What is the story about?
The NBA announced today that it will experiment with a new free throw rule in the 2026 edition of Summer League. The rule follows a practice that’s been used in the G League since 2019. It’s designed to improve game flow.
It says this:
- When a free throw is merited, a player will only attempt one free throw instead of the standard amount.
- That single free throw will be worth 1, 2, or 3 points depending on the foul condition. If the foul was a standard “and-one” then it’ll be worth 1 point. Shooting fouls on two- or three-point shots will be worth 2 or 3 points respectively. Either way, all points come via that single shot.
- Traditional free throw rules will apply during the last two minutes of the fourth quarter and throughout overtime.
It’ll be interesting to watch the results of this change if it makes its way to the regular season. I can see the game flow argument, but a couple of permutations seem interesting, maybe negative depending on your perspective:
- Good free throw shooters are going to be prized here, bad ones penalized. Poor shooters don’t have a chance to “split” the points, making one and missing one. If you miss, you get zero points. I understand that mathematically it works out to the same thing, but practically speaking there’s no guarantee that you’ll get fouled again to make the averages work out. Meanwhile I could see free throw “sharks” who make half a living getting touch-fouled when their team is in the penalty, then racking up two points every time without ever having to attempt a credible shot.
- Speaking of, coaches are going to start instructing defenders to stay wayyyyy away on three-point attempts. A foul on a three-pointer essentially converts that guarded, 23-foot attempt into an unguarded one from 15. You have to be a pretty good shooter already just to attempt a three, so that free throw shouldn’t be too hard. Giving away the biggest shot in the game from the charity stripe is a choice. I see it impacting how teams defend at the arc.
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