA Finals on the line, that must hardly matter for him right now.

With the Spurs taking a momentum-shifting victory at Madison Square Garden, the series is turning out to be as exciting as expected. Game 4 will stay in New York as the Spurs will try to tie the series heading to San Antonio.

So, do you believe the officiating will be in the spotlight once again in Game 4? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Joy Bassy

Edited by

Joy Bassy