Is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Being Officiated Differently?

The Oklahoma City Thunder have seen massive discourse around Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and his free throw attempts this season. Are the Thunder being officiated differently?

Mar 25, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) dribbles the ball in front of Sacramento Kings center Domantas Sabonis (11) in the third quarter at the Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images / Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

The Oklahoma City Thunder are having the best season in franchise history led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a superstar who is putting together one of the best individual seasons in league history. The story around him though, has wrongfully shifted to his trips to the charity stripe.

The conversation around Gilgeous-Alexander and his free throw attempts has surpassed the praise for this jaw-dropping campaign that deserves more flowers than fights, more coronation than criticism.

This narrative has spun outside of reality and has no data to support that the Thunder superstar is some free throw grifter, in fact, the whistle has gotten a tinge tighter on the MVP front runner in the second half of the season it feels like.

“I think Shai's being officiated a little bit differently right now, to be honest with you, specific to him,” Daigneault said earlier this month. “Just some of the plays that they're not getting and some of the plays they're putting on the side instead of rewarding shots for is different than it was.”

This would not be the first time that the NBA has shifted its whistle and approach to games mid-season. A year ago the league leaned into letting the players play and becoming more loose with the whistle in the second half of the year. This season, there has been no such mandate, Daigneault was quick to clarify, just a feeling.

“That's subjective,” The Thunder Head Coach said. “That's not data. 
I think they're laying off some plays that they got earlier in the year on him. He's still just as hard to guard. At the end of the day, fouling is about the legality of the defender — whether or not the defender's legal or not — and he puts guys in positions not to be legal quite a bit because he's hard to stay in front of.” 

The eye test backs up Daigneault's inquiry. Since the outcry has reached a fever pitch it is harder for Gilgeous-Alexander to get to the free-throw line via a shot attempt (excluding technical fouls and intentional fouls). The Thunder superstar was asked about that very thing.

“I don’t really notice the difference...They have to go out there and do a job same way I do. Nobody’s perfect in their job. I don’t think they ever try to miss a call," Gilgeous-Alexander said in Sacramento.

The start-and-stop nature of Gilgeous-Alexander drives and the contact he both initiates and absorbs can make an already difficult job feel impossible for the zebras, and the superstar knows that.

“I might be tougher than others because of my playing style, the amount of times I drive every night. I’m probably a bit more difficult than the rest," Gilgeous-Alexander said.

Ultimately, these things always even out and this too shall pass as a narrative and storyline around the Oklahoma City Thunder and its star.

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