It's interesting to think about how we perceive foul baiting to be a big problem in the modern NBA, but FTA per game is actually very low in a historic context. Teams average 23.0 FTA per game this year. 20 years ago teams averaged 24.2 FTA per game in a much slower paced environment (average of 9 more possessions per game now compared to 03-04). In 87-88, teams averaged 29.1 FTA per game, way above the modern game despite pace being about the same as today. Fact is the modern game has fewer fouls and free throws than was typical in the past, foul baiting or not.
@@blakebowers1692 I'm sure that the increased rate of attempted threes has something to do with it, but you also have to consider that teams in the past shot way more mid range jump shots and long 2PT shots than modern teams. Fouls on jump shots are a lot lower than drives, and while 3s may be the lowest of all jump shots, mid and long range 2s still have far fewer fouls than drives. Teams today emphasize 3s and drives, whereas in the past jumpers were much more common from the 10-20 foot range. Unfortunately, precise shot distance data only started being tracked fairly recently so we can't really dig in and compare the 80s to today to look at relationship between rates of fouls, drives, mid ranges, etc.
While even sixers fans like myself don’t enjoy the amount Joel foul baits, you gotta also blame the refs for consistently calling the flops and looking for flops more than the actual fouls. Plenty of guys go up strong and don’t get calls because they are literally too strong for the contact to move them enough even though it’s technically a foul because the refs, despite supposedly working on not calling flops, still call it regularly
See that screams the NBA wanting refs to call those. Before the season refs meet up and are told what to look for. NBA wants refs to call flops or at least they would rather them blow the whistles than not
Really great point. The same happens in soccer/football, and I would assume probably other sports too. If you play on and not make an actual effort to exaggerate the fact that you've been fouled, chances are you won't get a whistle. If you're a really good player, who naturally will have a ton of offensive actions, not flopping may hurt your performance due to the referees incompetence. Edit: This is more about flopping than foul baiting, although they are highly related, there is also foul baiting that does not necessarily involve flopping.
Why do I like this format? I am not your therapist. Kofie disarms his opinions and presents them in such a non threatening way, that is so much easier to digest and consider different views. Keep it up!
The nba has a consistency problem. On any given night you could be looking at massive differences in calls between games. Jokic can play the game way on two seperate nights and het either 5ft or 18ft with the same level of physicality.
I wouldnt call Giannis a foul merchant AT ALL. He doesnt try to pump fake and draw a foul or anything like that. He goes to the basket so hard and so often that he legit gets fouled all of the time. When I watch his games I see so many calls that they dont call. It was the same for Shaq too. I dont have a problem with it even if thats what he was doing because its a part of the game and its smart. Damian Lillard is really good at it too. I actually seen the FTs are actually down and each decade the free throw attempts are less and less. I dont know why people feel like there is more fouling than usual but there isnt.
The problem I have with Embiid is he doesn’t get called for fouling on the other end of the court. Foul baiting is annoying and he’s one of the worst, but the disparity in how he’s officiated on defense and offense is what pisses me off the most. Dude should foul out every other game.
Maybe it's just me as someone who doesn't particularly love Basketball (my team has been the Warriors since the early 2010s, trust me it ain't cause my team is bad lol), I can't help but feel the nature of fouls and what it turns the end of close games into is just kinda bad game design for the sport in general.
I think likability also factors into it. One of the reasons I think Giannis doesn’t get called one is because the media and general fandom like Giannis. Harden and Embiid not so much
Luka dodges being a free throw merchant because of how crafty he is in his game - but at the same time it somehow still feels he doesn't get the whistle enough? Or the whistles on the hard contact stuff he draws - maybe I'm in the minority on this one.
I think part of the reason why people pick on Embiid a lot also is because you see him potraying this sort of tough guy, trash talking kinda personality but then on the court you see him flopping all the time to draw fouls lol. Feels kinda contradictory you know?
the DeAndre Ayton bit is something i've heard so much year after year. the guy is just afraid to go at the basket when he has the ball and has been his whole career.
League absolutely has a FT problem. Its hard to respect alot of these so called record breaking games where a player is getting 15 freethrows and has been playing against no defense for 3 qtrs
It's funny to me that people complain so much about free throws. If you have played basketball at any organized level, 99 percent of coaches will tell you the importance of hitting your free throws and creating opportunities to get to the line. Professional basketball players would be frankly stupid to not take advantage of getting to the line. Also, like 90 percent of the fouls are actual fouls! Even on "merchants" like Embiid and Harden.
