Despite a dominant playoff series, the Thunder face accusations of benefiting from questionable calls. The numbers, however, paint a different picture.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have beaten the Phoenix Suns by an average margin of 24 points en route to a 2-0 series lead in Round 1 of the NBA Playoffs.
The reigning MVP of the league is averaging 31 points, the Defensive Player of the Year runner up has been a two way menace and OKC's third All Star had been a game-changing force of nature before sustaining a Grade 1 hamstring strain. The defending champions have smothered the Suns defensively and flexed their talent and depth offensively.
And yet, somehow, the prevailing takeaway on NBA social media and from television talking heads are referees and whistles.
The discourse on the Thunder and free throws seems to have officially gone off the rails. Or to use a more modern term: it's cooked. Just take a gander at some of the quotes that have been circulating since OKC's Game 2 win over Phoenix.
"The way they play as a team is beneath the defending champions," said Nick Wright of Fox Sports. "Their histrionics go beyond selling calls all the way to outright acting. I can't remember another team driving this many of its opponents insane like this."
“This is the playoffs, a man's game," Dillon Brooks said postgame in the Suns' locker room. "I used to watch this back when Michael Jordan was playing… when LeBron was younger, just physical basketball. I don't get why all the dropping, the falling and the flopping and flailing… and all this stuff is allowed when we get to the playoffs.”
"I think if you're gonna call it one way, you gotta call it both ways, or just let us play," said Suns forward Royce O'Neale.
"I am 100% behind Devin Booker here," Suns owner Mat Ishbia tweeted out on X. "Last night was not a good look for our league. Let me be clear, we didn’t lose because of officiating, but that doesn’t make last night any less important. If the referees are going to demand respect from the players - as they should - then the players should demand respect from the referees. When a referee is missing calls and clearly disrespecting the players, almost mocking them, they must be held accountable. Nobody who loves this game enjoyed watching that last night. They want to see the players compete at the highest level. The league needs be far more aggressive about this kind of thing. All players and all fans deserve it."
Amazingly, that is just a very small sample size of the types of things being said, written and posted about the Thunder and their supposed favorable free throws.
Here's the thing, though. The numbers don't add up. Or to use a more modern phrase: the math isn't mathing.
No matter how you slice it, the evidence shows that OKC does not, in fact, receive a favorable whistle. The Thunder ranked #17 out of 30 teams in the regular season in free throws attempted per game. So far in the playoffs, Oklahoma City ranks #9 out of 16 teams. Whether the preferred stat or point of emphasis is free throws attempted, free throw differential, free throw rate, drives per game, points in the paint or any other commonly used metric, there is no statistical proof of this ever growing narrative.
Well, surely Game 2 against the Suns at least must have shown a lopsided free throw tilt in OKC's favor given all the complaining, right? Wrong.
The Thunder shot 25 free throws in Game 2. Two of them from an intentional foul and one of them from a (admittedly bad) technical foul. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shot 9 free throws, including those three just mentioned. So a total of 6 "normal" attempts.
The Suns shot 22 free throws in Game 2. The same number as OKC once you take away the intentional and technical fouls. Devin Booker shot 10 free throws.
Oklahoma City is the best team in basketball. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is arguably the best player in basketball. And no matter how often social media, broadcast television or podcasters try to say otherwise, it's not because of free throws.