Dwight Howard is self-conscious about his free throw shooting.
The Houston Chronicle reported that the Houston Rockets center put a moratorium on talk about his free throw shooting after a 4-of-12 night at the free throw line Monday night during the Rockets' 110-104 double-overtime victory over the Toronto Raptors at the Toyota Center in Houston.
"I don't want to talk about it," Howard said. "So much has been talked about free throws, just let it go. We talk about it so much, I think about it at the line. I don't want to think about it. I want to shoot.
"That's what I do in practice. I shoot in practice and I don't miss because I am not thinking about it."
According to the Chronicle, Howard said that he is overthinking when he shoots free throws during games, resulting in missed attempts. But he defended himself by talking about the other positive aspects of his game.
"I get in the game and I think so much that I tend to miss," the Chronicle reported Howard as saying. "The best thing to do is to let it go. If I make it, I make it. If I don't, it's not the end of the world. Even if I do miss, I will be out on the other end, playing defense, getting rebounds, blocking shots and paying back for fouling in that way."
Howard shot 67.1 percent from the free throw line as a rookie for the Orlando Magic in 2004-05. In each of the next six years of the all-star center's career, he hovered just below the 60-percent mark.
But he regressed significantly in his final year in Orlando in 2011-12, shooting just 49.1 percent. He hit 49.2 percent during his one season with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2012-13.
Howard currently is making 47.1 percent of his foul shots for the Rockets (41 of 87).
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