Despite struggling on their home court occasionally this season, the Sacramento Kings hosted the star-studded Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers on a back-to-back home stand, impressively winning both. The Kings beat the Lakers 120-107, but the significant free-throw difference would make a box score watcher believe otherwise.
The Kings shot 9-12 from the charity stripe, compared to the 17-22 the Lakers shot. While the free throw difference did not impact the result, this is not the first time the Kings have seen an odd free throw disparity.
Sacramento saw a more significant free throw difference in the first leg of their recent back-to-back against the Bucks. The Kings shot 13-16 from the line, while Milwaukee knocked down 27 of their 35 attempts. Again, the disparity did not affect the result, as the Kings picked up a dominant 129-94 win against the East's second-place squad.
In their last two games, the Kings have shot 29 fewer free throws than their opponents. While they have managed to pull out wins in both games, the odd trend has baffled Kings HC Mike Brown, as he voiced his frustrations following Wednesday's win over the Lakers (via @SacramentoKings | YouTube):
"I know it's tough for the officials, but it's two nights in a row that, in terms of attempts, we are probably minus 30, if not more, in the free throw situation versus two really good teams. We've got to keep fighting and trying to figure out what we're doing to where we're not getting to the free throw line but our opponents are, as much as they are. It's hard to deal with but our guys did a great job of just trying to go out there and play, keep their composure, and not allow the discrepancy from the free-throw line to bother them."
Brown does not suggest that the referees are in the wrong, but rather the Kings need to do a better job at getting to the line. Sacramento's star duo of De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis, both fantastic interior finishers, must lead the offense by getting to the rim at a higher rate.
The Kings have taken the 5th-most three-pointers of any team this season, but have the 26th-most free throw attempts. The Dallas Mavericks are the only team that is top-five in three-point attempts, while also top-ten in free-throw attempts. For the Kings to see better free throw results, they will likely need to get more attempts around the rim.
Nonetheless, Brown has the right to voice his frustrations about the free throw differences they have seen, especially against two teams who are top-five in free throw attempts on the season.
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