Amid officiating changes, FTs down for some prominent stars

By NOAH TRISTER
AP Sports Writer

There’s a new crackdown in the NBA on non-basketball moves used to draw contact. So far, some of the game’s biggest offensive stars are indeed going to the free-throw line less often. There’s some concern that the changes may be allowing more physicality in general, beyond what was intended — and nobody’s quite certain how the officiating will evolve throughout the season. Atlanta’s Trae Young averaged 8.7 free throw attempts per game last season, and that number is down to 5.3 so far in 2021-22. It’s a similar story for James Harden, Damian Lillard and Bradley Beal.