5 takeaways from New York Knicks weekend back-to-back

5. Free throw woes

The New York Knicks shot very well from the 3-point line against the San Antonio Spurs and Brooklyn Nets. It is what kept them in the games. But, for as well as they shot from distance, they are struggling mightily from the free throw line.

The Knicks were woeful from the charity stripe this weekend. Not only did they not shoot well, but they also didn’t get there frequently.

Against the Spurs, New York was 9-of-15 from the foul line. Rookie RJ Barrett was 1-of-4, as he is shooting under 50 percent from the line this season, which is an unacceptable number.

Against the Nets, it was more of the same. They once again made only nine free throws, this time on 16 attempts. Kevin Knox and Frank Ntilikina, who combined to make all three of their attempts, were the only players above 50 percent from the line against Brooklyn.

For the season, New York is the only team in the NBA shooting less than 70 percent from the foul line (67.1 percent), even as their 23.9 attempts per game is tied for 13th.

This is a big problem for New York. Had they shot their free throws better, they could have won at least one, if not both, of these games. They are shooting a lot of 3-pointers of late, which is resulting in less attacking of the rim and fewer attempts at the foul line.

The Knicks are 16th in the NBA over their last 10 games with 22.3 free throw attempts per game.

That is not a winning formula. Attacking the basket will result in easier shot attempts and more attempts at the free throw line, where they cannot be afraid to go despite their lack of success there thus far this season.