Foul line trips up Knicks, Celts Give belated Thanks
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Sarah Stier/Associated Press
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NBA teams take 23 free throws apiece this season, just under one FTA per minute of play. (The per-game rate fell to 21 during Week 5.)
But New York and Boston have collectively and cumulatively attempted 182 FTA’s – the C’s 28.3 per game, the Knicks 32.3 per game. That computes to 1.25 FTA's per minute of play -- the ratio for today's Q3 was a smidgen under 2:1 (23 FTA's).
Dave Fizdale’s guys – courtesy of their 17 – 10 margin in FT conversions – earned one more “stop” for the afternoon than did the Stevens Gang. But 11 FT misses (compared to six for the Celtics) squandered that victory-of-sorts, and Boston’s +7 at the three-point stripe made the close-out of a 113 – 104 outcome relatively stress-free.
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| USA Today |
Through five weeks and 16 games, the Celtic defense was limiting opponents to .428 overall FG shooting.
However, three of their last four opponents have connected on better than 46% of their FGA’s.
Game 19 at New York
Boston 113
FG: C’s – 41-93, .441
3FG: C’s – 15-41, .366
FT: C’s – 16-22, .727 [10 conversions]
TS%: C’s – .550
OR: C’s – 16 + 3 (team) [minus 0 FT rebounds]
DR: C’s – 28 + 4 (team) [minus 3 FT rebounds]
TO: C’s – 13 + 1 (team)
Poss: C’s – 98 {47 “Empty”}
PPP: C’s – 1.153
CV%: C’s – 51 / 98, .520
Stripes: C’s – 9 [4.5 conversions]
Adjusted CV%: C’s – 55.5 / 98, .566 {expected production, 111 points}
New York 104
FG: NY – 35-76, .461
3FG: NY – 8-26, .308
FT: NY – 26-37, .703 [17 conversions]
TS%: NY – .564
OR: NY – 8 + 3 (team) [minus 0 FT rebounds]
DR: NY – 31 + 3 (team) [minus 4 FT rebounds]
TO: NY – 14 + 2 (team)
Poss: NY – 98 {46 “Empty”}
PPP: NY – 1.061
CV%: NY – 52 / 98, .531
Stripes: NY – -3 [-1.5 conversions]
Adjusted CV%: NY – 50.5 / 98, .500 {expected production, 101 points}
Note re Calculation & Notation:
The number of “possessions” is an accurate count, not a formula-based estimated value. For purposes of clarity, the bracketed digit following the FT% is the exact count of “conversions” represented by those FTA’s.
“Possessions” calculation: FGA’s + FT conversions + TO’s – OR’s (including Team OR’s) – FT OR’s
“Conversions” calculation: FG’s + FT conversions
“Stripes” calculation: 3FG’s – missed FTA’s
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| Newsday |
CV% = Conversion Percentage
Abacus Revelation for the Road
Credit this “revelation” to nba.com: Kemba Walker became the first Celtic to reach double figures in assists in 19 contests.
Should this be a concern – or is it evidence of a more collaborative (i.e. less ball-dominant) approach to offensive execution?
Before you answer, you may want to consider that no Knick has recorded as many as 10 assists through 20 games.
