He throws the ball in the air to run the clock out, but also so that they could only be beaten by an improbable long bomb (like happened).
However, he should have thrown it a little higher up, or a little further away from anyone.
He doesn't throw it up, the other team fouls him, and if he misses a free throw, the other team might have a chance for a better look at a basket to tie or win.
If he had hung onto the ball, he might get fouled with 2 seconds left or so. Assuming that the black team gets the rebound and has a timeout in case of a missed second shot, they have an inbound pass to try and get a better look to tie or win.
Usually its better strategy to try and run out the time like that. He pretty much made it a sub 1% chance of the other team winning by throwing it there, likely better odds for his team to win than hanging onto the ball. He could have made a better throw that would have reduced the odds to zero.
Personally, i like the idea of rolling the ball on the floor instead of making a toss like he did. If the other team did get it, the player would have to first reach down to the floor, further wasting time, and not letting the player set for a shot as quickly.
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