The Top NBA Free Throw Leaders of All Time

A list of the top NBA free throw leaders of all time, including where they rank and how many they made.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar hailed as one of the greatest basketball players of all time, is also the top free throw leader in NBA history He played for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers, winning six NBA championships and 19 NBA All-Star selections. During his 20-year career, Abdul-Jabbar made a total of 15, 837 Free throws out of 20, 560 attempts, for a percentage of .767.

Wilt Chamberlain

Wilt Chamberlain, who played for the Philadelphia 76ers, is the all-time leader in Free throws made with 3,607. He is followed by Jerry West another player from the 76ers, who made 3,146 free throws during his career.

Shaquille O’Neal

With a career free throw percentage of 58.2 percent, Shaquille O’Neal is one of the best free throw shooters in NBA history He’s also one of the most dominant big men to ever play the game using his 7-foot-1, 325-pound frame to overpower opponents on the way to four NBA Championships

Dirk Nowitzki

Dirk Nowitzki is a German professional basketball player who is the sixth-leading scorer in National Basketball Association (NBA) history. He is a 13-time All-Star, 12-time member of the All-NBA team and the first European player to ever be named MVP of the NBA. Nowitzki has played a total of 21 seasons with the Dallas Mavericks winning an NBA Championship in 2011.

Nowitzki is known for his prolific shooting from behind the three-point line and his ability to make tough shots in clutch situations. He is also one of the best free throw shooters of all time, holding several NBA records in this category. As of 2019, Nowitzki ranks first in NBA history in free throws made (9288), third in free throw percentage (89.8%), and ninth in total points scored (31,560).

Reggie Miller

Reggie Miller is widely considered to be one of the greatest shooters of all time. He is one of only three players in NBA history to have made more than 2,000 three-pointers, and he currently ranks second all-time in three-pointers made But what made Miller truly special was his ability to knock down clutch free throws In his 18 NBA seasons Miller converted on 89.8% of his free throws, which is the fourth highest percentage in NBA history He also ranks sixth all-time in free throws made, and he is the only player in NBA history to make more than 200 free throws in a season while shooting over 90% from the line.

Steve Nash

Former NBA player Steve Nash currently holds the record for the most free throws made in a career, with 10,334. He is also the only player in NBA history to have a Free Throw percentage of at least 90% for his entire career. Nash was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018.

Ray Allen

Ray Allen is widely considered to be one of the best shooters in NBA history He is the NBA all-time leader in three-point field goals made. He also holds the record for most three-pointers made in a single season and is a two-Ime Nba champion.

Allen was drafted out of the University of Connecticut by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the fifth overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft He was immediately traded to the Milwaukee Bucks where he would go on to spend his first seven seasons in the league. Allen was an instant success in Milwaukee, averaging over 19 points per game and being named to the All-Rookie First Team.

In 2003, Allen was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics where he would enjoy his best years as a player. In his five seasons with Seattle, Allen averaged over 23 points per game and made at least 200 three-pointers in each season. He also helped lead the SuperSonics to their only Finals appearance in franchise history in 2006.

After leading Seattle to six straight playoff appearances, Allen left the team as a free agent to sign with the Boston Celtics in 2007. He spent five seasons in Boston before being traded back to Milwaukee in 2012. He finished his career with stints with the Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers before finally retiring in 2016.

Throughout his illustrious career, Allen made 2,973 three-pointers which is an NBA record. He also holds records for most three-pointers made in a single season (269) and most three-pointers made in a Playoff Game (8).

LeBron James

Lebron James is one of the best NBA players of all time. He has been to 10 NBA Finals winning three of them. He is a four-time MVP and a three-time champion. He is also one of the top free throw shooters of all time.

LeBron has made over 8,700 free throws in his career, which is good for seventh all time. His free throw percentage is just over 73%, which is also good for seventh all time. He has made more free throws than any other active player and is currently second in free throws made per game.

With LeBron James’ combination of size, strength, and skill, he is one of the most difficult players to guard in the NBA. When he gets to the Free Throw Line he is almost automatic. That’s why he is one of the top Free Throw shooters of all time.

Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bean Bryant (born August 23, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player He played his entire 20-season career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Los Angeles Lakers He was an 18-time All-Star, 15-time member of the All-NBA team and 12-time member of the All-Defensive team He led the NBA in scoring during two seasons and ranks third on both the league’s all-time regular season scoring and all-time postseason scoring lists. He holds the NBA record for the most seasons playing with one franchise for an entire career. At 34 years and 104 days of age, Bryant became the youngest player in NBA History to reach 30,000 career points.

Dwight Howard

Dwight Howard is an American Professional Basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a young teen, he led his High School team to a 68–1 record and the state championship He chose to forgo college and was selected first overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2004 NBA Draft An eight-time All-Star, eight-time All-NBA team member, five-time All-Defensive member, and three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Howard is considered one of the best Defensive Players in NBA history In 2013, he joined the Rockets after an eight-year stint with the Magic.

Among active players, Howard currently ranks second in career free throw percentage with .585, only behind Andre Drummond with .586.