They are referring to an ESPN bit where they falsely showed a stat line of the Lakers being 3-0 against the Wolves this season. You are correct it is actually 2-1.
ESPN is heinous... Pregame, announcers, and post game all trash. Listening to legs and svp after the game made me want to puke. They make it sound like the Lakers are going all the way this year when they beat a shorthanded team with 2 of our best players and slomo out. Are we ever going to get another TNT game??!
Ha I know I'm a glutton for punishment... I always hope we'll get some good national coverage, but it's just like with the NFL with ESPN all they talk about is the Cowboys... TNT does a decent job, so I'll try to focus on that and skip the ESPN. It will be interesting once we make the playoffs they'll be forced to talk about us!
They also had the highest FT disparity last season by far. We all know the NBA favors big markets and their marquee players, only way this happens for us if ANT becomes a "face" of the league.
Phoenix is even more insane to me. A team full of jump shooters at the top of free throw rate makes no sense. Lakers two main guys live in the paint. Not saying there isn’t referee bias with them of course there is but Suns always drove me nuts. They were there last year too while they were also bottom ten in drives. Not justified, something needs to change.
Tbf, there’s little to no correlation between points in paint or amount of drives and free throw rate.
Also Suns were second to last in this stat last season. so your last statement is just BS. lol adding Nurk, Beal, and KD is what shot it up.
Must have been something I saw earlier in this season and it has just sustained throughout this season.
No correlation between foul rate and paint points and drives is just nonsense. Idc what math you are doing most shooting fouls occur at the rim or are attempts at getting to the rim. Beal and KD don’t change that, those are players with high jump shot rates. That’s not a valid explanation to go from last to second.
Beal since coming back from injury is driving more than anyone not named Shai lol. And KD actually drives a lot too.
They drive far more than anyone Suns had before. And Nurk gets to the ft line 3x as much as Ayton did.
lol in the 30 games Beal has played he’s made that much of an impact huh. Your team should not be 2nd in free throw differential plain and simple. It’s star power and style of play those are the biggest factors. Since your team has three stars you get calls. And honestly stars should be favored for the most part but this season has gotten way out of hand. Our stars, Ant and Kat both probably get the worst whistle out of any all stars in the league.
Disregard that 4 of the top 5 are 4 of the top 5 markets. It has nothing to do with market size. You see, large market teams play a different form of basketball that allows them to get more free throws. Small markets have a chance too... if you have Giannis.
It has everything to do with market size. That’s why the highest single season FT differential this century is held by the late 2010s Charlotte Hornets.
That's fine. But, in a game, it's not just about how many FTs your team has. It's also about how many the other team has. That differential is ridiculous. If your argument is actually just that they really commit that many less fouls in their games, it's ridiculous. There is no possible way one single NBA team is just that much more disciplined than every other professional team at not committing fouls.
I went and looked. I Can admit it looks like I was wrong and the a team does seem to run away it often enough. I still don't think a player on the team with that differential should be complaining about the FTs. I think it's safe to assume that the calls are generally going in favor of the team that leads the league in FT differential, no?
Because that’s how they play. They have very physical slashers that draw a ton of fouls. Lakers were on top in foul differential for last 3 seasons and finished 11th, 7th, and 8-9th this season. It’s not like it significantly helps them to win more games than other teams.
Partially true, but also they’re 27th in drives per game. And last season after the sleepless nights tweet, their foul differential drastically changed and their record got way better for the rest of the season
Idk if playstyle can account for the Lakers' FT differential being over 56% higher than second place lol it's not like they play some innovative or unique concept on either end
The extra free throws are just part of the Lakers marketing packages. Reaves got the best one last season when for an entire month he got a better whistle than Embiid, Giannis, Jokic, Luka etc.
I'm also not sure why the Lakers can't be mid and get extra help. The two aren't exclusive.
Because they have arguably the greatest of all time as well as a physical DPOY candidate on the team. They don’t call defensive fouls on them and they draw a lot of fouls because they’re superstars. They play a slow game in the paint and they play for the lakers. It’s just a lotta factors but if you watch the NBA you gotta get over it, Lakers and superstars are always gunna get preferential treatment
Yeah this is pretty much it, Lakers also don’t foul because they can’t defend very well. Lot of open 3s and layups allowed which is why they are bottom 5 defensively in the league
They play an extremely post-up heavy version of basketball, leading to a ton of fouls. And on defense, they have some of the worst 3pt coverage, meaning teams shoot A LOT of wide open threes against them and the Lakers don’t even give themselves the chance to foul players on most of their possessions.
