The Foul to Give

by jamon51 on Feb 27, 2010 6:01 PM PST

In the first quarter of the Timberwolves game that I'm watching right now Jerryd Bayless intentionally fouled with 10 seconds left on the clock. Mike Barrett interjected that the Blazers were using the "foul to give" as he usually does. In the subsequent possession the Wolves set up their offense, took a good shot (missed) and got a put-back by Jefferson as time expired.

Using the "foul to give" is pretty much conventional wisdom in basketball circles. I see reasons to doubt its effectiveness, though.

There are a few reasons I can think of in favor of employing this strategy.

Taking time off of their possession to force them to reset the offense and thus have less time to execute
Disrupting their offensive flow
Getting a preview of what they are trying to do and being able to adjust

However, there are some serious risks that I think outweigh the positives.

The offensive team is expecting you to do it, and thus is prepared (often starting their quarter-ending possessions early in anticipation of the foul). This negates all three of the positives I listed above.
It adds a personal foul to the defensive player's total. Not a good idea, especially if the player is Brandon Roy or another key player.
You run the risk of the offensive player putting up the shot and it being called a shooting foul.
You run the risk of another (non-shooting) foul being called after the "foul to give" and awarding the other team free throws they otherwise wouldn't have had. No safety margin.

Being the contrary type that I am, I'd be interested to see the "foul to give" strategy's track record. In any event, I'd like to know if I'm the only one who is skeptical of this strategy. Small things like this can make the difference in a close game. What do you think? Do you see any other pros or cons to the strategy?

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Well in this case it really sucked, because it reset the clock to 14 and took away a possible possession that we might have had.

In general I don’t like the philosophy unless there is something like 4 seconds on the clock. That way when they take it out, it’s more of a prayer. But it’s always a risky foul for the reasons you stated, and some guys are good at pulling up in a heartbeat.
I think this year though, the refs are not giving as many of those pull ups shots – It looks like they are scrutinizing that play a little closer for guys who try to throw it up after they’re fouled. But I could be wrong.

Romance me with that Roy rainbow shot which took flight from way beyond the arc and sailed so high that before it came back down to earth sealing the victory, it kissed the rafters and said "You're mine baby."

by Blazer1342 on Feb 27, 2010 10:35 PM PST reply actions

Check that – I don’t think there was 14 seconds left, but we would have had a possession if there were no foul.

by Blazer1342 on Feb 27, 2010 10:41 PM PST up reply actions

Nice post

Additional reason to take the foul to give — the guy has a half a step on you and is going to be able to get to the hoop, or they are running out on a break. Basically, you burn the foul to stop either a probable bucket or a foul later while shooting. This use of the foul to give can come anytime in the last two minutes.

As you state, there are potential drawbacks to using it, but the benefits are obvious as well. The key is to use it wisely, rather than reflexively.

In general, I think it should only be used in the first half by a bench player, you don’t want your starters in foul trouble. And usually, you want it to be a backup guard, because big men tend to get in foul trouble more.

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by jscot on Feb 28, 2010 12:08 AM PST reply actions

The key is to use it wisely, rather than reflexively.

Exactly. When you use it every time, the offense anticipates it and can negate it by going early.

" It was as if the Suns hatched a fiendish plot to ruin John Wayne's movie career by casting him as a cowboy." - Dave 2/10/2010

by jamon51 on Mar 1, 2010 9:36 PM PST up reply actions

I don't get it either

It seems like teams just do it even when it doesn’t seem needed.

I am hands down the greatest Blazers fan on Blazersedge.

by tominhawaii on Feb 28, 2010 3:41 AM PST reply actions

You just don't understand basketball...

Just kidding Tom. I haven’t taken a jab at you in a while so I thought I would poke the bear, so to speak. I agree with jscot. There are good reasons to use it but it shouldn’t just be used to use it. In the case that jamon brings up, I think Bayless thought the defender had a lane after he beat him off the dribble so he took the foul.

PTB Liberation Day - 2/10/04

by tssbro on Feb 28, 2010 10:35 AM PST up reply actions