The Underdog Fantasy company and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander drama just took a bizarre turn. According to reports from The Athletic, Underdog received a cease-and-desist letter over a promotion mocking Shai’s constant foul-drawing tactics, something NBA fans have been debating for years.
The letter, dated May 22, 2026, reportedly came from attorney Eric Fishman of law firm ArentFox Schiff LLP on behalf of Gilgeous-Alexander. It demanded Underdog “permanently cease and desist from any and all use” of Shai’s NIL across all media platforms, including websites, advertisements, social media, promotional material, and even a board game tied to the “Unethical Hoops” campaign. (New York Times)
What makes this situation so interesting is that Shai’s style of play has already become one of the biggest talking points in basketball. Fans constantly joke about the foul baiting, the head snaps, and the way defenders seem terrified to even touch him without a whistle being blown. Fair or unfair, it’s become part of his basketball identity. People expect this, that’s why this move is going to rub a lot of people the wrong way.
For years, Gilgeous-Alexander has maintained a nonchalant public image, almost acting above the criticism and noise surrounding his play. But issuing a cease-and-desist over jokes and satire makes it feel like the criticism clearly does bother him more than he lets on publicly to a lot of fans; that comes off as contradictory. If you embrace playing in a way that constantly generates controversy and debate, people are naturally going to joke about it. Too many, this seems soft.
At the same time, players absolutely have the right to protect their name, image, and likeness, especially when companies use them commercially. But from a PR standpoint, this may end up creating even more discussion around Shai’s foul-drawing reputation than the promotion itself ever did. Many people were never going to purchase the game or even care about it a week after its release, but now, because of the cease-and-desist, it’s staying in the spotlight far longer than it ever would have naturally. Ultimately, I think this was a bad move from Shai and his camp.
