Free throw
In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points by shooting from behind the free-throw line, a line situated at the end of the restricted area. Free throws are generally awarded after a foul on the shooter by the opposing team, analogous to penalty shots in other team sports. Free throws are also awarded in other situations, including technical fouls, and when the fouling team has entered the bonus/penalty situation. Also, depending on the situation, a player may be awarded between one and three free throws. Each successful free throw is worth one point.
Description
In the NBA, most players make 70–80% of their attempts. The league's best shooters can make roughly 90% of their attempts over a season, while notoriously poor shooters may struggle to make 50% of them. During a foul shot, a player's feet must both be completely behind the foul line.Awarding free throws
There are many situations when free throws can be awarded.The first and most common is when a player is fouled while in the act of shooting. If the player misses the shot during the foul, the player receives either two or three free throws depending on whether the shot was taken in front of or behind the three-point line. If, despite the foul, the player still makes the attempted shot, the number of free throws is reduced to one, and the basket counts. This is known as a three-point or four-point play, depending on the value of the made basket. "And-One" is also a popular term for this type of free throw.
The second is when the fouling team is in the team bonus situation. This happens when, in a single period, a team commits a set number of fouls whether or not in the act of shooting. In FIBA, NBA and NCAA women's play, the limit is four fouls per quarter; in the NBA, starting with the fifth foul, or the second in the final 2 minutes if the team has less than 5 fouls, the opposing team gets two free throws. The WNBA follows the NBA's rules regarding reset of the team foul count in the final 2 minutes of any period. In FIBA and NCAA women's basketball, the fouled player also shoots two free throws starting with the opponent's fifth foul in a period, considering that team fouls accrue from the fourth period on, as all overtimes are extensions of it for purposes of accrued team fouls. In NCAA men's basketball, beginning with the seventh foul of the half, one free throw is awarded; if the player makes the free throw, another is given. This is called shooting a "one-and-one". Starting with the tenth foul of the half, two free throws are awarded. In addition, overtime is considered an extension of the second half for purposes of accumulated team fouls. Free throws are not awarded for offensive fouls, even if the team fouled is in the bonus. The number of fouls that triggers a penalty is higher in college men's basketball because the game is divided into two 20-minute halves, as opposed to quarters of 12 minutes in the NBA or 10 minutes in the WNBA, college women's basketball, or FIBA play. As in professional play, a foul in the act of shooting is a two- or three-shot foul, depending on the value of the shot attempt, with one free throw being awarded if the shot is good.
Free throws are normally taken by the fouled player. If a player is injured upon being fouled and cannot shoot free throws; in college, the opposing team's coach may designate any player in the game at the time of the foul to shoot free throws in the place of the injured player; in the NBA, the opposing team designates the player to shoot, and the injured player cannot return unless the foul committed was a flagrant-2, in which case the player's own team also gets to pick the replacement shooter. The opposing team chooses a replacement shooter if the player fouled is ejected before taking their free throws.
If a player, coach, or team staff shows poor sportsmanship, which may include arguing with a referee, or commits a technical violation that person may get charged with a more serious foul called a technical foul. In the NBA and in FIBA, a technical foul results in one free-throw attempt for the other team. Under NCAA rules, technical fouls are divided into "Class A" and "Class B". Class A technicals result in two free throws, and Class B technicals result in one. At all levels, the opposing team may choose any player who is currently on the court to shoot the free throws and is then awarded possession of the ball after the free throws. Since there is no opportunity for a rebound, these free throws are shot with no players on the lane.
File:Technical foul.jpg|thumb|Natisha Heideman shooting free throws after a "reckless closeout" flagrant foul by Courtney Vandersloot in Game 2 of the 2024 WNBA Finals. Note, both teams wait for the ball behind the shooter and away from the baseline because of the escalated nature of the foul.
Finally, if a referee deems a foul extremely aggressive, or that it did not show an attempt to play the ball, the referee can call an even more severe foul, known as an "unsportsmanlike foul" in international and NCAA women's play or a "flagrant foul" in the NBA and NCAA men's basketball. This foul is charged against the player, and the opponent gets two free throws and possession of the ball afterward. Unlike technical fouls, the player fouled must shoot the awarded free throws.
