Hardest Shot in the Game

There are only mere seconds remaining in the game. The score is tied or worse there is only a 2 point differential and your shots will determine if the team wins or loses. The crowd is silent; no one is in front of you. It is just you, the basketball and the net! Every eye in the building is watching you, not their child or favorite player BUT only you and waiting to see what happens. You dribble the ball, you spin it backwards, you look to the net and you shot. As the ball is in the air all eyes are watching its path and you are hoping that all your practice has paid off.


THE FOUL SHOT !!!!

Commonly known as the Free Throw, it is far from free as even though you have no one guarding you the pressure can be intense . I like to refer to it as the hardest shot in the game. In the pros you have the fans from the other team doing everything they can to distract you but in the youth leagues you can hear a pin drop. Talk about pressure, knowing that everyone is waiting for you to either make the shot or in some cases miss the shot.

Now some can handle the pressure and that is what makes the difference in a game. I have seen youngsters at the age of 9 years old hit nothing but net with 1.2 seconds in a tie game and that is a sign of what you call a player. Of course there is the likes of Ray Allen of the Boston Celtics who can be depended upon to hit both shots in a crucial playoff game but even when he is shooting you can still feel the tension even watching on television.

So next time you see a player go to take a foul shot do not think about how lucky they are to have no one guarding them but rather watch to see how they handle the pressure.