Dissatisfied, Timberwolves Gobert complains that the referee in the first Western Conference Finals did not call the Thunder for a foul

Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert publicly complained about the Oklahoma City Thunder’s foul call in Game 1.

In Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, the Minnesota Timberwolves lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder 88-114. The two sides were evenly matched in the first half, but the Thunder fared far better than the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second half. Still, many criticized the referees' team for favoring the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 of the series. Center Rudy Gobert even severely criticized the referee's method of judging.

According to ESPN's Dave McMenaming, the 32-year-old center said in an interview with the media after the game that the Thunder's defense should receive more foul calls. The Timberwolves star mentioned the issue between him and the referee many times in an interview with the media.

"I don't expect to be called. [Thunders] are very fond of showing off. Some moves are not called... They are tenacious. We know that, we know there are steals and fouls, but we know we don't call all of them. We have to stick with it all the time. We can't let the call turnover or missed shots affect us going to the next round and do what we should do."

In retrospect, the Thunder have only 5 more free throws than the Timberwolves. In the first game, the Thunder received a total of 26 free throws, while the Timberwolves had only 21. So, although the referee's call seems a bit unfair, the strength of both sides is actually much more balanced than many people think.

Many people, including Rudy Gobert, complained about the Thunder's call, largely attributed to Shea Gilgers Alexander. The 26-year-old point guard hit 14 goals in 26 free throws. Additionally, there were several times when Gilgers-Alexander moved in a way that made people mistakenly think he was fouled, and no one actually touched him at all.

Timberwolves can only control their actions on the field. Rudy Gobert and Anthony Edwards both struggled in the first game, which in part led to the Minnesota Timberwolves' second half loss. Gobert's performance didn't work at all. He only scored 2 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block in 21 minutes of playing time.