Free throws

[jaba]

Of course practicing free throws matters...How else do you explain Rick Barry being the best free throw shooter in ABA history and the third best in NBA history...I don't remember him nailing a lot of outside jumpers underhanded, which is the way he shot free throws

 

[DobbsRover2]

Exactly. The law of large numbers says that 1) over time, a 55% shooter is a 55% shooter, but it also says 2) over any given limited sample, the shooter's performance may deviate wildly from this average, either to the good, as in your Wilt example, or to the bad, as with the unfortunate Ms. Hrynko. I am sure that Wilt also had games in which he went ohfer, and that Ms. Hrynko will have games in which she will shoot 100%. This in no way refutes my contention that good free-throw shooting can not be learned, or notably improved upon by practice.

My whole point is that those who say that anyone is a good/bad ft shooter from practice/lack of practice is simply misled. Practice does not help.

Practice, even practicing with good form, doesn't appear to help much as the game situation is always very different from the practice floor situation. My unsupported guess about the fact that the majority of teams and players improve slightly as the year goes on is simply that they gain from experience and can tune out some of the distractions better or finally remember to take an extra breath or two before stepping to the line when they're tired. There are a lot of shots that are 100% dead as they leave the hand, but just remembering to put enough arc on it to get it over the rim will at least give it a fighting "oops was I lucky" chance.

I still believe that a clinic with a FT expert can make a significant difference, but you have to be able to absorb the lesson and actually use it in a game.

 

[Icebear]

There are NBA teams spending a lot of money to improve their foul shooting.

 

[RadyLady]

Practicing free throws is time consuming and difficult. There is only so much practice time available so it might not be as high a priority as it might seem to warrant.

Practicing FTs needs to be done under game conditions. I remember this from my own experience. Being in a close, stressful game and stepping to the line. You're fatigued, arms and legs shaking, thinking you'll be lucky to hit the rim. So, how easily in practice can game conditions be simulated? That's the rub. It can be done, but it's not easy. I'm constantly amazed when a player sinks two late in tight game.

Its all muscle memory dude...

 

[RadyLady]

No big deal, and since missing a certain amount of FTs on the year is inevitable just as losing 50 games in the MLB is, I'm not going to fret over it that much though I understand you will be losing some follicles over it. And all those who want to weep over UConn's terrible FT shooting in NC games will naturally understand if I pay more attention to the stats that really matter. And if there are those who say that the minimally acceptable FT% is one that only 7% of teams achieve in the best of years, I will say it is a noble goal but maybe getting back in touch with reality can also be a useful goal.

And bottom line, if you want to win games, score more baskets. I know you worship your FTs, but the Huskies did win some games last year where the other team scored more points at the charity stripe, including yes that NC game. Feel free not to be concerned about the dumb passes that prevent the buckets from being scored or any of the other integral parts of a smoothly running championship team since I'm sure that gnashing the molars down to the gums over missed freebies is the best way to get to #10.

I'm thinking that number 25 DePaul was poised to take down number 5 Notre Dame and blew it at the line Notre Dame wasn't going to let them score, they were going to keep fouling them. DePaul had a lead to which they could have added with all the free throw opportunities and they didn't! you can bet your boots that Doug Bruno is going to ensure that free throws if not part of a practice, then a part of individual workouts.

Many many times close games are decided at the foul line you have two teams playing equally well, the score is going to be close. So free throw shooting ends up being very key to pulling out the W.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Free throws are important for several reasons, among them (1) in a close game, they can be the difference between winning and losing and (2) good shooting makes the women's game more appealing. WCBB has too many missed layups and scrums for loose balls, which the detractors note. Good FT shooting can offset some of the criticisms.

I miss OC too. His treatise on FT shooting should be resurrected. Good form AND repetition are key. Ray Allen is clearly OCD, but look at his great results.

The team's shooting depends on (1) how well each player shoots and (2) who gets the most shots. I'd love to see KML get more FTs, because she is almost automatic. Morgan is a pretty good shooter. Both Gabby and Kia need to improve. I'd like to see them at 70% or more.