OG Anunoby, Dorian Finney-Smith scuffle sparks Tom Thibodeau’s criticism of officials after Knicks win

The Knicks held on to beat the Nets on Friday night at MSG in what some will describe as a “weird” game.

Friday’s game had the usual runs, impact moments, etc but there were some officiating decisions and calls that had many attending the contest and watching from home scratching their heads, probably none more than the double tech called on OG Anunoby and Dorian Finney-Smith.

With nine minutes to go in the fourth quarter and the Knicks up 104-93, Anunoby tried to get through a Finney-Smith screen. The Nets center took offense to the collision and pushed Anunoby to the ground.

The Knicks forward got up and approached Finney-Smith but the two were separated. 

What followed was a lengthy discussion and a bewildering decision by the refs. Anunoby was called for a foul on the play, but both players were given technicals for the extra-curricular stuff when it looked as if Finney-Smith was the one who caused it.

“Yea I didn’t know what I did,” Anunoby said of the play after the game.

It wasn’t the last time Anunoby was the focus of a referee’s decision. Later in the fourth when he had five fouls already, Anunoby seemingly tipped an in-bounds pass that Finney-Smith knocked out of bounds. 

Nets coach Jordi Fernandez challenged the play, arguing Anunoby fouled his player before the pass, and the refs agreed as they saw the Knicks forward pull on Finney-Smith’s jersey before the pass.

That gave Anunoby his sixth foul, and he had to sit out the final minutes of the game.

“It was pretty frustrating,” Anunoby said on fouling out. “But we won.”

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau was a bit more animated when asked about the fouls and specifically the double techs in this game.

“Don’t get me going. We’ve been a low-fouled team for a long time now. I see what’s going on and I don’t like it,” he said. “It can’t be the physicality that’s being displayed on Jalen [Brunson] when he’s bringing the ball up the floor with the grab, the hold, all that stuff.

I don’t care how they call it. They can call it tight they can call it loose but it has to be the same for both teams.”

This isn’t the first time Thibodeau has criticized the officials. He’s specifically brought up how Brunson is officiated differently because of his guard’s play style before as well, but the Knicks coach felt the inconsistency Friday was especially egregious.

For what it’s worth, the Nets had 22 fouls while the Knicks had 21.