By Schuyler Abrams
By the time the leaves had changed color, Jake had taken other girls on casual dates to the carnival. But he desperately wanted to impress Juliet. His plan was simple: make three shots in a row and win her the giant teddy bear with the crimson bow around its neck.
Jake slammed five dollars on the counter and the barker handed him a basketball.
Swish.
Swish.
Swish.
Juliet received her stuffed animal, but Jake heard people snicker behind him. He realized his mistake too late: better to miss and look manly than make all three underhanded and look like a granny.
Several past NBA players shot this way very effectively, including Wilt Chamberlain… No one snickered at him I bet. Nice little twist!
There were rumors that Rick Barry, who made 90% of his free throw attempts in his NBA HOF career, wanted to teach Shaq how to shoot underhanded free throws. Barry has since offered his services to other NBA players. Even though it would definitely improve their free throw shooting percentages, no one has ever taken Barry up on his offer.
Style matters more than making the actual shot…