Shaquille O'Neal announced his retirement today after 19 years in the NBA. I've loved Shaq ever since I was a massive 5'9" sixth grader who the Lilliputian other kids called Baby Shaq.
But one thing I could never understand is why his free throw shooting never really improved. Take a look at this graph plotting his free throw shooting against his age. He was all over the map during his career.
I created this graph using Matt Stiles' visualizer, which lets you play with O'Neal career stats to your heart's content.
Via @onyxfish.
We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com.
/media/None/image/original.png)
/media/None/image/original.png)
Alexis C. Madrigal is a staff writer at The Atlantic and the author of Powering the Dream: The History and Promise of Green Technology.