NBA 2017-18: 5 Worst Free-Throw Shooters

Free-Throws are supposed to be free points where the player takes shots when the game stops. There is no defense played by the opposition and no one other than the one shooting can stop themselves from scoring points on free throws. The world has seen some great free-throw shooters in the NBA, in the form of Steve Nash, Mark Price, Stephen Curry, Ray Allen just to name a few.

On the other hand, the game also saw some of the worst free-throw shooters in the NBA. Legends like Ben Wallace, Wilt Chamberlain, Shaquille O'Neal had a very tough time at the free-throw line for major parts of their career. The league of bad free-throw shooters traditionally consist of Centers who mostly dominate at the rim with their height and power, and are not good shooters.

Intentional fouling has become a very common strategy where a team fouls the opposing team's worst free-throw shot maker intentionally to send him to the free throw line. This is particularly used when the opposition is playing really well and you are not sure of what strategy to implement. This strategy can be used to kill the opposing team's momentum.

We look at 5 players who have nightmares making shots from the free-throw line in the 2017-18 NBA season.

Honourable Mention:

Andre Drummond

Andre Drummond

Andre Drummond, the Detroit Pistons Center, was the worst free-throw shooter during the 2016-17 season with a very pathetic free-throw percentage of 38.6. However, this season, he shot with a lot more precision from the free-throw line and made significant progress in becoming a better free-throw shooter as he shot at a career-high 60.5 percentage from the free-throw line. Although he has improved a lot from where he was last season, he is still one of the worst free-throw shooters in the league and needs to work harder to get his shot right.

#5 DeAndre Jordan

DeAndre Jordan from the free throw line

DeAndre Jordan is known for his rebounding ability and the dominance with which he plays in the paint. The 2-time rebounding leader is a constant double-double threat and the only way to stop him is by fouling him when he attempts a shot and sending him to the free-throw line. There is a high chance it will pay dividends because he is known for his struggles at the free-throw line.

During the 2015 playoffs, the Houston Rockets and the San Antonio Spurs targeted DJ constantly with the infamous "Hack-a-DJ" to kill Clippers' momentum. In Game 4 of the conference semifinals, DeAndre attempted 28 free-throws, only in the first half, breaking Shaq's record.

Jordan is one of the worst free-throw shooters of all time in the NBA and was second worst in the NBA during the 2016-17 season, only behind Drummond. However, this season, his figures improved a lot as he shot career-high 58.0 percentage from the free-throw line.

#4 Dwight Howard

Dwight Howard in action

Dwight Howard's performance has declined over the years, he is still a force to reckon with. This season, he was a breath of fresh air for the Charlotte Hornets and his averages also increased. Dwight averaged 16.6 points, 12.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game playing for a very average Hornets.

However, the 3-time consecutive Defensive Player of the Year's struggles from the free-throw line continued as he only made 57.4 percentage of his attempted shots from the free-throw line. This is not a surprise because Dwight has been a very bad free-throw shooter for the most part of his career. "Hack-a-Dwight" is a common strategy used by the opponents that send Dwight to the free throw line.

In the 2016-17 season, Dwight shot 53.3 percentage from the free-throw line which means his free-throw percentage improved this season, but that is still not enough to stop his opponents from fouling him intentionally.

#3 Clint Capela

Clint Capela

Houston Rockets' young Center, Clint Capela had a great success averaging 13.9 points, 10.8 rebounds per game this past season but his free-throw woes continued from the 2016-17 season. He, along with Chris Paul and James Harden are responsible for the magnificent run the Rockets had this season.

It is common to watch Capela catch lobs from Harden and Paul when you switch on your TV and tune in to the game. The Rockets' Center outplayed even the DPOY frontrunner Rudy Gobert when the Rockets played Jazz. With his athleticism and physicality, he keeps dominating in the paint and is a nightmare to guard.

Capela is known as a bad free-throw shooter and has only made 144 of his attempted 257 shots with a free-throw percentage of 56.0. One can only hope that the youngster puts in some work and corrects his shot as he gets set to conquer the league.

#2 Ben Simmons

Ben Simmons

Ben Simmons just finished his rookie season averaging 15.8 points, 8.1 rebounds and 8.2 assists per game. He is the Rookie of the Year frontrunner along with Donovon Mitchell and might just edge him to get his hands on the trophy. Simmons was selected as the first overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers but could not play in the 2016-17 after being ruled out because of a foot injury.

Simmons has unbelievable court vision and is a great passer. Ben Simmons is known for flirting with triple-double and has passed Magic Johnson (7) for second place on all-time triple-doubles by a rookie with 8. Oscar Roberson leads the pack with staggering 26.

A very good all-around player, Simmons does not have a jump shot and also proved to be a very bad free-throw shooter as he attempted 341 free-throws and only made 191 with a free-throw percentage of 56.0. There is not much to be afraid as this was only his rookie season and his free-throws are the only thing to worry about and it will mostly be the thing he works on this off-season.

#1 Steven Adams

Steven Adams

Steven Adams is definitely top 3 Center in the NBA today. He is a defender's nightmare to guard in the paint and dominates anyone with ease. The large part of OKC Thunder's success can be attributed to Steven Adams' selfless game. He expertly manoeuvres the pick-and-roll with guard Russell Westbrook and though it is predictable, they both execute it with perfection each and every time and defenders are left clueless, thanks to Adams' physicality.

Adams is a constant double-double threat and pulls down rebounds without any difficulty. The Kiwi is known for his struggles from the free-throw line and was the worst free-throw shooter in the NBA. In the Game 4 of the 2016-17 first round playoffs against the Rockets, with Thunder being down by 4 points, Steven Adams missed a free-throw intentionally, grabbed the rebound and passed it to Westbrook, who made a deep 3-pointer to cut the lead to 1. Though Thunder went on to lose the game, Adam's presence of mind and the whole sequence was highly praised by the entire basketball community.

This season, he shot 286 and only made 160 of those from the free-throw line with a very bad 55.9 percentage and was the worst free throw shooter in the league. This came after having a career-high free-throw shooting percentage of 61.1 in the 2016-17 season.