by Wesley Deans

Created on: March 06, 2009

In the game of basketball the more aggressive team usually wins. A sure sign of aggressiveness in basketball is how many times a team can get to the free throw line. When players are driving hard to the basket more often than not they are going to get fouled on their way into the hoop. A team that consistently takes the ball to the basket is making a statement that they are the dominant team. There are few things in basketball that top the pure surge of emotion when a player is fouled on a made basket. Not only does the field goal count, but there is also a free attempt on the way.

Free throw percentages are notoriously higher than field goal percentages. It is only logical that a player is more likely to convert an uncontested shot. Some of the best shooters in the NBA can shoot about 50% from the field. The best free throw shooters in the NBA can sink 90% or better from the line. Ray Allen, considered one of the best shooters in the NBA, makes 48% of his field goals, while shooting a blistering 95% from the free throw line. Free throws can be a powerful weapon in determining the winner of basketball games.

When two evenly matched teams face each other the game is often times decided at the end by free throws. The team who takes advantage of their chances at the line will usually come out on top. The 2008 college basketball national championship is a great example of how free throws can cost teams huge games. Memphis missed four if its final five free throws allowing Kansas to make a heroic comeback and send the game into overtime. The Kansas Jayhawks proved to be the team with more endurance, as they outlasted Memphis in the overtime period. Memphis must have felt terrible knowing that their dreams of a championship season ended because they were unable to convert the easiest shot in basketball. They had shown they were the more aggressive team and had led the game most of the way, but poor free throw shooting allowed the victory to slip away.

The key seems to not only be aggressive in getting to the free throw line, but converting those chances. A greater confidence in free throw ability will allow a team to be more willing to go strong to the hoop. When an opposing team knows a player struggles from the line they will be much more hesitant to give up an easy basket. Players need to take free throws seriously when they are practicing, even imagining themselves in pressurized game situations. A greater seriousness about free throws will translate into better game preparedness.

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