Mike Brown questions officiating after Knicks’ Game 3 loss

Knicks coach Mike Brown made it clear he wasn’t pleased with the officiating following New York’s 115-111 loss to the Spurs in Game 3 of the NBA Finals.

While Brown credited San Antonio for its performance, he repeatedly pointed to the free-throw disparity as a significant factor in the outcome.

The Spurs attempted 32 free throws overall and held a 24-8 advantage in free-throw attempts during the second half.

“I never thought I’d be in an NBA Finals and see a team get 24 free-throw attempts in the second half to another team’s eight,” Brown told reporters afterward. “I don’t complain much about the officials.”

Brown stopped short of placing all the blame on the referees, acknowledging that the Spurs earned many of their opportunities.

Still, he suggested the imbalance was difficult to ignore.

“San Antonio is a great team,” Brown said. “It’s gonna lower our odds big time if in Game 4, and in the second half they get 24 free throws to our eight. Maybe we were fouling, but they were fouling too.”

The comments came after the Spurs cut New York’s series lead to 2-1 behind a strong bounce-back performance from Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle.

Game 4 is set for Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.

Whether Brown’s remarks have any impact on the officiating moving forward remains to be seen, but the discussion surrounding the whistle has officially become part of the Finals storyline.