Choker

Game tied. Four seconds left. No timeouts for both teams. Defensive foul. Two freethrows from the fifteen-foot line.

We set up an isolation play for me at the top of the key. As I made my move towards the basket, I was fouled with about 4 seconds left. I had a chance to basically clinch the game by sinking at least one. The other team will not be able to stop the clock. This was the perfect scenario for my team.

I was pretty confident as I shot the first one. It had a very good line. It rattled in, then came out. Alright, it's okay. I still have another one. The second freethrow was similar to the first. It was straight away, bounced halfway in, then rolled out at the last moment.

Fuck. I just muffed two freethrows in crunch time.

It was a good thing it was just a scrimmage. It wasn't any official game, otherwise I won't forgive myself. Since our scrimmages don't go beyond regulation, I had no chance to make amends and win it in overtime.

I've missed a lot of potential gamewinners, and luckily I've made quite a number too. But this particular situation felt awful for me. I've never been a great freethrow shooter. In the ABL, I think I'm shooting about 40% in my four seasons of playing. Everyone knows that's like Shaq numbers, nothing to be proud of. But I know I can hit the big shot when it matters. I want the rock when the game is on the line.

There it is. The best-case scenario. Two freethrows. Four seconds left. No timeouts. Just me and the rim, fifteen feet apart.

Too bad I choked big time on this one.