NBA Rivals Week continues tonight with the Houston Rockets visiting Detroit. Both teams are having successful seasons despite sharing one major flaw: poor free throw shooting.
The NBA’s team stats show each of these rosters ranking in the bottom five when it comes to free throw percentage. With Houston having the fifth lowest, at 75.3-percent, and the Pistons second lowest at 74.6-percent, it could be an ugly game. Only the Milwaukee Bucks are worse, shooting 73.4-percent from the line.
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This game can easily come down to a stat this simple. Who converts more freebies? Detroit has the added benefit of taking the third most free throws in the league as well, just a smidge behind the Lakers, earning 27 attempts per game, per NBA stats. Houston sits near the middle of the pack in that ranking with 24.8 attempts per game.
Last night’s abysmal performance from the charity stripe moved the Rockets down to 68.3-percent in this 6-6 month of January. Only making half of their 24 attempts really hurts in a six point overtime loss.
It’s actually the third time Houston has lost by six points this month, losing another game by only one point. Shooting 15/24 in that single possession loss to Portland was just another example of the Rockets shooting themselves in the foot.
Making some free throws against another team that struggles from there could be the simple advantage that gives Houston their second road win of the new year.