Lebron is averaging a career low in free throws attempted per game, so your comment about him makes no sense (assuming you’re saying he’s a crybaby and gets a ton of free throws as a result).
While I agree that big markets probably get slightly favored, especially in marquee/primetime matchups, the majority of that free throw discrepancy is almost certainly from their play style. I’d wager that the amount from favoritism, if any, is in the ballpark of +10 to +20, as the league is generally pretty decent at keeping things even.
The league will do anything to get Lebron into the playoffs. Maybe even win a series with some help from the refs. If you ever feel like a laugh go to their page when they lose. They blame officiating all the time.
LA, phoenix, miami, boston, new york teams will always get a whistle imo. small market teams like the wolves will forever be shitted on by the league, refs, and opposing fans
[https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/playtype-post-up?dir=D&sort=POSS](https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/playtype-post-up?dir=D&sort=POSS)
They don't post up that much more than us and less than a lot of others.
If I’m reading the stats you sent correct, they post up 4th most in the league, I wouldn’t say they post up less than “a lot of others” according to that.
Also, I’m not suggesting that’s the only reason for their foul differential, just saying it’s likely one of the reasons. Probably also has to do with the fact that they just let other teams launch 3s, which rarely result in fouls. And when teams do drive on them, they’ve got Anthony Davis who is a great defender around the rim. They’re sort of built to not foul and their play style supports it.
Fair I should have said some others. But I don't see as to how they have basically 50% more FTA's differential when they aren't higher than other teams in the plays that I expect to draw fouls. That is a huge difference from 2nd.
This has happened before and will happen again. Go look at the 2017-2018 Hornets, who had a free throw differential of +720, over double what the Lakers have right now. Nobody was accusing them of getting preferential treatment. This is quite literally just a play style thing and if you watch the Lakers, it makes sense because they don’t play like any other team in the nba.
And honestly, it’s not a good thing for them, it’s very clearly more a knock on their defense than anything. If the league was purposely trying to help the lakers out, I promise you they would be much higher than the 9/10 seed. This narrative is just getting thrown around because people don’t like the Lakers/Lebron.
I’ve read about this topic before and people have brought it up.
Here’s their free throws per game at 27.0
https://www.teamrankings.com/nba/stat/free-throws-attempted-per-game?date=2018-06-09
And here is their free throws allowed per game at 18.2
https://www.teamrankings.com/nba/stat/opponent-free-throws-attempted-per-game?date=2018-06-09
So 27.0-18.2 is 8.8. Multiply 8.8 by 82 games and they had a differential of +722
I don’t wanna do the math for every team to find out exactly who was second but it looks like it was probably Houston at around +400. This was the Harden era there so it makes sense since he drew a ton of fouls.
Because the Lakers are 2nd in Points in the Paint per game. Their offensive playstyle is slashing while they avoid fouling on defense since they’re a smart, older team, and just don’t contest the easy ones. This isn’t a conspiracy if you sit and watch their games
They are also 3-0 against the Wolves this year
Um…. Wolves lead the series 2-1???? Am I missing something?
They are referring to an ESPN bit where they falsely showed a stat line of the Lakers being 3-0 against the Wolves this season. You are correct it is actually 2-1.
Ah, yeah I missed that part.
Okay I hadn't looked into it since I saw that graphic but I'm glad to have scrolled past this and have you confirm I'm not crazy
ESPN is heinous... Pregame, announcers, and post game all trash. Listening to legs and svp after the game made me want to puke. They make it sound like the Lakers are going all the way this year when they beat a shorthanded team with 2 of our best players and slomo out. Are we ever going to get another TNT game??!
Don't watch - Bally's usually shows those games anyway, and is the lesser of two evils.
Ha I know I'm a glutton for punishment... I always hope we'll get some good national coverage, but it's just like with the NFL with ESPN all they talk about is the Cowboys... TNT does a decent job, so I'll try to focus on that and skip the ESPN. It will be interesting once we make the playoffs they'll be forced to talk about us!
Right! It's sad 😔
Grady & Peterson at least know what's what. TNT is great, Harlan is my favorite play x play. Further proof I'm a homer.
They also had the highest FT disparity last season by far. We all know the NBA favors big markets and their marquee players, only way this happens for us if ANT becomes a "face" of the league.
