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Drummond's free throws

beez

beez

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 3, 2011
Messages
2,591
I saw a highlight video of his free throws on PTI yesterday...is anyone else shocked that something hasn't clicked for him to be at least a 50% ft shooter? Doesn't look like a bad stroke at all..with a little coaching it seems like it would be easy to double his horrid college numbers from the line. They have a good staff at Uconn so I guess it's a bit discouraging he didn't get better there but he also hasn't played long and maybe couldn't focus on Ft's as much due to other important areas needing improvement. I have to believe while he might still be awful from the line in the pro's, it may not be of the laughable variety it's been so far. He's going to get specific free throw coaching and can only get better.

What do you guys think?

I'm gonna say bold prediction, he shoots 48% from the line this year. (I think he shot 27% last year.)
 
We knew when we drafted him his FT's were horrible. I really hope he works on it because teams will just foul him all the time knowing he wont make shit. I love this kids potential but he has a lot of work to do. And its up to the Pistons to help him. But Joe seemed to understand that when they drafted him.
 
Shaq even with 53% for his career and his free throws looked disgusting. But IMO, a bad free throw shooter at age 20 will always be a bad free throw shooter.
 
FTs can be taught, but it's all time and effort. His shot is off for one main reason, he has way too much motion. He does that little drop and stand with his lower body, coming to a near complete stop for a moment before shooting. This throws off his timing and makes his release point inconsistent. He needs to just stand up, set his hips and shoulders, then shoot - same stance, same release every time. He needs an assistant to sit down with him after practice and just force him to shoot the same way over and over. It's completely correctable, but obviously no guarantee.
 
zoombabyzoom said:
Seriously FTs are an acquirable skill. Just repetition
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Okay so they can be taught but someone like Drummond needs more repetition than most and because he won't get, he has other things to work on, he'll be a Shaq2.
 
Mitchrapp said:
Okay so they can be taught but someone like Drummond needs more repetition than most and because he won't get, he has other things to work on, he'll be a Shaq2.
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If our coaches and assistants are even close to worth their salaries, he'll get the repetitions. But at the same time, a lot of it is on him. He has to want to improve, has to get himself in the gym on his off days and keep practicing what the coaches teach.
 
There are lots of guys who go from bad free throw shooter to good. Just never seen someone this bad % wise before.... Like I said though, never would guess just by looking at his stroke it would be THAT bad. I think there's hope for him. If he sticks as an NBA player I htink he'll improve mightily from the line.
 
Indy said:
There's a 0% chance that he won't make it in the NBA.
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Ever heard of Hasheem Thabeet?....Jonathon Bender?...Dennis Hopson?

Sometimes guys just don't pan out...Drummond being a huge project player makes it impossible to guarantee he sticks in the NBA. I think he will but he's nowhere near a guarantee.
 
Last edited:
beez said:
There are lots of guys who go from bad free throw shooter to good. Just never seen someone this bad % wise before.... Like I said though, never would guess just by looking at his stroke it would be THAT bad. I think there's hope for him. If he sticks as an NBA player I htink he'll improve mightily from the line.
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I actually think it makes sense when you look at how he shoots. He has waaaay too much motion leading up to the release. He swings himself upwards as if on the move, and the release isn't consistent in the timing. Basically, he's shooting like a kid in the backyard, not like an athlete who has practiced a specific motion over and over. Look at the best free throw shooters (Chauncey for example). It's all compact, repeatable motion. They almost never use their legs (which can be fatigued and cause a lot of motion) to shoot, and have a very specific release that they get into every time.

Free throws aren't rocket science, but they require specified practice, as much as post moves, rebounding position, and help defense. I think a lot of big men come into the game as poor shooters because they never needed more than size. And at higher levels, coaching would rather focus on defense, rebounding, and post ups than free throws. I think a lot of coaches take it for granted that you can just practice shooting free throws without properly evaluating mechanics. I also think a lot of coaches don't worry about their big men's free throws because they simply accept that it is normal for big men to be bad shooters.
 
everyoneneedsasmil said:
I actually think it makes sense when you look at how he shoots. He has waaaay too much motion leading up to the release. He swings himself upwards as if on the move, and the release isn't consistent in the timing. Basically, he's shooting like a kid in the backyard, not like an athlete who has practiced a specific motion over and over. Look at the best free throw shooters (Chauncey for example). It's all compact, repeatable motion. They almost never use their legs (which can be fatigued and cause a lot of motion) to shoot, and have a very specific release that they get into every time.

Free throws aren't rocket science, but they require specified practice, as much as post moves, rebounding position, and help defense. I think a lot of big men come into the game as poor shooters because they never needed more than size. And at higher levels, coaching would rather focus on defense, rebounding, and post ups than free throws. I think a lot of coaches take it for granted that you can just practice shooting free throws without properly evaluating mechanics. I also think a lot of coaches don't worry about their big men's free throws because they simply accept that it is normal for big men to be bad shooters.
Click to expand...

I'm not saying he looks like a good free throw shooter..I'm saying he doesn't look like he should be anywhere near 25%... if I saw a kid in the gym shooting free throws like that, I would have no problem believing he could shoot 50-60%. It's not like he has Chuck Hayes motion or something.
 
Yeah but Ben Wallace had a sweet stroke but sucked. Drummond nearly air balls every FT, its fucking insane. How the fuck is that possible.
 
zoombabyzoom said:
Yeah but Ben Wallace had a sweet stroke but sucked. Drummond nearly air balls every FT, its fucking insane. How the fuck is that possible.
Click to expand...

This isn't a perfect example, but imagine all your life you were playing basketball against kids a foot shorter and nearly 100 lbs lighter. Imagine you never needed to practice anything to be better than them, stronger than them, and faster than them. Even if they did foul you, you were already dunking the ball, so the extra point barely mattered. Now imagine you also have been growing at a ridiculous rate, that you aren't especially skilled (never needed skill or finesse) and you find every time you practice shooting you grow another inch and it messes up your practice. What kind of incentive do you really have to give free throws as much practice as everything else?

I'm not saying he's ever going to be Chauncey from the line, but anyone should be able to get to 60-70%. I like the reports that he spends a significant amount of practice on free throws every time - that he has someone working with him on mechanics as much as repetition.
 
Yeah, he seems like a very hard worker, and I think that the young core we have are great examples for him and are good leaders. You would think he would be at least a little better, but I never have had the problem of continuous growing that would actually mess up my shot so it is tough for me to comment on that thought.

But if a guy genuinely works hard at free throws and is getting some coaching, like others have said, there is no reason that he can't shoot 60%.
 
I will never understand how somehow who plays basketball daily cannot shoot at least 60 percent from the stripe.
 
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