The Phoenix Suns got back to winning ways on Tuesday, with a 120-111 victory over the Dallas Mavericks. A win made all the sweeter as both Devin Booker and Jalen Green again featured.
The Suns didn't have it all their own way, with Naji Marshall scoring 31 points to again illustrate that this team has a soft center that can be attacked.
Suns come back from huge free-throw deficit to win
An interesting fact quickly emerged from the win, with the Mavericks shooting a ridiculous 35 more free-throws than the Suns over the course of the game.
Tonight's free-throw differential of 35 is the highest in a NBA game over the last five seasons, per @Stathead. 35+ has now only happened seven times in the last 15 years.
— Kellan Olson (@KellanOlson) February 11, 2026
This has happened only seven times in the last 15 years as Kellan Olson pointed out, and the fact it happened in Phoenix is even crazier.
While head coach Jordan Ott rightly urged the league to look into this after the game, you can certainly put a positive spin on the disparity here.
That the Suns still managed to win this one despite the Mavericks making 23 more shots at the charity stripe than Phoenix even attempted is unheard of.
But going back to the start of this campaign this roster has shown a ton of resilience, staying in the thick of the playoff action even with Green missing so much time.
It seems appropriate that Dillon Brooks would lead the Suns in scoring in this one with 23 points, because it is his never say die attitude that has been so critical this season.
It is also possible that the difference in free-throw attempts being highlighted is going to have a positive impact for the next few games as well.
Earlier this season Minnesota Timberwolves' head coach Chris Finch took to the media to point out the volume of fouls that the Oklahoma City Thunder were drawing.
After doing so there was a period of time when this did not happen nearly as much, with referees clearly having heard the message Finch was trying to convey.
There is every chance that the Suns have a more friendly whistle across the next couple of weeks, to ensure this does not become a larger talking point.
Not that the team is going to complain too much either way, it hasn't been their style all season. Instead they'll go about their business and are going to be a tough out in the postseason if they can make it.
Getting to the line a bit more each night to help try and make that happen sure would be nice though.