Tom Haberstroh wrote:Scoring with the game on the line is a tough task. Stakes are raised, defensive effort is sharpened and referees tend to swallow their whistles. Thus, we find that field goal percentages take a dive in the last few minutes of the game, especially when the team is desperate for a make. The average field goal percentage in the NBA is 45.9 percent. When the game is within three points in the last five minutes, the average field goal percentage drops to 42.0 percent. In the situation that LeBron is 1-for-8 in this season, the league average field goal percentage plummets to 25.7 percent.
Plenty of "clutch" scorers have struggled with that spotlight this season. Kevin Durant in that situation? 2-for-10 (20 percent). Paul Pierce? 1-for-4 (25 percent). Ray Allen? 0-for-2.
This is just one snapshot of their careers. How have LeBron and Wade performed during their lifetime in the NBA? LeBron's 1-for-8 campaign this season pushes his career field goal percentage in that situation to 26.0 percent (19-for-73), just a hair above the norm. Sometimes LeBron will go through a hot patch and sometimes he goes through a cold stretch. Right now, he's icy cold. And Wade? Despite his sterling reputation as a closer, Wade now stands at a paltry 19.7 percent in 61 career field goal attempts in those situations.
http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/miamih ... eally-mean
Courtesy of Tom Haberstroh.
As an aside, I'm kinda surprised at the Heat Index. I expected it to be a total garbage section of ESPN's website, and some of it admittedly is (don't care for some of the minor stories, or anything Michael Wallace or Windhorst write). But Haberstroh and Arnovitz have been cranking out solid material all season long, Haberstroh almost like a mini Hollinger and Arnovitz with some excellent X's and O's breakdowns.