99% of the time this is well before the shooter begins the try (and 84.6 % of the time it's before s/he even has the ball). It's nothing.

Citation ???
 

84.6 %? Reference please.

Significant digits can help you in physics class. Not so much in the forum....:D

We've been talking a lot about disconcertion here and it has been a good discussion. That said, I think it's important to point out that we shouldn't go looking for it. Deference is the better part of valor. I've called it once in seven years; an opponent behind the arc decided to overtly clap just as the free-thrower was about to release. Obvious. No one argued. Disconcertion is a call that should pop out at you.

If they aren't on the floor, they aren't a player, they are a team member or substitute. I assume you are talking about a team member of the opposing team sitting on the bench.:D

If you are playing HS basketball and this affects your ability to shoot a free throw, you should really think about taking up another sport.

Distraction ...
 

In my high school game, if an opponent is screaming this from a marked lane space, or from behind the arc, or, possibly, even from the bench, while the free throw shooter is in the act of shooting, and if I feel that this is a distraction to the free throw shooter, I will call the delayed violation every time. If the free throw misses, we're shooting again.

9.1.3 SITUATION D: ... The free thrower is entitled to protection from being distracted. It is the opponent’s responsibility to avoid disconcerting the free thrower.

And in the real world, how often does that happen?

I Ignore Quite a Few Other Rules, Too
 

That's why, whenever a defender appears to disconcert a free thrower I NEVER CALL IT.
Instead, I kill the play and ask the free thrower if he was disconcerted. If he says "No", I go to the AP arrow. If he says "Yes", I ask the coach for a sub and counsel the player to go straight to the locker room and quit.
Happens maybe three or four times a year.
:D

The "screaming" part, never. But the top 2 guys raising their arms to distract the shooter, or repeatedly asking "who's got shooter" as he begins his shooting motion, quite often.

I address it the first time it happens, then don't have to worry about it anymore.

This
 

Or, as I wrote before, yelling, "I'VE GOT SHOOTER!" LOUD, right as they shoot. Yep, I've called it. IMO, they know what they're doing and they're doing it for the specific purpose of throwing the shooter off.

All this discussion I think supports my point that no matter what the officials ruled on this play, it is impossible to sit here and say they were wrong. This "question" should not have been on the test.

A common scenario that I have observed regarding disconcertion of the FT'er is this ( A1 is the FT shooter, B1 is occupying the lane space nearest to A1):

A1 is preparing to shoot the FT, then A1 starts to yak at B1 while A1 is preparing (going thru the normal pre-shot ritual with the ball) to shoot the FT--saying things like "you can't keep up with me", "stop fouling me", or "you my lunch". Then B1 in reply yaks back at A1 saying something like "you lucky the ref bailed you out cos I smacked your shot" or "you could never make a FT".

In my view this was what I'd call "invited disconcertion" that was precipitated by A1's verbal remarks to B1. I do not penalize B1 for this, I rather just tell them both to "knock it off". A1 does not get a substitute FT if shot missed.

Alternatively, I have seen B1, B2 perform a dramatic sneeze sound when A1 is preparing to do the FT's. In this latter case, I have enough common sense to know that B1, B2 are conducting pre-meditated disconcertions. If FT was missed I award a substitute FT to A1.

On topic, but different twist...has anyone ever called or considered calling disconcertion on the opposing coach for loudly calling for a timeout after the ball is at the disposal of the shooter?

I came close one time when the shooter was half way through his pre-shot routine (couple of bounces, hold the ball for a second and one more bounce before shooting) and the coach started yelling for a time out. The catch was that it distracted the shooter enough that he felt that he needed to restart his routine. He stopped, looked at the coach, looked at me and when he realized we weren't stopping play, he restarted his routine. In my opinion, the coach wasn't trying to disconcert him, but he had done so nonetheless. My 10 second count might have been interrupted or slowed by the whole ordeal, but I still came close. Had I made it to 10 or the shooter missed, I was prepared to call disconcertion. Irony is that we would have been able to grant the time out at that point.

How about when a Coach or another personnel on the bench that yell "Box Out" on the 1st of 2 Free Throws? hmmmm

If he's saying this stuff loud enough for me to hear it, that's an easy unsporting T for trash talking. Then he can shoot his FTs with no one on the lane, after which we will go to the other end to shoot the technical.