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Sunday NBA Fix: Single Free-Throw Idea An Intriguing One

By Phil Watson

Jun 10, 2014; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (3) shoots a free throw against the San Antonio Spurs during the second quarter of game three of the 2014 NBA Finals at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 10, 2014; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (3) shoots a free throw against the San Antonio Spurs during the second quarter of game three of the 2014 NBA Finals at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jun 10, 2014; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (3) shoots a free throw against the San Antonio Spurs during the second quarter of game three of the 2014 NBA Finals at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 10, 2014; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (3) shoots a free throw against the San Antonio Spurs during the second quarter of game three of the 2014 NBA Finals at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /

Welcome to the Sunday NBA Fix for Oct. 5, where the idea of limiting free-throw shooting to one shot is tickling the imagination.

For almost 30 years, NBA players got three chances to make two free throws on common fouls if the opponent was over the limit for the quarter.

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Three-to-make-two was eliminated after the 1980-81 season and since then, players are awarded two shots on common fouls when their opponent is in the penalty.

Former D-League president Dan Reed kicked around a proposal earlier this year that would take one more radical step in the other direction—one free throw that would be weighted.

  • The free throw would be worth two points if the foul was in the act of shooting or if the penalty situation applied.
  • The free throw would be worth three points if the foul was in the act of shooting a 3-point field goal.

According to Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com, that would reduce the average number of foul shots in an NBA game from 47 to 26. For a league that is looking for ways to shorten the amount of time it takes to play a game, shaving 21 free-throw attempts a game would be significant, considering every free throw takes 10 seconds or more by the time everyone is set, the ball is put into play and the shooter goes through his routine.

In fact, Arnovitz’s research found that from the time the whistle is blown to call to foul until the second shot hits the rim, it’s about a 45-second lag. For single shots—technical fouls and and-1 calls—it’s about 30 seconds.

A lot of that depends on the shooter—Dwight Howard’s free throw attempts can be timed on a sundial. Other players simply step to the line and let it fly.

The D-League implemented four rules last season to shorten play, including reducing the number of timeouts to pushing teams to make quicker substitutions.

The average time of game went down by two minutes. The single free-throw rule is estimated to save about five minutes per game and would come entirely from stoppages of live play while keeping the length of game action the same as it always was.

Traditionalists, of course, would be likely to pan the idea. Except that I am a traditionalist and I love the idea. Nothing is more frustrating than end-of-game situations where, between the fouls and the incessant timeouts, the final two minutes of an NBA game can take almost 20 minutes in real time.

Chris Alpert, vice president of basketball operations for the D-League, recited the traditionalist’s argument.

“As we discussed it further with the basketball guys, we just felt it would be compromising the integrity of the game and players’ statistics. We didn’t want to skew a player’s free-throw shooting percentage and we didn’t want to compromise the purity of the game.”

That argument is based on statistics that show that players make a higher percentage of second shots (77.7 percent in the NBA) than they do first shots (73.2 percent).

To which I respond thusly: Boo-freaking-hoo.

As far as statistical integrity, quick … name the top 10 free throw shooters in the NBA without looking.

I’ll wait.

I’m sure most of you got Dirk Nowitzki, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant.

It was the other seven that were probably more perplexing, so here’s the answer key:

  1. Brian Roberts, New Orleans (.940)
  2. Nowitzki, Dallas (.899)
  3. Reggie Jackson, Oklahoma City (.893)
  4. Kevin Martin, Minnesota (.891)
  5. D.J. Augustin, Toronto-Chicago (.885)
  6. Curry, Golden State (.885)
  7. Durant, Oklahoma City (.873)
  8. Damian Lillard, Portland (.871)
  9. Jamal Crawford, Clippers (.867)
  10. James Harden, Houston (.866)

In fairness, Brian Roberts is a household name … in the Roberts household, at least.

Isn’t it at least worth a look, maybe for a season at the D-League level, where the record book may not be as hallowed as it is at the NBA level? That’s not to imply that the NBA record book is particularly hallowed, but the “statistical integrity” card was played.

These are the best players in the world. Certainly adding a little pressure to free-throw situations while saving a lot of time can’t be a bad thing, can it?

Here’s a division-by-division look at what’s making news around the association: