Does it bother anyone else that some NBA players can't shoot?

[mgent]

I just don't understand how you play basketball for a living, yet you don't spend the time to perfect the most used scoring method.
This isn't so much aimed toward Centers seeing as it isn't too often they stray from the basket, but I think all wing players should at least be ABLE to hit a 3, and most PFs should be able to knock down shots somewhere in mid-range, if not longer.  But I think it's pretty bad when you have a guard or a SF on your team that can't really shoot ANY shot accurately.
The thing that gets me is, you can't just genetically be a bad shooter.  I understand that some big guys have big hands so it makes shooting harder, and I understand there aren't many small guys out there that can't shoot, yet there's enough of them to make me question how hard it is to learn how to shoot.
I for one couldn't shoot a 3 very well when I was younger, but now that I've practiced it, I've gotten better.
Also, I don't buy into the argument that some guys are only on the court as "defensive specialists" or drivers/slashers or play-makers.  If you're playing in the NBA, playing defense and driving and making plays are just things you need to learn how to do, as is shooting.
The other thing that bugs me is, how guys like KG can shoot very accurately from right inside the 3 point line, yet they never shoot 3s.  I'm assuming KG is a decent enough 3 point shooter, so why is it he can't take a 3 every now and then if he's open, much like Scal does and Wallace will soon do?  And for those other guys who are pretty good shooters from that distance, why can't they learn to shoot 2-3 steps back?

[BrickJames]

if basketball was a game of making jumpshots, maybe it would.  however, the ball can, and is, put in the hoop in far more different ways than uncontested jumpers.

there are other components to the game: passing, rebounding, midrange, post, defense, teamwork, clutch factor, etc.

so in short, no, it doesn't bother me one bit.

[nickagneta]

It bothers me when they can't hit free throws.

Shooting during non-free throw parts of the game, no.

But they call them free throws for a reason and since most players are probably on the court for thousands of hours a year, why they can't spend time learning to hit free throws is ridiculous and embarrassing.

[Roy Hobbs]

It amazes me that a guy like Desmond Mason only makes 28.5% of his jumpers, and yet jump shots make up 50% of his game.

[pengaloo]

I think it bothers me more that most pitchers can't bat.

[mgent]

It bothers me when they can't hit free throws.

Shooting during non-free throw parts of the game, no.

But they call them free throws for a reason and since most players are probably on the court for thousands of hours a year, why they can't spend time learning to hit free throws is ridiculous and embarrassing.

I agree about the learning to shoot free throws thing.
But why can't they spend time learning to shoot jump shots too?  It doesn't mean they have to give up whatever their game is.

[Fafnir]

It bothers me when they can't hit free throws.

Shooting during non-free throw parts of the game, no.

But they call them free throws for a reason and since most players are probably on the court for thousands of hours a year, why they can't spend time learning to hit free throws is ridiculous and embarrassing.

I agree about the learning to shoot free throws thing.
But why can't they spend time learning to shoot jump shots too?  It doesn't mean they have to give up whatever their game is.

Its one thing to hit a jump shot in practice. Its another to get it off against NBA defenders and hit the same shot.

[KCattheStripe]

Rajon Rondo's inability to hit a jumper has never quite "bothered" me.

[Celtics17]

Shaq can't shoot a lick but he is probably the 2nd most dominant player of the last 15 or maybe 20 years. If you dont think he is then you need to review the series where he averaged almost 40 points and 20 rebounds per game. MJ is the most dominant but there were times when Shaq was real, real close to as dominant. Rondo can't shoot all that well either but he dominated in the playoffs last season. This is kind of like asking if it bothers you that some football players cant catch the football or block that well. You could say, well, all football players dont have to catch the ball but really, all basketball players dont have to shoot that well either.

[Fan from VT]

only if they're simultaneously complaining about needing to be paid more do i become bothered by a player's inability to shoot. Otherwise, it's just more evidence that they happen to be insanely naturally good at something that provides them with excellent employment and it's up to them to determine how good they want to get. More evidence that some fans take the NBA more seriously than many players do, who have the attitude that they are employed doing something fun and don't want to sweat too much.


Less negatively, perhaps it's also indicative of just how phenomenonally athletic some of these players are that they can survive and thrive without a jumpshot; perhaps some are naturally capped in this one area but excel in other markers of athleticism. 

[mgent]

Rajon Rondo's inability to hit a jumper has never quite "bothered" me.

Me either.  But it'd be nice if he could.

[mgent]

It bothers me when they can't hit free throws.

Shooting during non-free throw parts of the game, no.

But they call them free throws for a reason and since most players are probably on the court for thousands of hours a year, why they can't spend time learning to hit free throws is ridiculous and embarrassing.

I agree about the learning to shoot free throws thing.
But why can't they spend time learning to shoot jump shots too?  It doesn't mean they have to give up whatever their game is.

Its one thing to hit a jump shot in practice. Its another to get it off against NBA defenders and hit the same shot.

It's obviously different, but not impossible.

[guava_wrench]

A lot of the bad free throw shooters are actually good free throw shooters -- when not in a game. But after running up and down the court full speed, it gets a lot harder.

I can bury free thrown after free throw when shooting around. I always nail them when shooting to play. But I shoot much worse from the free throw line in the flow of the game because I usually run full steam throughout the game.

Everybody has their own level of coordination, and it is unrealistic to expect all NBA players to be good at shooting from a distance.

I hope none of the people who complain about the shooting also complain about big men who refuse to bang in the lane because they want to shoot jumpers. That would make the major hypocrites.

[BballTim]

  Does it bother you just as much if you have players who can't pass, rebound, dribble or defend well? Shouldn't they all be able to do all of these things well?

[mgent]

 Does it bother you just as much if you have players who can't pass, rebound, dribble or defend well? Shouldn't they all be able to do all of these things well?

Yes, depending on their position.
I don't expect a PG to be a good rebounder, and I don't expect a center to be a good dribbler.
This is purely because of height.
Height shouldn't affect your ability to shoot a basketball.
It bothers me just as much when a player typically makes bad decisions when passing and causes turnovers, and when players don't play good defense on their man.
The fact is, most wings in the NBA can shoot, so it's obviously a desirable trait.  Why can't the guys who can't shoot, learn?