Even though the Hack-A-Shaq rule has been altered by the NBA, players who struggle immensely from the free throw line are still going to pay for the glaring weakness in their game. Imagine how dominant Andre Drummond and DeAndre Jordan would be if they could shoot over 80 percent from the charity stripe. Even 70 percent.
These guys spend hours and hours practicing their free throws in the gym, but it doesn't make much of a difference come game time. A lot of the issue is mental, but their form plays into it as well.
The fact that it's almost as likely to be hit by lightning as it is to see Drummond make 13 free throws straight during actual games is pretty ridiculous.
At this point, a lot of people believe Jordan and Drummond should give the underhanded shot a chance. Wilt Chamberlain, one of the game's all-time greats as well as one of its worst free throw shooters, briefly attempted the motion and actually shot better from the line. He eventually switched back, in part because of the notion that the underhanded shot isn't “manly.”
Unfortunately, Drummond isn't even going to give it a chance.
When Dom Amore of The Courant asked Andre about the idea of adopting the underhanded style for his free throws, he dismissed the notion:
“I'm just really just continuing to work on back-to-the-basket stuff,” he said, “and working on getting better from the foul line. I'm going to stick with the formula I have now.”
Drummond is still a force in the paint with All-Star numbers, but it's a shame that he won't at least entertain the idea of trying something unique to take his overall game to a higher level.
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