The Underhand Free Throw: Recent Episodes
The Underhand Free Throw
The Underhand Free Throw is a basketball podcast devoted to in-depth analysis of the NBA. It's hosted by Iain and Simon, two moderators at RealGM who share a passion for the more subtle details that make the NBA great. Come to hear about your favorite team, stay to learn about the players on the end of the bench of that team you've barely watched.
Iain and Simon review each second round series but also like wow look at those wolfies.
Our favorite host-er boys recorded their immediate reactions to the trade deadline and they're finally reaching you today. We cover every single transaction from the ill-fated event known only as DEADLINE DAY
Time to trade your favorite player to your least favorite team and suffer all kinds of heartbreaks this holiday season. Or something like that. Iain and Simon review the most likely trade candidates and their most feasible destinations, but mostly explore which teams feel the most desperate to upgrade.
Are old teams bad and young teams good?
Iain & Simon plunge into the abyss of basketball to talk about the old establishment (Lakers, Clippers, Warriors) and those who would usurp their throne (OKC, Magic, Timberwolves).
Then sticking to the theme of youth, we talk about them rookies.
The boys are back to talk about ball and how it's life. It's season two of the Underhand Freethrow and we say nice things about Phili! Bucks, Mavs, Pacers, Cavs, Wolves, Clips also caught our eye in the first dozen games of this fine NBA year.
We turn up the Heat but don't talk about the D word too much! (And I don't mean defense). We do a LOT of Thunder talk on this one but still give plenty of time for the Heat, Mavs, and Wolves.
Our hosts keep on Preeeeeviewing the Sea(son) once again and find major concerns with a lot of big market teams.
We spend a lot of time in sunny Los Angeles a little earlier than oddsmakers expected us to! Iain & Simon preview 5 teams that face a difficult journey if playoffs are the goal.
We're starting from the bottom of Simon and Iain's imagined standings. It is really hard to get out of the basement. If you want to find out which teams are likely going to be worse than the other 25 teams... this is the episode for you!
Welcome to the desert oasis that is the NBA's offseason. Emphasis on the oasis part because there's a ton going on and the offseason is almost as fun as the on-season sometimes.
Iain & Simon give you their winners and losers of free agency or basically gush and complain about stuff that has happened.
If you like "stuff that has happened", this is the podcast for you.
The 2023 season is over. The Nuggets are awesome. Everyone else sucks. Let the 2023 Draft Begin!
The Boston Celtics will not let us move on so Simon and Iain have to talk about 3 teams instead of 2. A little bit of Lakers chat sprinkled in here too because basketball podcasts are under strict legal obligation to talk about the Lakers no matter what.
Playoff basketball has moved onto the next chapter so let's listen to Iain and Simon help up turn that page.
The 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 seeds clash against each in the Conference semi-finals for the first time ever. Feels like a Sesame Street moment but it's not, it's playoff basketball and I just watched PJ Tucker punch a guy in the nuts.
Does an NBA podcast need episode descriptions around this time of year?
Unless otherwise specified, we'll be talking about the playoffs and what's happening in them. We check in on every single first-round series.
The time of the year when ball literally is life!
Iain and Simon do the whole fan fiction project of predicting what's going to happen in this years playoffs. They may be boring in the first round (especially out East) but things get a little wild by the time we get to the Conference Finals and multiple parallel universes are created crowning multiple NBA champions and conference finalists.
Part one of the most glamorous ball of the year. Awards Night!
Our hosts are live on the red carpet, and they've got questions about the dresses. Everyone knows the All-NBA picks of obscure podcast hosts are more important and accurate than the real media picks so don't miss this one.
We needed a break from the emotional turbulence of the play-in race so went to hang out at the front gate of the league: the NBA draft.
Iain & Simon provide an in-depth analysis of 20+ NBA prospects and while they really don't agree on Brandon Miller, they seem cemented on the top 9 players available this year. After that, it becomes pure chaos. So join in for a wild ride.
This is a real bounce-around-the-league type of episode. Iain emotionally supports Simon through the difficulty Dame dilemma and gets into his legacy a bit. We weigh in on some MVP thoughts before going hard on the majority of the Western Conference that is participating in this years play-in race.
Simon and Iain acting like the trade deadline just happened today and racing against time and Simon's laptop battery. We all know the all-star weekend is boring, so don't you miss living the trade deadline life?
The best NBA podcasters in the world are so in love with Jeremy Sochan that they consider changing their name to honor him.
23 different rookies get mentioned so this episode is truly a festival of youth. If your favorite rookie didn't get mentioned, Iain and Simon must hate them.
Finished your Christmas shopping? Good.
Don't know who to put on your all-star ballot now that voting has opened? Don't worry, we got you.
Iain & Simon debate and create the best all-star team picks possible for this 2023 season. Simon helps Iain widdle down his list of 71 candidates. Aging wing stars go head-2-head with their solid 2-way big teammates. Defenders fight for their right to be acknowledged in this traditionally offense-slanted game.
The standings are trying to fool you. Iain & Simon tell you the meaning behind the early season madness.
Recorded on November 23, 2022
Your favorite basketball boys look at some early league trends and separate facts from farces.
Will the Milwaukee Bucks lose games this year? Are the Champs bad? Is the Raptors' offense fixed? How many players will average 30 this season? All these questions, and more, will be answered through exquisite basketball banter.
Fellow NBA deep divers Iain and Simon journey East and breakdown all 15 Eastern Conference teams as they predict the season's final standings. They go particularly hard on the enigmatic squads: The Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Toronto Raptors but every team is much discussed. This episode was recorded before the season started but our hosts takes are so high quality that time cannot erode them.
Iain and Simon continue their misadventures through the depths of the Western Conference. Who knows what perils they'll find in the bowels of the Lakers (1:15), Suns (18:41), Kings (31:39), Mavericks (42:41), Rockets (58:13), Grizzlies (1:10:50), Pelicans (1:24:49), and the Spurs (1:35:12). The Western Conference is going to be a blood bath again this year, and the Underhand Freethrow is hear to help you analyze the splatter. We talk Pat Bev/Westbrook romance fan fiction, the best thing that ever happened to the Suns, Keegan Murray worship, our favorite Grizzly rookies, and the least talented team Gregg Popovic has ever coached.
Iain and Simon deep dive into the rotations and role players of Denver, Minnesota, OKC, Portland, Utah, Golden State, and the LA Clippers. They discuss the MVP chances of Nikola Jokic, the ideal role for Jerami Grant, and the potential victor of the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes.