Josh Smith the Worst FT% shooter in the league

[GameTime]

http://www.nba.com/statistics/player/FreeT...ager.offset=100

Biedrins has less attempts. How did he get so bad? He was a 71% shooter last year.

Edited March 2, 2009 by GameTime

[PureGreatness]

http://www.nba.com/statistics/player/FreeT...ager.offset=100

Biedrins has less attempts. How did he get so bad? He was a 71% shooter last year.

well damn

[mrhonline]

Considering how important getting to the line is for Smith, it's a big problem.

[DrReality]

I'll say it again: he needs to practice FT's blindfolded so he won't think about it. Or go to the Rick Barry method.

[Dsinner]

The good news is Woody isn't going to make him practice any FT's due to the fact that "it might become mental".

Something's "mental" alright.

[Admin]

http://www.nba.com/statistics/player/FreeT...ager.offset=100

Biedrins has less attempts. How did he get so bad? He was a 71% shooter last year.

It truly is remarkable how poor of a FT shooter he has become this year and I just don't get it. His FT shooting is going to be a major issue though because I'd much rather have Al and Zaza in there with the game on the line these days since I don't expect them to miss one or both of their FTs like I do with Josh now.

We often assume that Josh doesn't think enough and that's why he does some of the dumb things that he does but I'm beginning to think that maybe he is over thinking things and maybe he just needs to get out of his head some. Like the female announcer was saying last night you can just see the potential there and you keep waiting for it to happen but he won't let it.

[Guest]

Free throw shooting is all about the amount of time you put into practicing your free throws. Its not like you are born with the ability to hit 90% like some players are born with the ability to jump 40 inches. My guess is Smoove got his payday and is slacking off. I don't think this is a Mark Wohlers type of situation where he has a mental block that no one can figure out. He was also never dominant at the line, he was about average and now he is the worst in the league. Laziness.

[Admin]

Free throw shooting is all about the amount of time you put into practicing your free throws. Its not like you are born with the ability to hit 90% like some players are born with the ability to jump 40 inches. My guess is Smoove got his payday and is slacking off. I don't think this is a Mark Wohlers type of situation where he has a mental block that no one can figure out. He was also never dominant at the line, he was about average and now he is the worst in the league. Laziness.

I'd like to think that it's not laziness and I really don't see Smoove as the type of player to get his contract and sit on it but it's possible that because it dragged out so long that he wasn't putting in the work he should have been over the summer. Even though he wasn't a great FT shooter he was adequate at around 70% and I was always comfortable with him going to the line with the game in the balance.

[Traceman]

I'd like to think that it's not laziness and I really don't see Smoove as the type of player to get his contract and sit on it but it's possible that because it dragged out so long that he wasn't putting in the work he should have been over the summer. Even though he wasn't a great FT shooter he was adequate at around 70% and I was always comfortable with him going to the line with the game in the balance.

It is CLEARLY mental with Smoove right now. He is like a golfer with a bad case of the yips or like the catcher who couldn't throw the ball back to the pitcher. I'm sure he is shooting a ton of them in practice and I'm sure he is making probably the same 70% that he has always made...in practice.

I'm sure he is getting advice from all over the place too. I'm sure everyone is so eager to help him that they are telling him different things and that is making it even worse.

Seeing as how we have one of the greatest FT shooters of all time as our shooting coach, you would think he would have the right assistance at his fingertips but actually, I think that might be part of the problem. Price's shot is so technically correct that he would probably shoot a great percentage with his eyes closed. Literally. JJ and Marvin could probably shoot a pretty good percentage blindfolded for the same reason. On the otherhand, Smoove's shot has far too much extra motion in it and it is not compact enough to ever be great. Trying to incorporate the same principles into Smoove's shot/routine that Price uses may have inadvertently caused this disaster. At this point, he should just watch tape and duplicate what he used to do.

Smoove could be a decent FT shooter (as he was up until this year) but never great unless he completely changes his shot. It is too late to do that during the season but he might want to seriously consider that in the offseason.

[MrRyda]

He needs to go back to that high school shooting form.

And I don't care how many attempts he has, Biedrins is .002% worse! Fraud topic!

[Iman]

I think Josh still thinks he can be a superstar (probably same with Marvin and Al) and he's working much harder than we think he is. He'll be fine, but he'll probably never be a great shooter, 35% 3 pointers and 70% free throws is probably gonna be about the best he'll do unless he completely changes his shooting form.

[AtLaS]

Free throw shooting is all about the amount of time you put into practicing your free throws. Its not like you are born with the ability to hit 90% like some players are born with the ability to jump 40 inches. My guess is Smoove got his payday and is slacking off. I don't think this is a Mark Wohlers type of situation where he has a mental block that no one can figure out. He was also never dominant at the line, he was about average and now he is the worst in the league. Laziness.

It's not laziness. You don't just forget how to shoot free throws after shooting them fine for 4 years. He even had an interview not long ago where he says it is clearly mental and that he always makes them in practice.

[DieHardHAWK]

What the hell is Mark Price doing, isnt he suppose to help with the shooting? The whole team's freethrow shooting has been garbage. I think Smoove already knows he is going to miss both so he doesnt even care.

[Chris18]

DeAndre Jordan shoots 30% from the line.

[Wurider05]

Free throw shooting is all about the amount of time you put into practicing your free throws. Its not like you are born with the ability to hit 90% like some players are born with the ability to jump 40 inches. My guess is Smoove got his payday and is slacking off. I don't think this is a Mark Wohlers type of situation where he has a mental block that no one can figure out. He was also never dominant at the line, he was about average and now he is the worst in the league. Laziness.

That is what I have been saying all season!!!!!

[Frenzy]

DeAndre Jordan shoots 30% from the line.

lol........

[Guest]

It's not laziness. You don't just forget how to shoot free throws after shooting them fine for 4 years. He even had an interview not long ago where he says it is clearly mental and that he always makes them in practice.

Its not that he forgot how to shoot, its that if you don't keep yourself shooting a lot then you become worse. If you stop benching all of the sudden, it isn't that you forget how to bench as the reason why you cannot bench as much as before. If you don't keep working, you regress. Smoove isn't working.

[Traceman]

Its not that he forgot how to shoot, its that if you don't keep yourself shooting a lot then you become worse. If you stop benching all of the sudden, it isn't that you forget how to bench as the reason why you cannot bench as much as before. If you don't keep working, you regress. Smoove isn't working.

It's not that simple. I know first hand how something like this can become mental. I played tennis in college and I had a doubles partner who was a GREAT player. In fact, he was an All American in singles and doubles. Most of the time, he had a terrific serve, but every now and then, something would go wrong and he would start double faulting like crazy. Once he started double faulting, he would just mentally shut down to the point that he could barely even complete the service MOTION let alone get the serve in.

I remember him losing it so bad mentally in a big tournament one time to the point that he was serving underhanded on his 2nd serve. Imagine Roger Federer serving underhanded at Wimbledon and that is about the equivalent of what was happening. It certainly had nothing to do with practice. We would all practice our serves daily and he would work as hard on his serve as anyone.

Watching Smoove at the line, he reminds me a lot of my partner. If he misses that first FT, he almost has no hope of making the 2nd either.

[benhillboy]

Josh is a detestable jump shooter and free throw shooter, point-blank period. It seems futile to even try to figure out why. Only Josh truly knows how many reasons and what they are: pure laziness, lack of focus, and just not giving a **** come to mind. His being comfortable with his "natural" motion is a cop-out. His natural shot, with about 30% wasted motion, isn't an amatuer shot, let alone a pro one. If Mark Price is at your disposal, there is absolutely no excuse to be under 70%. NONE.

[Guest]

It's not that simple. I know first hand how something like this can become mental. I played tennis in college and I had a doubles partner who was a GREAT player. In fact, he was an All American in singles and doubles. Most of the time, he had a terrific serve, but every now and then, something would go wrong and he would start double faulting like crazy. Once he started double faulting, he would just mentally shut down to the point that he could barely even complete the service MOTION let alone get the serve in.

I remember him losing it so bad mentally in a big tournament one time to the point that he was serving underhanded on his 2nd serve. Imagine Roger Federer serving underhanded at Wimbledon and that is about the equivalent of what was happening. It certainly had nothing to do with practice. We would all practice our serves daily and he would work as hard on his serve as anyone.

Watching Smoove at the line, he reminds me a lot of my partner. If he misses that first FT, he almost has no hope of making the 2nd either.

I don't think tennis and free-throw shooting are even close to the same. Tennis is excruciatingly mental. Free-throws are just repetition, its not like Smoove is missing with the game on the line or anything like that. Its been a season long crapshow from the line. He is missing in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quarters pretty much evenly.