Milwaukee Bucks: Giannis Antetokounmpo’s historic free throw volume
With each passing season, Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo grows even more prolific in being able to get to the free throw line.
As he continues to progress in his superstar career, Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo has increasingly earned his stripes at the free throw line.
Year over year, Antetokounmpo’s volume of free throw attempts has increased, to the point where the reigning MVP is currently averaging 10 free throw attempts per game during this currently suspended 2019-20 season.
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The fact that Antetokounmpo reached such a mark while his minutes have gone down for the second straight season makes this even more remarkable.
In fact, Antetokounmpo is in a class by himself as he’s the only player in NBA history to average 10 free throws per game while playing fewer than 31 minutes per tilt, per Basketball-Reference.com.
Of course, Antetokounmpo’s game is largely unparalleled, given the size, ball handling, and relentless attacking ability that has made him one of the biggest paint forces in NBA history. And it’s the unrelenting pressure he has put on the rim and on opposing defenses as he has ascended to superstardom that has helped Antetokounmpo become a ridiculously prolific free throw shooter.
That becomes even clearer when you take into account Antetokounmpo’s remarkable free throw attempt rate, which has always stood incredibly high throughout his seven-year career (Antetokounmpo has a 47.8 free throw attempt rate).
Over the last two seasons, Antetokounmpo’s free throw attempt rate topped out at 55 percent for his MVP-winning season in 2018-19 and 50 percent this season. What that essentially means is that for every two shots that Antetokounmpo attempts, he matches that with a free throw attempt.
Given that Antetokounmpo’s shot profile is largely taking shots from 3-point range, attacking the basket and taking trips to the free throw line, the 25-year-old has nearly perfected attempting the most efficient shots the game has to offer in this age.
The only thing missing from Antetokounmpo’s free throw production, though, is being able to convert his chances at a higher clip. That’s been an even more pressing issue this year as Antetokounmpo’s free throw percentage tumbled all the way down to a career-worst 63.3 percent through his 57 appearances on the season.
Antetokounmpo’s inconsistencies can be seen in the fact that his meticulous free throw routine changed at various points throughout the season and it certainly showed in the lack of comfort he displayed from the foul line for most of this year.
As it stands, Antetokounmpo’s free throw efficiency, free throw attempt rate, and raw free throw attempts this season puts him in the company of big men who have historically struggled from the free throw line such as Wilt Chamberlain, Dwight Howard and Shaquille O’Neal.
With the start of the playoffs not far away from when the season does restart next month, Antetokounmpo’s history of inconsistencies shooting from the free throw line will come under greater scrutiny as well. For context, Antetokounmpo has converted 64 percent of his 292 free throw attempts during his postseason appearances to date.
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Whether Antetokounmpo can reverse course and and find some greater consistency at the free throw line stands as the biggest challenge for him to tackle, both at this point in his career and with the pressure of wanting to win an NBA title on his shoulders. As we see, getting to the free throw line is far from the problem.