The Cavaliers lost 11 points to the Rockets and, in that same game, Cleveland players missed 12 free throws (15/27). It’s obviously always reductive and too simplistic to say it like this, but with more success, the outcome of the meeting might have been different.
In any case, this anecdote reflects a real evil in Cleveland. JB Bickerstaff’s troops tend to have rough nights on the free throw line. And this 55% success in the defeat in Houston confirms it.
“We have to put the free throws”, provides the coach to the Plain Dealer. “There is no ‘if’, ‘but’, ‘or’… We have players who are able to put in who are clumsy at the moment. We are focused on that. “
The Cavs’ irregularity is obvious when you look at a few games here and there. A 90% success rate against the Nets in mid-January turns into 68% two days later against the Bulls. Three days later, they fell to 56% against the Thunder, before a 52% against the Knicks. Then, in the victory against the Bucks, it goes back to 82%, before a very average 64% in the backhand against the Pistons.
24th in the ranking of free throw success
How to explain such clumsiness and such variations, almost from one match to another?
“I speak for Evan Mobley: how many free throws have you made in-and-out? “recalls Kevin Love. “It’s the same with Jarrett Allen, I see him shoot in training, in shootarounds. I missed free throws myself. It’s up to us to get back in the right direction, because it could make a difference in the matches we lost. “
With 75% success in this area, the Cavaliers are indeed the 24th most accurate team in the NBA on the throw line. Despite their very good season so far (fifth in the East), Ohio players can still do better to catch up with the Sixers, Bulls, Heat, Celtics or Nets, the only franchises in the league to exceed 80% success for the moment.
“It’s about repetition, and good repetition”says JB Bickerstaff. “You can’t show up on the line, in training, and do anything, or chat during your pre-game routine. You have to be disciplined, focused, disregard the rest and not think about the one you just missed. Obviously we need to work harder. “
| Shots | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | bp | Int | CT | party | Points |
| Darius Garland | 44 | 34.7 | 46.7 | 36.9 | 90.7 | 0.5 | 2.8 | 3.3 | 8.2 | 3.6 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 1.7 | 19.8 |
| Collin Sexton | 11 | 28.8 | 45.0 | 24.4 | 74.4 | 1.2 | 2.1 | 3.3 | 2.1 | 2.8 | 0.9 | 0.0 | 2.3 | 16.0 |
| Jarrett Allen | 44 | 32.6 | 67.8 | 11.1 | 69.0 | 3.4 | 7.4 | 10.7 | 1.9 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 1.9 | 16.0 |
| Evan Mobley | 44 | 34.2 | 50.8 | 28.6 | 65.6 | 1.9 | 6.3 | 8.2 | 2.6 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 1.7 | 2.1 | 15.2 |
| Kevin Love | 44 | 21.9 | 43.5 | 39.4 | 87.1 | 1.1 | 6.3 | 7.5 | 2.2 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 1.0 | 14.2 |
| Lauri Markkanen | 38 | 30.2 | 43.6 | 34.2 | 86.3 | 1.1 | 4.2 | 5.3 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 13.6 |
| Ricky Rubio | 35 | 28.3 | 36.0 | 33.5 | 85.4 | 0.4 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 6.6 | 2.7 | 1.4 | 0.2 | 2.2 | 12.9 |
| Cedi Osman | 40 | 23.3 | 41.9 | 35.4 | 63.0 | 0.4 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 1.9 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 2.0 | 10.8 |
| isaac okoro | 37 | 28.6 | 46.9 | 30.7 | 74.7 | 1.1 | 2.2 | 3.3 | 1.8 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 2.5 | 9.2 |
| Malik Newman | 1 | 7.7 | 60.0 | 0.0 | 100.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 8.0 |
| Rajon Rondo | 8 | 19.5 | 35.3 | 36.7 | 87.5 | 0.1 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 4.2 | 2.1 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.5 | 6.8 |
| Brandon Goodwin | 12 | 16.4 | 42.6 | 36.4 | 50.0 | 0.5 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 3.2 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 0.0 | 1.4 | 6.1 |
| lamar stevens | 36 | 15.3 | 47.9 | 31.0 | 63.6 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 1.5 | 5.4 |
| Dean Wade | 37 | 18.8 | 44.8 | 36.3 | 60.0 | 0.7 | 2.4 | 3.1 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 1.6 | 5.1 |
| justin anderson | 3 | 15.5 | 50.0 | 33.3 | 75.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 1.3 | 4.3 |
| Tre Scott | 2 | 5.7 | 50.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 3.0 |
| Denzel Valentine | 22 | 9.3 | 37.1 | 40.9 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 1.3 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 2.9 |
| Dylan Windler | 35 | 9.7 | 42.9 | 38.9 | 77.8 | 0.4 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 1.1 | 2.7 |
| Luke Kornet | 2 | 7.4 | 20.0 | 0.0 | 66.7 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 2.0 |
| Rj Nembhard | 6 | 7.0 | 45.5 | 0.0 | 50.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.7 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 1.8 |
| Kevin Pangos | 22 | 7.4 | 33.3 | 23.1 | 75.0 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 1.8 |
| Ed Davis | 16 | 8.5 | 64.3 | 0.0 | 37.5 | 0.4 | 2.2 | 2.7 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 1.6 | 1.3 |
| Tacko Fall | 11 | 5.3 | 41.7 | 0.0 | 28.6 | 0.6 | 1.5 | 2.1 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 1.1 |
