Miami Heat: The Stat That Will Have the Team’s Opponents Crying ‘Foul’

July 28th, 2010 by Armen Dacity Leave a reply »


You think they're crying about the Heat's Big Three now?

Just wait.

Here's a stat that foreshadows something Heat opponents will really whine about:

Free Throws Per Game (2009-2010): 1. Kevin Durant, LeBron James : 10.2

3. Dwight Howard: 10.0

4. Dwyane Wade : 9.1

5. Carmelo Anthony: 8.9

6. Chris Bosh: 8.4

That's right. The Big Three were all in the top six in the NBA in drawing fouls. They combined for 27.7 free throws per game. 

Even if the Heat's number were reduced by 20% to account for the Big Three sharing the ball (reducing the number to 22 per game), that compares very favorably to the Lakers' top three free throw shooters (Bryant, Gasol, Bynum): 17.0 per game, or the Celtic's (Pierce, Perkins, Rondo): 13.2. 



The biggest impact of this stat?

Simply stated, the ability to draw fouls is the best way to neutralize opposing big men.  How often have players like Shaq, Dwight Howard, and other bigs been forced to sit the bench due to foul trouble?

This does not bode well for teams that rely on ...

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