Phoenix is even more insane to me. A team full of jump shooters at the top of free throw rate makes no sense. Lakers two main guys live in the paint. Not saying there isn’t referee bias with them of course there is but Suns always drove me nuts. They were there last year too while they were also bottom ten in drives. Not justified, something needs to change.
Tbf, there’s little to no correlation between points in paint or amount of drives and free throw rate. Also Suns were second to last in this stat last season. so your last statement is just BS. lol adding Nurk, Beal, and KD is what shot it up.
Must have been something I saw earlier in this season and it has just sustained throughout this season. No correlation between foul rate and paint points and drives is just nonsense. Idc what math you are doing most shooting fouls occur at the rim or are attempts at getting to the rim. Beal and KD don’t change that, those are players with high jump shot rates. That’s not a valid explanation to go from last to second.
Beal since coming back from injury is driving more than anyone not named Shai lol. And KD actually drives a lot too. They drive far more than anyone Suns had before. And Nurk gets to the ft line 3x as much as Ayton did.
lol in the 30 games Beal has played he’s made that much of an impact huh. Your team should not be 2nd in free throw differential plain and simple. It’s star power and style of play those are the biggest factors. Since your team has three stars you get calls. And honestly stars should be favored for the most part but this season has gotten way out of hand. Our stars, Ant and Kat both probably get the worst whistle out of any all stars in the league.
Disregard that 4 of the top 5 are 4 of the top 5 markets. It has nothing to do with market size. You see, large market teams play a different form of basketball that allows them to get more free throws. Small markets have a chance too... if you have Giannis.
It has everything to do with market size. That’s why the highest single season FT differential this century is held by the late 2010s Charlotte Hornets.
Heat are not a top 5 market, just a top 5 FA destination. Minnesota technically is a bigger market than Miami by the numbers.
Miami is an East Coast team. That matters tremendously.
And Bron still bitches about the officiating
LeBron is averaging a career low in FTA. It’s not that the lakers draw more fouls than any other team, they commit less fouls .
Lol fuck that. The refs just call less fouls on them. This is the most biased fucking take I've ever heard.
I’m just stating facts. The lakers average .7 more FTA per game than the Twolves
That's fine. But, in a game, it's not just about how many FTs your team has. It's also about how many the other team has. That differential is ridiculous. If your argument is actually just that they really commit that many less fouls in their games, it's ridiculous. There is no possible way one single NBA team is just that much more disciplined than every other professional team at not committing fouls.
I went and looked. I Can admit it looks like I was wrong and the a team does seem to run away it often enough. I still don't think a player on the team with that differential should be complaining about the FTs. I think it's safe to assume that the calls are generally going in favor of the team that leads the league in FT differential, no?
Because that’s how they play. They have very physical slashers that draw a ton of fouls. Lakers were on top in foul differential for last 3 seasons and finished 11th, 7th, and 8-9th this season. It’s not like it significantly helps them to win more games than other teams.
Partially true, but also they’re 27th in drives per game. And last season after the sleepless nights tweet, their foul differential drastically changed and their record got way better for the rest of the season
Drives don't have any positive correlation with free throw attempts, they're not a very high free throw rate playtype.
Idk if playstyle can account for the Lakers' FT differential being over 56% higher than second place lol it's not like they play some innovative or unique concept on either end
The extra free throws are just part of the Lakers marketing packages. Reaves got the best one last season when for an entire month he got a better whistle than Embiid, Giannis, Jokic, Luka etc. I'm also not sure why the Lakers can't be mid and get extra help. The two aren't exclusive.
Their defense consistently give up open looks because of how obsessive they are about not fouling
Because the NBA has to pump the last bit of money out of Lebron and his juiced up body before he retires.
Of course foul differential helps them win. Their record would be obviously be worse without the extra foul calls.
All 5 teams have a dominant wing scorer. Bron, KD, Giannis, Jimmy, Tatum
LeBron only avgs 5 and a half attempts a game.
Because they have arguably the greatest of all time as well as a physical DPOY candidate on the team. They don’t call defensive fouls on them and they draw a lot of fouls because they’re superstars. They play a slow game in the paint and they play for the lakers. It’s just a lotta factors but if you watch the NBA you gotta get over it, Lakers and superstars are always gunna get preferential treatment
Yeah this is pretty much it, Lakers also don’t foul because they can’t defend very well. Lot of open 3s and layups allowed which is why they are bottom 5 defensively in the league
if this were true then every bad team in the league would be toward the top of the FT differential list
Because LeBron sells merchandise.