I want consistent calls and fewer prima donna refs. 4 refs on the floor, decide how you're gonna call the game, get this GD "flow of the game" nonsense out of the collective ref ethos, and call it the same on both ends.
I’m a fairly new Sixers fan (and basketball watcher, generally), but I think Joel being a “free throw merchant” is incredibly funny. Like, if I didn’t want him to get so many points from the stripe, I simply wouldn’t foul him.
Saying “simply don’t foul him” is equivalent in logic to saying “just make every shot”, it’s not that simple. It also assumes all fouls are created equal and called with correct judgement, which they aren’t. The problem isn’t the fact that he gets fouled, the problem is the fact that he feels the need act excessively in order to try and upgrade marginal contact to a shooting foul. Defenders are supposed to have tools and a certain amount of leeway when attempting to guard an offensive player and it goes out the window with Embiid. This is why you see players put their hands behind their back sometimes when guarding him to show frustration with them not being allowed to do anything. It goes from being a skill that players utilize to give themselves an advantage to being an exploitation of the game, that’s the problem people have.
@@vectorz8821 Oh, I understand that. If we got Joel’d by someone, I’d be frothing at the mouth. But we’re not and I continue to delight in his antics.
It's interesting to think about how we perceive foul baiting to be a big problem in the modern NBA, but FTA per game is actually very low in a historic context. Teams average 23.0 FTA per game this year. 20 years ago teams averaged 24.2 FTA per game in a much slower paced environment (average of 9 more possessions per game now compared to 03-04). In 87-88, teams averaged 29.1 FTA per game, way above the modern game despite pace being about the same as today. Fact is the modern game has fewer fouls and free throws than was typical in the past, foul baiting or not.
prob because 3pt Attempts are up and fouls are rare on 3ptA.
@@blakebowers1692 I'm sure that the increased rate of attempted threes has something to do with it, but you also have to consider that teams in the past shot way more mid range jump shots and long 2PT shots than modern teams. Fouls on jump shots are a lot lower than drives, and while 3s may be the lowest of all jump shots, mid and long range 2s still have far fewer fouls than drives. Teams today emphasize 3s and drives, whereas in the past jumpers were much more common from the 10-20 foot range. Unfortunately, precise shot distance data only started being tracked fairly recently so we can't really dig in and compare the 80s to today to look at relationship between rates of fouls, drives, mid ranges, etc.
While even sixers fans like myself don’t enjoy the amount Joel foul baits, you gotta also blame the refs for consistently calling the flops and looking for flops more than the actual fouls. Plenty of guys go up strong and don’t get calls because they are literally too strong for the contact to move them enough even though it’s technically a foul because the refs, despite supposedly working on not calling flops, still call it regularly
See that screams the NBA wanting refs to call those. Before the season refs meet up and are told what to look for. NBA wants refs to call flops or at least they would rather them blow the whistles than not
Really great point. The same happens in soccer/football, and I would assume probably other sports too. If you play on and not make an actual effort to exaggerate the fact that you've been fouled, chances are you won't get a whistle. If you're a really good player, who naturally will have a ton of offensive actions, not flopping may hurt your performance due to the referees incompetence.
Edit: This is more about flopping than foul baiting, although they are highly related, there is also foul baiting that does not necessarily involve flopping.
@@lucasrochacupido7231 usually flopping and foul baiting go hand and hand but foul baiting is causing calls instead of taking what is given to you
Kofie is not so low key obsessed with backyard sports music as background
Players flopping on the floor like dead fish for free throws.....oh def a problem considering the nba has already imposed fines for flops
The backyard sports theme playing in the background is goated!
Why do I like this format? I am not your therapist. Kofie disarms his opinions and presents them in such a non threatening way, that is so much easier to digest and consider different views. Keep it up!
The nba has a consistency problem. On any given night you could be looking at massive differences in calls between games. Jokic can play the game way on two seperate nights and het either 5ft or 18ft with the same level of physicality.
