"Fouled the s**t out of Kevin Durant": Frank Vogel goes to battle for star player, berates officials postgame

Phoenix Suns superstar forward Kevin Durant struggled offensively during Sunday’s 118-110 home loss to the OKC Thunder. However, according to Suns coach Frank Vogel, Durant’s shortcomings were no fault of his own, as he was hindered by questionable officiating throughout the contest.

Durant finished with 20 points, four rebounds and three assists on 6-for-15 (40.0%) shooting while committing five of the Suns’ 22 turnovers. In contrast, the Thunder recorded just six turnovers.

Phoenix has struggled with taking care of the ball all season, averaging the fourth most turnovers in the NBA (15.0). Following Sunday’s loss, Vogel was asked about the recurring issue. Rather than call out his team, he seized the opportunity to berate officials for consistently disrespecting Durant via no-calls.

Vogel highlighted how the former MVP constantly gets fouled on drives and while moving without the ball, but the referees ignore the contact. He subsequently called for the NBA to investigate the problem.

“I’ll start by saying that they fouled the s**t out of Kevin Durant all night,” Vogel said.

“Whether he has the ball and he’s getting stripped three or four, maybe five times. Then, every time he tries to get open, he’s being held, which is something I really want the league to look at. That’s where it starts with, the turnover problem.”

Durant finished with six free-throw attempts, second on the Suns, behind co-star Bradley Beal, who attempted a game-high 10 free throws. Meanwhile, Thunder superstar guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who recorded a game-high 35 points, led the way for OKC with seven free-throw attempts.

Overall, Phoenix (18 free-throw attempts) took three more free throws than OKC (15). Thus, Vogel’s gripe about unbalanced officiating doesn’t appear to have much of a basis.

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Kevin Durant disagrees with Frank Vogel’s officiating rant, takes accountability for turnover issues

While Frank Vogel called out the officials in his postgame interview on Sunday, Kevin Durant was far more laid-back.

When informed about his coach’s rant, Durant appeared surprised before disagreeing that no-calls were the reason for Phoenix’s loss. The 14-time All-Star instead highlighted OKC’s strong defense.

“He said me being fouled is the reason we had 22 turnovers?” Durant asked. “I mean, you always try to make the right plays — I don’t think they were just fouling me — But just trying to make the right plays, they got their hands on some basketballs.”

Durant also expressed frustration with Phoenix’s overall inconsistency after blowing a 13-point lead.

“We had spurts, but it's not a good feeling not to be consistent,” Durant said.

The loss marked the Suns’ second straight and fourth in their last six games. Despite entering the season with championship aspirations, they sit seventh in the Western Conference (35-26), in play-in position.

Notably, Phoenix has dealt with injuries to key players all season and was without superstar shooting guard Devin Booker (ankle) on Sunday. Nonetheless, the Suns are running out of time to cement themselves as a sure-fire contender in the crowded West.

Phoenix will look to end its losing streak when it visits the defending champion Denver Nuggets (42-19) on Tuesday. Meanwhile, OKC will try to maintain its spot atop the West when it visits the LA Lakers (33-29) on Monday.

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