Where Air Balled Free Throws Happen
May 5th, 2009 at 8:57 amBy Chris
Having watched Rajon Rondo since his freshman year at Kentucky, I’m well aware of his away-from-the-rim shooting woes. Because of his freakishly-long fingers, the Celtics point guard has never had the prettiest form. Granted, he’s improved his free throw shooting since he was in college (from mid 50 percent to the mid-to-high 60s — it still needs to be higher for a starting point guard), but every so often, we learn old habits die hard; or they can come back to bite you in the form of shooting an air ball from the free throw line.
It should be noted that Rondo shot 10-12 from the line (2-12 from the field, good for an “ugh” response); however, the air ball was so egregious, the Celtics should be forced to inbound the ball the next time Rondo gets fouled in the act of shooting; maybe even more than once.
As for their series with the Orlando Magic, if the Celtics want to avoid falling into a 2-0 hole, they are going to need their point guard to return to the form he showed the first five games against the Chicago Bulls. While it’s true Rondo was close to triple-double form last night (14 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists), he did have seven turnovers, not to mention that nasty, nasty free throw air ball. For his part, Rondo believes the Celtics’ defense must improve:
“I just wasn’t aggressive,” said Rondo, who finished two assists shy of a triple-double (eight of his 10 rebounds came in the second half). “I usually get the rebounds myself and push it, but we were taking it out of the net every time and it was hard to get aggressive in the open court in transition. We were taking the ball out of bounds every time in the first half.”
Improving your shooting percentage wouldn’t hurt either, Rajon.
