Rudy Gobert Is in the Midst of the Worst Free-Throw Stretch of His Career

It's been brutal, but we've seen worse from NBA stars before.

Oct 19, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (27) shoots a free throw against the Chicago Bulls during the first half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Rudy Gobert's free-throw shooting has cratered over the past month.

After a 4-for-9 performance at the charity stripe, including another airball, in Minnesota's blowout victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday night, Gobert's free-throw shooting has dipped to 49.3%, just 0.1% better than his career-worst 49.2% as a rookie with the Utah Jazz in 2013-14.

He's been awful at the line for a month straight, hitting just 29 of his last 72 attempts dating back to Jan. 8. That's an ungodly 40.3%, which represents a 13.6% drop from his 53.9% free-throw shooting rate through Jan. 7.

It is the worst 16-game free-throw shooting stretch of his career (minimum 30 attempts).

Shaquille O'Neal's worst 16-game stretch at the free-throw line during his historic career was in 2004 when he made 38 of 110 attempts (34.5%). Andre Drummond, another historically bad free-throw shooter, set a low mark in his career by shooting 18.2% from the line in a 16-game period during the 2013-14 season. He made just eight of 44 attempts!

The worst 16-game span in Wolves history belongs to Stanley Roberts. In 1998, he made 15 of 44 free throws between Feb. 20 and March 23 for a 34.1% clip.

Dennis Rodman made only seven of 38 free throws (18.2%) from Nov. 28, 1987, to Jan. 6, 1988, while playing for the Pistons. He shot 58.4% at the line in his career.

Ben Wallace, the worst free-throw shooter in NBA history, at 41.4%, once had a stretch of 16 games during the 2000-01 season in which he went eight of 46 at the line (17.6%).

Wilt Chamberlain's worst 16-game stretch was in 1971, when he went 16 of 80 at the line (20.0%).

Gobert has been awful, but you know what? Everyone mentioned in this story, with the exception of Roberts, is in the Hall of Fame. Gobert likely will be, too, in the future, so it's not all bad.