Hack-a-Shaq by teams that are trailing near the end of the game. Basketball, unique among major world sports, permits intentional fouling to gain a strategic advantage; in other sports, it is considered an unfair act or professional foul. Once the fouling team enters the penalty situation, the fouled team is awarded free throws. The typical NBA player makes a high enough percentage of his free throws that, over time, opponents' possessions that end with free throws will yield more points than possessions in which the opponents try to score a field goal. Even the highest-scoring NBA teams average only about 1.1
Personal foul (basketball) shooting, can easily cause greater contact that is a blocking foul against the defender. Once contact is made, the defender may fall to the ground to exaggerate the force of the collision and induce a foul to be called. (The ball-carrier rarely does so, as it would disrupt the effort to score a goal.) Overt deception is disparagingly called a "flop" and is penalized at every level of basketball. A screen is an attempt by an offensive player to stop a defender from guarding the ball-carrier. For example, John Stockton and Karl Malone were well known for their pick and