3-point lead going into the final seconds of the game, with the opponent in possession. Foul or not?

I've always been in the no-foul camp. Because the only way you lose in regulation is to foul - they make the first, miss the second, get the rebound and a last second 3.

But after these last 2 games, I'm rethinking.

(01-16-2023 12:01 PM)Tiger87 Wrote:  3-point lead going into the final seconds of the game, with the opponent in possession. Foul or not?

I've always been in the no-foul camp. Because the only way you lose in regulation is to foul - they make the first, miss the second, get the rebound and a last second 3.

But after these last 2 games, I'm rethinking.

I was convinced the moment Chalmers hit that freaking 3 pointer.

(01-16-2023 12:08 PM)geosnooker2000 Wrote:  

(01-16-2023 12:01 PM)Tiger87 Wrote:  3-point lead going into the final seconds of the game, with the opponent in possession. Foul or not?

I've always been in the no-foul camp. Because the only way you lose in regulation is to foul - they make the first, miss the second, get the rebound and a last second 3.

But after these last 2 games, I'm rethinking.

I was convinced the moment Chalmers hit that freaking 3 pointer.

Yeah, that too.
But I'm stubborn, to a fault.

That was a brain fart. Luckily, they survived it.

Obviously you don't foul with the shooter in the act of shooting but using as much clock as possible, in the front court & foul before a player is in act of shooting. Timing & awareness are everything if you are going to foul.

Foul, 100% absolutely and every time...

The chances of a player making the first free throw and then missing the second and getting a put back to tie or three to win are extremely low. It happens, it has happened twice in NBA this season (within just a day or two) but you rarely see that.

This should be especially true for a team like us who gives up so many wide open threes.

You foul, intentionally, everytime. Looking at the poll results, seems at the time of this writing, all 12 votes agree unanimously with one another ... great to see, lol.

Final seconds you definitely take the foul. Too many miraculous 3's are being made these days.

(01-16-2023 12:01 PM)Tiger87 Wrote:  3-point lead going into the final seconds of the game, with the opponent in possession. Foul or not?

I've always been in the no-foul camp. Because the only way you lose in regulation is to foul - they make the first, miss the second, get the rebound and a last second 3.

But after these last 2 games, I'm rethinking.

You forgot the option where we double a big man 5' from the basket and leave their best 3 point shooter wide open outside.

All kidding aside, you foul, with 6 seconds or less being optimal. That way if the other team makes them both, they are probably only going to get a tough 3 with less than 4 seconds left.

(01-16-2023 03:02 PM)mempho_to_diego Wrote:  You foul, intentionally, everytime. Looking at the poll results, seems at the time of this writing, all 12 votes agree unanimously with one another ... great to see, lol.

I cannot handle this kind of agreeableness. I am going to start arguing just for the sake of it...

(01-16-2023 04:05 PM)Stammers Wrote:  

(01-16-2023 12:01 PM)Tiger87 Wrote:  3-point lead going into the final seconds of the game, with the opponent in possession. Foul or not?

I've always been in the no-foul camp. Because the only way you lose in regulation is to foul - they make the first, miss the second, get the rebound and a last second 3.

But after these last 2 games, I'm rethinking.

You forgot the option where we double a big man 5' from the basket and leave their best 3 point shooter wide open outside.

All kidding aside, you foul, with 6 seconds or less being optimal. That way if the other team makes them both, they are probably only going to get a tough 3 with less than 4 seconds left.

Ya, that was tough to watch. Two defender collapse to stop a 2 and leave a shooter wide open to tie the game.

I think different situations require different strategies. In other words, I don't believe you either always do it or always don't. It depends on a number of factors. I usually say don't foul, but in this case I was hoping they would. It just felt like the right time to do it. Hindsight, I know. But I just didn't like the feel of the situation at that time.

(01-16-2023 04:05 PM)Stammers Wrote:  

(01-16-2023 12:01 PM)Tiger87 Wrote:  3-point lead going into the final seconds of the game, with the opponent in possession. Foul or not?

I've always been in the no-foul camp. Because the only way you lose in regulation is to foul - they make the first, miss the second, get the rebound and a last second 3.

But after these last 2 games, I'm rethinking.

You forgot the option where we double a big man 5' from the basket and leave their best 3 point shooter wide open outside.

