Mark Daigneault Frustrated With OKC Thunder's Free Throw Disparity

Daigneault addressed the Thunder's minus-22 differential against the Suns and lackluster free-throw rate through their first 13 games.

Nov 15, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault gestures to his team on a play against the Phoenix Suns during the fourth quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Phoenix Suns 99-83 in their first Emirates NBA Cup group stage game Friday night. The Thunder's strong defensive performance — holding Phoenix to 29.3% shooting overall and 24.3% on 3-pointers — was juxtaposed with a minus-22 free-throw differential against the shorthanded Suns.

Head coach Mark Daigneault addressed the Thunder's season free-throw discrepancy after the game. They now have the second-lowest free-throw rate (17.4%) and ninth-highest opponent free-throw rate (21.4%) in the league.

"The free-throw disparity coming into tonight was minus-4.4, which is fifth-last in the league," Daigneault said. "It's us, Charlotte, Toronto, Brooklyn and Washington. That was before 40 to 18 tonight."

A bonus situation provides free throws to the opposing team on each subsequent foul, whether or not the foul occurred during the act of shooting. In the NBA, bonus rules start with the fifth team foul in a quarter or the second team foul within the last two minutes, whichever comes earlier.

"There is a cumulative frustration we have at this point because our guys are working too hard," Daigneault said. "We're in the bonus 62% of quarters. That's the lowest percent in the league. Tonight, we were in the bonus 14 minutes. They were in the bonus half the game, 24 minutes."

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who shot 10.9 free throws per game (third-most in NBA) in the 2022-23 season and 8.7 per game (fourth-most in NBA) last season, is down to 7.2 per game (ninth-most in NBA) through the first 13 games this year.

Gilgeous-Alexander's free-throw output has decreased noticeably despite averaging a league-high 22.2 drives per game — his fifth consecutive regular season atop that category.

"It's capping us offensively, and the guys want to improve," Daigneault said. "They're asking how we can improve, and it's like, there's only so much we can improve on if we're not getting to the line when we're putting that much pressure on the basket with the driving ... it's really hurting our offense right now."

Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City's clear No. 2 option, has drawn just 2.9 free-throw attempts per game on a 26.0% usage rate and 11.4 2-point attempts per game. His 18.0% individual free-throw rate would only rank above the Thunder and Charlotte Hornets among all 30 teams.

"Even tonight, I thought [Williams] gathered on that play and (the officials) put it on the side," Daigneault said. "That's two free throws right there for a guy who is playing really hard. That's why I feel the need to defend those guys."

While the Thunder have struggled to generate free-throw attempts, they are making the most of their opportunities. Oklahoma City has recorded an 82.4% team free-throw percentage, exactly 10% higher than their opponents. Alex Caruso, Dillon Jones and Malevy Leons — with a combined 17 attempts — are the only rostered players below 75%.

The Thunder still have 69 games remaining in their season, providing room for a two-way turnaround at the line.

"If I'm going to address the officials, which I don't do very often — both in-game and publicly — then I'm going to make sure that I have credibility and integrity," said Daigneault in today's practice media availability. "And I'm not going to be overly subjective. Everything that I said last night was just stone-cold fact.

"If I address officiating in the future, it'll be fact-based."

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