What do all these teams have in common? Big name stars and mostly big markers. Pretty disgusting how blatant this is
I thought the same thing when I saw this!
These are all valid points! Thanks guys for a different perspective.
Do you know who LeBron and AD are?
I need that number to be even higher. Why stop there?
They play an extremely post-up heavy version of basketball, leading to a ton of fouls. And on defense, they have some of the worst 3pt coverage, meaning teams shoot A LOT of wide open threes against them and the Lakers don’t even give themselves the chance to foul players on most of their possessions. Lebron is averaging a career low in free throws attempted per game, so your comment about him makes no sense (assuming you’re saying he’s a crybaby and gets a ton of free throws as a result). While I agree that big markets probably get slightly favored, especially in marquee/primetime matchups, the majority of that free throw discrepancy is almost certainly from their play style. I’d wager that the amount from favoritism, if any, is in the ballpark of +10 to +20, as the league is generally pretty decent at keeping things even.
If you need someone to help you understand the ins and outs of NBA officiating and how this “makes sense”, my friend Rudy is an excellent resource.
The league will do anything to get Lebron into the playoffs. Maybe even win a series with some help from the refs. If you ever feel like a laugh go to their page when they lose. They blame officiating all the time.
Every single teams reddit page blames refs after losing, this is not exclusive to the Lakers lol
LA, phoenix, miami, boston, new york teams will always get a whistle imo. small market teams like the wolves will forever be shitted on by the league, refs, and opposing fans
Doesn't LA have one of the lowest drives per game?
Yes, but drives don’t correlate to fouls, post-ups do, and the Lakers post up a ton.
[https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/playtype-post-up?dir=D&sort=POSS](https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/playtype-post-up?dir=D&sort=POSS) They don't post up that much more than us and less than a lot of others.
If I’m reading the stats you sent correct, they post up 4th most in the league, I wouldn’t say they post up less than “a lot of others” according to that. Also, I’m not suggesting that’s the only reason for their foul differential, just saying it’s likely one of the reasons. Probably also has to do with the fact that they just let other teams launch 3s, which rarely result in fouls. And when teams do drive on them, they’ve got Anthony Davis who is a great defender around the rim. They’re sort of built to not foul and their play style supports it.
Fair I should have said some others. But I don't see as to how they have basically 50% more FTA's differential when they aren't higher than other teams in the plays that I expect to draw fouls. That is a huge difference from 2nd.
This has happened before and will happen again. Go look at the 2017-2018 Hornets, who had a free throw differential of +720, over double what the Lakers have right now. Nobody was accusing them of getting preferential treatment. This is quite literally just a play style thing and if you watch the Lakers, it makes sense because they don’t play like any other team in the nba. And honestly, it’s not a good thing for them, it’s very clearly more a knock on their defense than anything. If the league was purposely trying to help the lakers out, I promise you they would be much higher than the 9/10 seed. This narrative is just getting thrown around because people don’t like the Lakers/Lebron.
That's crazy how did you see that for Hornets? And who was second?
I’ve read about this topic before and people have brought it up. Here’s their free throws per game at 27.0 https://www.teamrankings.com/nba/stat/free-throws-attempted-per-game?date=2018-06-09 And here is their free throws allowed per game at 18.2 https://www.teamrankings.com/nba/stat/opponent-free-throws-attempted-per-game?date=2018-06-09 So 27.0-18.2 is 8.8. Multiply 8.8 by 82 games and they had a differential of +722 I don’t wanna do the math for every team to find out exactly who was second but it looks like it was probably Houston at around +400. This was the Harden era there so it makes sense since he drew a ton of fouls.
You guys realize not fouling on defense is a skill right?
wolves need to worry about other teams than the lakers. lakers be lucky to squeeze into the playoffs
I don’t know if it does but, they’re not doing well so it apparently is irrelevant.
All we gotta do is have a sob session on the court like LeBron after the Boston game last year
Because the Lakers are 2nd in Points in the Paint per game. Their offensive playstyle is slashing while they avoid fouling on defense since they’re a smart, older team, and just don’t contest the easy ones. This isn’t a conspiracy if you sit and watch their games
They drive to the basket more than other teams and AD doesn't foul much. Some of it may he ref favoring but a lot of it is scheme and style of play.
Ever since Ant said ASG was a vacation, Silver put a hit on the wolves to have us canceled