All kidding aside, you foul, with 6 seconds or less being optimal. That way if the other team makes them both, they are probably only going to get a tough 3 with less than 4 seconds left.

Yep, so you couldn't have fouled in this game as he shot with 6 left. The foul would have had to have been with about 8 seconds and in my opinion that is too much time. Now why we left a shooter wide open is another discussion.

I've always been in the camp of foul and send them to the line.

(01-17-2023 09:00 AM)pmantiger Wrote:  

(01-16-2023 04:05 PM)Stammers Wrote:  

(01-16-2023 12:01 PM)Tiger87 Wrote:  3-point lead going into the final seconds of the game, with the opponent in possession. Foul or not?

I've always been in the no-foul camp. Because the only way you lose in regulation is to foul - they make the first, miss the second, get the rebound and a last second 3.

But after these last 2 games, I'm rethinking.

You forgot the option where we double a big man 5' from the basket and leave their best 3 point shooter wide open outside.

All kidding aside, you foul, with 6 seconds or less being optimal. That way if the other team makes them both, they are probably only going to get a tough 3 with less than 4 seconds left.

Yep, so you couldn't have fouled in this game as he shot with 6 left. The foul would have had to have been with about 8 seconds and in my opinion that is too much time. Now why we left a shooter wide open is another discussion.

Realistically, the shooter never should have been left wide open. So, had the defender been covering him like he should have then a few more seconds likely drain off the clock to where there was little enough time that a foul would make sense.

(01-17-2023 09:18 AM)SeñorTiger Wrote:  

(01-17-2023 09:00 AM)pmantiger Wrote:  

(01-16-2023 04:05 PM)Stammers Wrote:  

(01-16-2023 12:01 PM)Tiger87 Wrote:  3-point lead going into the final seconds of the game, with the opponent in possession. Foul or not?

I've always been in the no-foul camp. Because the only way you lose in regulation is to foul - they make the first, miss the second, get the rebound and a last second 3.

But after these last 2 games, I'm rethinking.

You forgot the option where we double a big man 5' from the basket and leave their best 3 point shooter wide open outside.

All kidding aside, you foul, with 6 seconds or less being optimal. That way if the other team makes them both, they are probably only going to get a tough 3 with less than 4 seconds left.

Yep, so you couldn't have fouled in this game as he shot with 6 left. The foul would have had to have been with about 8 seconds and in my opinion that is too much time. Now why we left a shooter wide open is another discussion.

Realistically, the shooter never should have been left wide open. So, had the defender been covering him like he should have then a few more seconds likely drain off the clock to where there was little enough time that a foul would make sense.

Absolutely true. I will admit that I was unable to watch the game and only watched the highlights. Having said that the other concern I would have had in this case is that we got pounded on the boards so you have that issue to consider when deciding whether or not to foul as well.

It's really situational, but I am a no-fouler especially past half-court. Smart players should go into the act of shooting the second someone fouls them for a potential 4 point play.

I have seen it happen. Unfortunately, my team's player missed the free throw, and we lost in overtime...but still.

The situation went from a "hope we tie it" to a "we are going to win in regulation" in a heartbeat.

I think you have to foul. Experience has shown this to be the case. Foul quickly and be selective of who you foul. It all falls apart when you foul the guy, mid-stroke, at the three-point line; or the guy who's 80+ percent.

This was a convo my group had prior to their inbounds. Given that we have KD, perfect player to have ball at the end of the game - 88% FT shooter, ball handling, ability to create - In THIS scenario I'd like applying full court D. No pressure, just make them touch the ball and work it down. Foul once ball crosses half court. Added bonus if player fouled isn't good FT shooter.

Then you have ball in KD's hands with lead.

But, not fouling forces other team to make a play. I sometimes prefer this. VERY situational for me.


EDIT: BTW they were in the Bonus, not Double Bonus, so it would have been a 1-and-1.

I agree that it is very situational, but in general, find the shooters and try not to let them get the ball. Stay on them tight the whole time, even at the expense of someone being open under the goal (the opposite of what happened the other night). Make them work hard for the shot. If a terrible shooter gets the ball, allow them to shoot a contested shot. If it goes in (like Seton Hall? this year) it wasn't meant to be.