Fouls "away from the ball" are handled like the second case above in most situations. Many times defenders hold their opponent to prevent them from catching an in-bound pass or fight through screens and thus are called for fouls. These fouls are almost always treated as normal personal fouls. In the NBA, when there are only two minutes left on the clock of either half, off-ball fouls when the fouling team is over the limit are rewarded with one free throw and possession of the ball. It is therefore common for a losing team to deliberately single out its opponent's poor free-throw shooters, regardless of their dominance in other aspects of the game, as the targets of deliberate fouls until the two-minute mark, after which the losing team plays intense defense for the rest of the game; this strategy is known as the "Hack-a-Shaq". It is believed that this rule was instituted because of Wilt Chamberlain. Previously, teams had been allowed to foul any player on the court regardless of whether that player had possession of the ball, with only two free throws awarded to the fouled player. This motivated teams to chase poor free-throw shooters, such as Chamberlain, around the court in an attempt to foul him in an effort to extend the game. To discourage this practice, the NBA changed the rule to award one free throw and possession of the ball to a player who has fouled away from the ball in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter. This rule does not apply in international or NCAA play and in fact, plays a very vital strategic role in the NCAA Tournament.
Effective in October 2022, FIBA established a new category of personal foul that it calls a "throw-in foul". This category only applies in the last 2 minutes of any period. Any personal foul by the defense on an offensive player while the ball is out of bounds and either in the hands of the referee or at the disposal of the player taking the throw-in results in 1 free throw and possession.
3x3, FIBA's version of the half-court three-on-three game, has its own unique free-throw rules.
- No free throws are awarded for the first 6 team fouls during a game. Exceptions are shooting fouls, technical fouls, and unsportsmanlike and disqualifying fouls.
- In standard free-throw shooting situations, only one free throw is awarded. This matches normal scoring, in which baskets inside the "three-point" arc are worth 1 point and those from outside the arc are worth 2 points.
- A player fouled on a missed basket attempt normally receives a number of free throws equal to the value of the attempted shot.
- A player fouled on a made basket normally receives one free throw.
- A team enters the bonus once its opponent has committed its seventh foul of the game. On team fouls 7, 8, and 9, the fouled player receives two free throws. Starting with the 10th team foul, the fouled player receives two free throws and the non-offending team receives possession of the ball. This supersedes the standard rule for shooting fouls.
- Technical fouls result in one free throw for the non-offending team, and add 1 to the offending team's foul count. No additional free throws are awarded.
- Unsportsmanlike fouls result in two free throws. Disqualifying fouls, including a player's second unsportsmanlike foul, result in two free throws and possession. Both types add 2 fouls to the team foul count, but no additional free throws are awarded.
- As in standard full-court rules, offensive fouls never result in free throws.
- Double fouls never result in free throws, even if one or both of the fouls are unsportsmanlike or disqualifying.
Procedure
The remaining players must remain behind the three-point line and the "free-throw line extended".
Leaving their designated places before the ball leaves the shooter's hands, or interfering with the ball, are violations. In addition, the shooter must release the ball within five seconds and must not step on or over the free-throw line until the ball touches the hoop. Players are, however, permitted to jump while attempting the free throw, provided they do not leave the designated area at any point. A violation by the shooter cancels the free throw; a violation by the defensive team results in a substitute free throw if the shooter missed; a violation by the offensive team or a shot that completely misses the hoop results in the loss of possession to the defensive team.
Under FIBA rules, if the shooter does not commit a violation, and the ball goes in the basket, the attempt is successful, regardless of violations committed by any member of the non-shooting team.
| Offensive players | Both teams' players | Defensive players | Shooter | |
| Made | Free throw is not counted Turnover | Free throw is counted | Free throw is counted, and another is taken | Turnover |
| Missed | Free throw is not counted Turnover | Jump ball Possession arrow | Free throw is retaken | Turnover |