Doris Burke Draws Quite The Reaction After Dropping Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 'Free-Throw Merchant' Line

Oklahoma City Thunder star and likely soon-to-be NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gets to the free-throw line at a very high rate. A key piece to his playing style is to draw a whistle, and it was on full display during Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday night.

SGA had seven free-throw attempts in the first quarter alone in Game 1, while the Minnesota Timberwolves only managed to get to the charity stripe three times in the opening frame.

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This led ESPN's Doris Burke to say the quiet part out loud just four minutes into the contest.

After SGA knocked down a free-throw, Burke elected to tell viewers that folks on social media have been calling Gilgeous-Alexander a "free-throw merchant" throughout the season.

Burke was simply stating a fact, as a huge chunk of NBA fans have shown frustration with the way SGA always seems to be looking for a foul, but it was a bit of a surprise to hear her go in that direction on the broadcast.

SGA averaged 8.8 free-throw attempts per game during the regular season, which was the second-highest rate in the league, only behind Giannis Antetokounmpo (10.6). He's gotten to the line even more during the playoffs, averaging 9.9 attempts from the charity stripe, which looks even more egregious given that officials typically swallow the whistle a bit more during the postseason.

Nevertheless, Burke's "free-throw merchant" line caused quite a stir on social media:

SGA helped lead the Thunder to a 114-88 win over the Timberwolves in Game 1 with 11 of his 31 points on the night coming from the free-throw line.