When it comes to the fantasy basketball season, one of the most overlooked statistics always seems to be the free throw numbers. Ironically, it’s one of the staples that’s uniform among all NBA fantasy leagues.
While the season is winding down it’s also a good time to take a look at the numbers for this year and make a mental note for next season on the best players that also help in the free throw category. If you’ve been lagging in that realm, rather than bring you down in that area, focus on adding these guys next year and your percentages will go up.
Stephen Curry (91.4%)
Is there any possible way that nearing the end of a potential MVP season, Curry is still being somewhat underrated in terms of just how good he has been from a fantasy perspective? Curry ranks among the league’s leading scorers with 23.4 points per game and of the players listed ahead of him, nobody has hit more three-point shots at a better rate.
Meanwhile, only LeBron James and Anthony Davis have better field goal percentages. Well, neither LeBron nor Davis rank in the top 40 in free throw percentage while Curry ranks No. 1 in the NBA with a ridiculous .914 mark for the season. Curry can do it all and it has only helped his fantasy owners that he has the best free throw percentage in the NBA.
James Harden (86.8%)
While Curry leads the NBA in free throw percentage, no player has made more free throws than Harden. The Rockets MVP candidate has made a league-leading 606 of his league-leading 698 attempts and his .868 free throw percentage ranks No. 17 in the NBA. It’s clear that he will only improve the overall average for any fantasy team that he is on. Factor in that he is second behind only Russell Westbrook averaging 27.2 points per game while having played 13 more games than his former Oklahoma City Thunder teammate and it’s clear just how dominant Harden has been all around.
Jamal Crawford (90.3%)
One of the most underrated shooters in the game and a stud from the free throw line, Crawford’s .903 free throw percentage is second to only Curry. The fact that he has averaged 16.4 points per game this season makes him a legitimate roster player and while his three-point percentage leaves something to be desired, he has all of the tools to help a fantasy team while also improving their overall free throw percentage.
Russell Westbrook (84.4%)
Westbrook’s .844 free throw percentage ranks 31st in the NBA but only Harden has made more free throws than the 455 that he has hit this season. And that’s despite the fact that Westbrook has missed substantial time because of injuries. His NBA-high 27.5 points per game as well as the flurry of triple-doubles he has recorded this season have given his owners a huge boost, of course. Some might believe that this is the high watermark for Westbrook as he’s played most of this season without Kevin Durant or even Reggie Jackson in his way. He’s become the unencumbered, unquestioned source of stats on this team – including free throws. With a healthy Durant, his numbers probably dip a bit.
J.J. Redick (89.7%)
While he isn’t nearly as dominant of a superstar as some of the other names on this list, Redick is exactly the type of player that could be a very sneaky stud sleeper pick for any manager that is able to get him on their team. Redick has quietly averaged 15.9 points per game for the Clippers this season, which is a career best. His 2.5 three-points per game is also a high watermark number for him. The only players in the NBA that have averaged both more points per game and a higher free throw percentage this year are Curry and his teammate Crawford.
