Raja Bell explains why NBA Draft prospects struggle to knock down free throws

As basketball has evolved as a game, so has the way we’ve taught it. More is being asked of players — particularly larger players — than ever before. Bigs are asked to shoot 3s and play on the perimeter, which can sometimes lead to a lapse in other areas of their games.

Duke freshmen RJ Barrett and Zion Williamson this season have illustrated one of the areas of the game that has suffered in recent years: The free throw. Free throws in theory are simple, of course, and they don’t need explaining. But Barrett is shooting a hair under 66 percent at the line, whereas Williamson is shooting just under 67 percent.

On Wednesday’s “Off the Bench,” Danny Kanell and Raja Bell talk about recent prospects’ struggles at the free-throw line and discuss where those issues stem from. They ultimately say that it’s the way the game is taught today, claiming that it has to do with attention span and fundamentals. Stars struggling from the free throw line isn’t necessarily a new concept, but with more and more them struggling with a basic shooting task, it appears to be more systemic than it has been in the past.

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