He started shooting well after some reassuring words from Harden. Maybe Toyota Center needs to stream in some "harden soul" before each free throw.
Problem is Howard doesn't shoot jumpers. He should practice taking jump shots. A ft is just a jump shot without jumping, except you get to begin your stroke at your waist so it's an even easier shot. Weird that no one has been able to help him fix the issue.
Well, he's shooting 38% so far, hopefully that improves. Honestly I'd be happy with at least 50%. Hack-a-Howard won't hurt us much if he makes one out of two each time.
People are discussing mental resilience like its all or nothing, you either have it or you don't Dwight is incredibly resilient, all public figures have to be especially when you perform almost nightly to very fickle audiences. However, he has lost his confidence in free throw shooting, his self-efficacy is really low and it leads to poor performances. The only way out IMO is to reinstate his belief that he can actually do it (self-efficacy). It doesn't matter if this is through psychological or shooting mechanics training, this is what needs to be fixed. So yes, it is to do with mental toughness but only in the context of FT's. Don't generalize a man's character from a small aspect of his work for us
Not sure what it has to do with mental toughness. Focus, maybe, but mental toughness? Or are they the same thing? Asik shot worse last year from the line than Dwight did...Asik 54%, Dwight 58% (pretty sure those were the numbers). Asik has changed his shot this year. He has a hitch, which gives his shot a kind of rhythm and disallows him also from just flinging the ball. Asik's shot looks good, much better than last year; even his misses look good. I say Asik shoots 65% this year, maybe more.
I am a huge D12 fan, but howard clearly puts in little to no work at the FT line. I was hoping for 60%, but I guess I will take 50% at this point. Dwight needs to realize that his horrid FT shooting will inevitably cost us games.
definitely the thing that i worried most when we signed Howard , i remembered we were celebrating and making fun of him when we hack-a-Howard to win against Lakers last year, now i know how's the Lakers fan felt back then , damn karma is a biatch
a horrifyingly bad post. ofcourse he does. he just has crap mechanics and a lack of confidence at the line
Honestly, I hope the Rockets just tell Dwight to take it easy at the line instead of feeling pressure. That's how I feel about his FTs. If they don't go in, they don't go in. He's been a superstar for the past 5 years with crappy FT% and mediocre post game. If he can get better in these areas, I treat it as a bonus. But I had no illusions of Howard suddenly becoming a better FT shooter somehow this year.
Is this percentage during scrimmages or bulk shooting? It's easier to make freethrows when you shoot many in a row vs 1-2 intermittently. When he beat Harden it was probably 10+ attempts in a row (bulk). Dwight has always gotten most his points from putbacks and dunk setups from teammates, hence his extraordinary career FG%. His seasons of 20+ppg he shot 60% FTs. The Rockets and their fans would gladly take that percentage.
Everybody in this forum knew that Howard has problems shooting free throws. It was obvious for the last four seasons and to become indignant and even disrespectful now that he is a Rocket is, well, pretty darn stupid. He is still the best center in the league.
After missing 6 inarow, he did hit 4 of the last 6 attempts during the hack a Dwight fiasco.The Mavs then had to feel the wrath of Harden after that.
One out of every two would be fantastic! Because then Hack-A-Howard would net us 1 point-per-possession (which is a pretty damn good rate for an offense) Therefore rendering the strategy useless. The problem is that it's not one out of every two, it's more like he makes two, misses two, makes one, misses two... Which is why the strategy can work at times.
indeed. I think they should start to help him correct it NOW rather than later. just change the form in the next game ANYWAYS, you cant expect anything worse, so there is nothing to lose, simple evaluation. just do it NOW.
I guess the Calvin Murphy free throw lessons are overrated. I recommend Dwight stand at the free throw line at a 90 degree angle and shoot free throws with a hook shot. Maybe he can fix his FT and hook shots at the same time.
He has obviously gotten the best free throw coaching you can get, so that isn't the problem. Murph mentioned it last night, and anybody can see he doesn't use his legs at all. That's why his shot is so hard, softer=better when it comes to any shot, especially FT. I'm sure he's been told this a million times, but even in practice he shoots that way.