DA hasn't figured out "dunk over guards" in 5 years he's not solving the free throw problem
I wouldnt call Giannis a foul merchant AT ALL. He doesnt try to pump fake and draw a foul or anything like that. He goes to the basket so hard and so often that he legit gets fouled all of the time. When I watch his games I see so many calls that they dont call. It was the same for Shaq too. I dont have a problem with it even if thats what he was doing because its a part of the game and its smart. Damian Lillard is really good at it too. I actually seen the FTs are actually down and each decade the free throw attempts are less and less. I dont know why people feel like there is more fouling than usual but there isnt.
he does alot of vocal foul merchanting though. always see him driving and yelling "AYYYYYE" as soon as theres any marginal contact
@@foi9841fair but I mean I wouldn't like getting touched in the air either. Freak me out
The problem I have with Embiid is he doesn’t get called for fouling on the other end of the court. Foul baiting is annoying and he’s one of the worst, but the disparity in how he’s officiated on defense and offense is what pisses me off the most. Dude should foul out every other game.
Then he has the nerve to cry about how he deserves to be MVP, Embiid is annoying
Maybe it's just me as someone who doesn't particularly love Basketball (my team has been the Warriors since the early 2010s, trust me it ain't cause my team is bad lol), I can't help but feel the nature of fouls and what it turns the end of close games into is just kinda bad game design for the sport in general.
I think likability also factors into it. One of the reasons I think Giannis doesn’t get called one is because the media and general fandom like Giannis. Harden and Embiid not so much
Free throws and constants foul baiting is the main reason I no longer watch the NBA
Luka dodges being a free throw merchant because of how crafty he is in his game - but at the same time it somehow still feels he doesn't get the whistle enough? Or the whistles on the hard contact stuff he draws - maybe I'm in the minority on this one.
*whistle* ...two shots for Harden
I think part of the reason why people pick on Embiid a lot also is because you see him potraying this sort of tough guy, trash talking kinda personality but then on the court you see him flopping all the time to draw fouls lol. Feels kinda contradictory you know?
Bro I like your style, it’s chill and fun great vibe G
Harden is 100% DIVA
Where do you get backyard sports music?
I really enjoy Kofie sitting on his crappy couch like he's in therapy, here. work through it, man
worst whistle in the league? my brother in christ let me introduce you to stephen curry
You and Motown Noah should do some content together talking about the Pistons
the DeAndre Ayton bit is something i've heard so much year after year. the guy is just afraid to go at the basket when he has the ball and has been his whole career.
League absolutely has a FT problem. Its hard to respect alot of these so called record breaking games where a player is getting 15 freethrows and has been playing against no defense for 3 qtrs
Your hockey jersey collection is goated. I'm genuinely jealous. Selanne :)
wait people don't talk about manu flopping?
It's funny to me that people complain so much about free throws. If you have played basketball at any organized level, 99 percent of coaches will tell you the importance of hitting your free throws and creating opportunities to get to the line. Professional basketball players would be frankly stupid to not take advantage of getting to the line. Also, like 90 percent of the fouls are actual fouls! Even on "merchants" like Embiid and Harden.
I want consistent calls and fewer prima donna refs. 4 refs on the floor, decide how you're gonna call the game, get this GD "flow of the game" nonsense out of the collective ref ethos, and call it the same on both ends.
I’m a fairly new Sixers fan (and basketball watcher, generally), but I think Joel being a “free throw merchant” is incredibly funny. Like, if I didn’t want him to get so many points from the stripe, I simply wouldn’t foul him.
Saying “simply don’t foul him” is equivalent in logic to saying “just make every shot”, it’s not that simple. It also assumes all fouls are created equal and called with correct judgement, which they aren’t. The problem isn’t the fact that he gets fouled, the problem is the fact that he feels the need act excessively in order to try and upgrade marginal contact to a shooting foul. Defenders are supposed to have tools and a certain amount of leeway when attempting to guard an offensive player and it goes out the window with Embiid. This is why you see players put their hands behind their back sometimes when guarding him to show frustration with them not being allowed to do anything. It goes from being a skill that players utilize to give themselves an advantage to being an exploitation of the game, that’s the problem people have.
@@vectorz8821 Oh, I understand that. If we got Joel’d by someone, I’d be frothing at the mouth. But we’re not and I continue to delight in his antics.
Love you kofie, stay strong