There MIGHT be some validity to those wrist injuries affecting his free-throws, but... 7'7 Gheorghe Muresan: 64% Career FT 7'7 Manute Bol: 56% Career FT 7'6 Yao Ming: 81% Career FT 7'6 Shawn Bradley: 72% Career FT 7'5 Chuck Nevitt: 59% Career FT 7'4 Mark Eaton: 65% Career FT 7'4 Rik Smits: 77% Career FT 7'4 Ralph Sampson: 66% Career FT 7'3 Arvydas Sabonis: 79% Career FT 7'3 Zydrunas Ilgauskas: 78% Career FT 7'1 Shaquille O'Neal: 53% Career FT I'm SO TIRED of hearing the idiotic "big hands" argument. Only two guys on that list couldn't manage at least 10% better than Shaq, and they were both no-talent stiffs (and excluding most of thse guys from the "stiffs" category is rather kind of me, I might add). For god's sake, Manute Bol outshot Shaq. Freaking MANUTE BOL. Shaq should be ashamed.
Shooting underhand is probably the best way for Shaq to shoot free throws. He can't hit the freebies because his hands are HUGE. Try to shoot a baseball, that's how Shaq feels. Shooting underhanded doesn't require that much control on the hands. It requires accuracy on the part of wrists and arms, which I think Shaq is better at, since he is pretty good with his baby hooks.
O'Neal unveils new free-throw motion By Ira Winderman South Florida Sun-Sentinel Posted October 13 2006 MIAMI � The one-armed man was back at it at Heat practice Thursday, shooting free throws with the ball balanced on the palm of his right hand, with his left arm removed from the process. Center Shaquille O'Neal continued to downplay the change to his motion that led to a pair of swishes in his only attempts in Tuesday's exhibition loss to the Pistons, but it's obvious this is nothing close to the form that led to career-worst .461 and .469 inaccuracy in his two seasons with the team. I’m just practicing something different," he said. The altered style not only has removed the hitch from his delivery, but also lofts the ball on a higher, more forgiving arc. Neither O'Neal nor coach Pat Riley would divulge how the change came about. "It ain't nothing that I really thought about," O'Neal said. "It looks a little nicer," Riley said. Riley often had to remove O'Neal during tight situations in last season's run to the title, including the dramatic Game 5 overtime victory against Dallas in the NBA Finals. He said it is a strategy he would prefer to avoid. "I hope that he gets it up there a little bit this year," Riley said. "We'll work with him and talk with him, if we have to, and show him film on it." While O'Neal swished several consecutive shots after Thursday's practice at AmericanAirlines Arena, there also were several wayward attempts that bounded harshly off the rim. "I think the more you talk about it, the worse it gets," Riley said. `wasted week' is over Thursday was the first time the team met since Tuesday's 84-64 loss to Detroit, the franchise's lowest-scoring exhibition ever. "The film was really embarrassing," Riley said. "It was almost like a wasted week. They realize it, that they just did not do the things we talked about." Ball a slippery subject As much as the Heat struggled against the Pistons with the new, composite ball, Riley's team has yet to get a true test. As part of the promotion for the game in Puerto Rico, a different, specially embossed edition of the new ball was used for each of the four quarters, something that will not be the case in other games. "There were a lot of turnovers in the game, and it wasn't just because it was the first exhibition game," guard Dwyane Wade said of the 47 turnovers, including 25 by the Heat. "When you go into traffic with that ball, it's a little different. You don't have as much grip on it, the same control on it that you normally have. Off the glass, this one sticks, and it's not good for me." Said forward Antoine Walker, "We just probably need to go back to the old [leather] ball." Kudos for kapono Riley noted the play of Jason Kapono in Tuesday's loss, and for more than the swingman's team-high 12 points. "Jason Kapono I thought played extremely well in a lot of areas," Riley said. "Not only was he playing his game offensively and getting his shots, but he played with energy and he did a great job effortwise and also defensively." ... Apparently, Wade doesn't rate as highly in the fantasy world. Among those who have registered for fantasy basketball at the NBA's Web site, the Heat guard ranks eighth among the picks, behind (in order) LeBron James, Shawn Marion, Dirk Nowitzki, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, Gilbert Arenas and Ray Allen. Ira Winderman can be reached at iwinderman@ sun-sentinel.com. source: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/...13oct13,0,2503408.story?coll=sfla-sports-heat
what a novel concept! not letting your non-shooting hand affect the release of the ball! I think i'm gonna go outside and see if it works for me. Give whatever coach thought of this technique a raise.
