OKC Thunder still aiming for consistency with officiating and calls across NBA

Chris Finch was flabbergasted.

Joe Mazzulla couldnt help but note that the Thunder had spent so much time at the free-throw line.

JB Bickerstaff sounded off for two minutes about officiating in a game he felt his team had been wronged in.

All had variations of a story thats become vogue in recent weeks among Oklahoma Citys opponents.

They feel the Thunder is either drawing a notable amount of free throws, or in Bickerstaffs case, being treated differently as a staff by a crew.

Entering Wednesday's game against Philadelphia, the Thunder is still aiming for consistency both in the way calls are ruled and in the way teams are officiated across the league.

The biggest thing with the whistle this year is I think it's a lot different night to night, coach Mark Daigneault said Tuesday afternoon.

The way the game got called in Milwaukee 24 hours after the way the game was called in Detroit I mean, we might as well have been playing in different leagues, honestly.

The level of physicality that was allowed in the Detroit game and then the tightness of the whistle in Milwaukee was night and day.

It's just forcing us to have to calibrate to the crew every night.

More: Will OKC Thunder get 76ers' 2025 first-round pick? Explaining the protections, oddsDaigneault has made a point to note that the Thunder, despite the narratives surrounding star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and OKCs attempts, is suffering from one of the worst free-throw rates in league history.

In Sundays win over Milwaukee, the Bucks attempted 33 free throws, eight more than the Thunder eventually did.

Giannis Antetokounmpo (7 for 12) and Damian Lillard (11 for 11) combined to shoot 23 themselves; Gilgeous-Alexander attempted 11.

In Saturdays win in Detroit, the Thunder attempted 22 to Detroits 13.

Gilgeous-Alexander shot 10, with four of them due to technical fouls.

At one point, he called Saturdays game in Detroit a football game.

Gilgeous-Alexander was the bell-cow back.

The Pistons thrust their wings forward like linebackers, blitzing SGA in hopes of running his pockets.

OKCs star guard wheezed through the finish line.

Asked if hes sensed a shift in officiating post-All-Star break similar to last season, Daigneault cited just one player.

I think Shai's being officiated a little bit differently right now, to be honest with you, specific to him, he said.

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.Daigneault, who adamantly noted last years shift as it was happening and after the fact with data, mentioned that what hes sensed from SGA is based on what hes seen.

That's subjective, Daigneault 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.

More: Watch Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams star in AT&T commercialSome have grown sick of what they feel to be an abundance of free throws from Gilgeous-Alexander, despite leading the league in drives with 20.4 per game (2.2 than Jalen Brunson, the next highest) and shooting the second-most free throws in the NBA behind Antetokounmpo (9.0 to 10.2).

But Daigneault is certain that Gilgeous-Alexander has not lost any wiggle or skill.

And hes broadcasted that his team fouls a lot, and the notion that its physicality isnt rewarded like its opponents say.

Daigneault and Oklahoma City have said it all along: They just want consistency.We adapt to the whistle, so we benefit from a consistent whistle because we can more easily adapt to it if it's consistent, Daigneault said.

If we know what it's going to be, if we know this is a foul and this isn't, we can more easily adapt to it.

If it's difficult to know that, it's harder to adapt.Thunder vs.

76ersTIPOFF: 7 p.m.

Wednesday at Paycom Center (FanDuel Sports Network)This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC Thunder seeking consistency from NBA officiating across league.

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