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The Indiana Pacers struggled with their important free throws

By Tony East

SACRAMENTO, CA - MARCH 29: Thaddeus Young #21 of the Indiana Pacers attempts a free-throw shot against the Sacramento Kings on March 29, 2018 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CA - MARCH 29: Thaddeus Young #21 of the Indiana Pacers attempts a free-throw shot against the Sacramento Kings on March 29, 2018 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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The Indiana Pacers won a multitude of close games last season. They can thank everything but their free throw shooting for that.

Dear Indiana Pacers: YGTMYFTs.

It’s not that simple. Free throws present challenges that are hidden in other basketball activities. All eyes are on you, it’s quieter in the arena, and the pressure is palpable. They are not as easy as it would appear.

But they are free throws. They are supposed to be free, or at least relatively free, points. You need to make them at a high clip, it can be the difference between winning and losing games.

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Seriously, it is almost that simple. The top four free throw shooting teams in the league were the Warriors, Timberwolves, Trail Blazers, and Raptors. All four of those teams won 47 or more games. The bottom four free throw shooting teams? The Lakers, Thunder, Kings, and Suns. The Thunder were good, but the other three teams were… not.

The Pacers finished last season 12th in free throw percentage at 77.9 percent, which is solid. In terms of expected points per possession, that’s like shooting 52 percent from three-point range. That is very efficient.

But the problem for the Pacers existed less in their general free throw shooting and more in their important free throw shooting. When the game became close and every possession became more important, the charity stripe became the Pacers biggest enemy.

Despite being a borderline top-10 free throw shooting team overall, when the importance ramped up the results did not. Let’s talk scenarios.

With two or fewer minutes to go in a game that was within two points, the Pacers were 34/44 from the free throw line. Not bad, not great. That accuracy put them 16th in the league in that scenario.

Narrowing our focus, with the game within one point with one minute or less on the clock, the Indiana Pacers went 13/17 from the stripe or 76.5 percent. That was the 17th best figure in the league.

Victor Oladipo Indiana Pacers free throws
BOSTON, MA – March 11: Victor Oladipo #4 of the Indiana Pacers shoots a free throw during a game against the Indiana Pacers at TD Garden on March 11, 2018, in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

Granted, both of those percentages are still fine. They are about average. But when the game is important, you need to be above average. And think about the situation a lot of these free throws are taken in.

When the game is close like that, usually free throws come because the other team is intentionally fouling and needs to stop the clock. Because of this, you can essentially select your free throw shooter. Whoever catches the inbounds pass is going to get fouled.

Darren Collison and Bojan Bogdanovic both shot upwards of 85 percent from the free throw line. In theory, one of them should be shooting the clutch free throw every opportunity possible.

Collison crumbled when the free throws are more important – he hit just 73 percent of his clutch free throws (game within 5 with <5 minutes to go in the game) on the season. That’s fine, but not up to his normally elite standard. Using Collison should be a reliable strategy down the stretch, but it wasn’t. That hurt in close games.

Thaddeus Young also struggled with clutch free throws, and other teams often did whatever they could to have him be the guy on the line down the stretch. The Pacers need to avoid this next season, as Thad struggled from the line all year, hitting below 60 percent.

You can even find specific games where this poor free throw shooting dictated an undesirable result. The Indiana Pacers lost to the Miami Heat on October 21st. They lost by 4. They were 15/21 from the line.

Indiana lost by five in Atlanta on February 28th. They were 15/20 from the charity stripe that night. They missed eight free throws in their one-point loss to Boston in December. Not all of these freebies were clutch, but some were, and they couldn’t make it happen.

Next. Here’s what happens when Victor Oladipo pushes the envelope. dark

If the Pacers could have hit the top-10 in clutch free throw shooting last year, they probably would have won 50 games. YGTMYFTs. This simple improvement could change the narrative on their season next year. Hopefully, they can iron out the kinks when the pressure is on.

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