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UNC-G, 7:00 PM; ESPN3--On a TUESDAY!

RivalsLes said:
That may have just been a throw away line, but you do know Devin is 2nd on the team with 24 assists. He's one of the better post players in the country in terms of finding his teammates. You likely are generally making a valid overall argument in that his time may be better spent on other facets of the game, but to say he needs work passing out of a double team seems like a bit of a slight on one of the better parts of his game.
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Wasn't meant to be a slight. He's a good passer out of double teams (I'd be interested to know how many of his assists come out of a double team in the post vs. out of the high post). But given the number of double teams he sees a game, an improvement from good to great in that area will result in more added points for the team than an improvement from mediocre to good on the free throw line.
 
IslandDeac said:
Rajon Rondo is one example of this. No clue how he is doing now but he used to suck, then spent time with a "free throw guru" and started shooting much better.
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The fact that you chose Rondo kind of proves my point. Rondo shot just under 65% when he came into the league and has never had a season above that number. He's slowly gotten worse. The "jump" you are likely talking about came between 2012 and 2013 when he went from just under 60% back to just under 65%. This "improvement" (probably a result of sample size) added a paltry .12 ppg for the Celtics. Definitely worth the effort
 
IslandDeac said:
I've been fortunate to speak with a few successful former coaches and they would each agree that improving free throw shooting is not some impossible task that some make it out to be.
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It's also not as simple as spending an afternoon with a free throw guru and putting up an extra 100 shots a day.
 
wfu22fan said:
WFU coaches have had 4 years to correct DT's shooting technique. Same with CMM. I don't understand the lack of improvement. I'll have to admit that CMM has looked a little better in the limited amount of shots he has taken so far this year. Ish Smith never improved at WFU either but his shot looks much better now. It appears that a shot doctor has worked with him.
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Still working with a very small sample size. Devin Thomas has taken nearly twice as many in game free throws (571 to 309) since he started at Wake than Ish Smith has in his Wake career and NBA career combined.
 
RChildress107 said:
Wasn't meant to be a slight. He's a good passer out of double teams (I'd be interested to know how many of his assists come out of a double team in the post vs. out of the high post). But given the number of double teams he sees a game, an improvement from good to great in that area will result in more added points for the team than an improvement from mediocre to good on the free throw line.
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Think we're in close to 100 percent agreement here. He's close to a 60 percent FT shooter, which for a F/C isn't all that bad. The last two games have been awful, without a doubt, but that's an aberration. How much time would it take to increase to let's say 67 percent? Surely that's got to be about the ceiling, right? He took 184 foul shots last season. An additional 7 percent increase would mean an extra 12 points on the season. Though nobody wants to see a further regression, generally speaking his time is better spent somewhere else.

I'd say nearly all of his 24 assists on the season come from passing out of double teams in the post. Passing out of the high post in the flow of the offense isn't something that usually directly leads to an open teammate. I'd argue he's already great in this area. It's actually one of the things in his game that has consistently impressed me this season. For all the knocks he takes for his temperament, he's an unselfish player.
 
RivalsLes said:
Think we're in close to 100 percent agreement here. He's close to a 60 percent FT shooter, which for a F/C isn't all that bad. The last two games have been awful, without a doubt, but that's an aberration. How much time would it take to increase to let's say 67 percent? Surely that's got to be about the ceiling, right? He took 184 foul shots last season. An additional 7 percent increase would mean an extra 12 points on the season. Though nobody wants to see a further regression, generally speaking his time is better spent somewhere else.
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The reasons for us needing DT's free throw percentage to improve are a lot broader than just the additional points. If he continues to shoot 50% or worse then teams will simply employ the hack-a-Devin strategy - especially toward the end of games. This will kill any offensive flow we have, prevent him from getting into any kind of rhythm, possibly tick him off to where he gets a T or something, and eventually force us to take him out of the game.

And I do believe he can improve with a little extra practice. Even if his form doesn't improve significantly, he can work on his consistency and focus. Even with bad form, if you can make it repeatable, you can make it work.
 
I'm also in the camp that it's not the extra points an improved FT % would provide for DT and the team. WHEN those points would come from an improvment is likely far more significant.
 
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