By John Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
The NBA 2018-19 Regular Season is entering crunch time for teams that are in the playoffs race. Being confident from the charity line and sinking the one-point shots is even more important at this stage of the campaign. Goran Dragic is aware the Miami Heat need his scoring touch from the field and from the foul line as well to secure a playoffs ticket. The 32-year-old Slovenian guard leads the NBA with 17/17 free throws after the All-Star Game break.
Dragic returned to action following the surgery on his right knee and played four games before being sidelined again with a left calf injury. He made every free throw he attempted sinking nine of them against the Golden State Warriors on February 27th and eight a day later versus the Houston Rockets on the road. However, the Heat were only 1-1 in those two matches and 1-3 in all four games Dragic played. It’s worth noting that he’s 55/67 this season and 76.3% in the NBA since 2008.
The rest of the European field
Fifty-four players have made all their shots from the free throw line after the All-Star break. Terrence Ross with 14/14 and Ryan Arcidiacono with 13/13 follow the Slovenian guard on total foul shots made in succession, while Cedi Osman (10), Nikola Mirotic (8), Davis Bertans (5), Tomas Satoransky (4), Daniel Theis (4), Maxi Kleber (2) and OG Anunoby (2) are the rest of the Europeans without a missed free throw the past couple of weeks.
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