To the World of Basketball:
Please, let’s examine the generally accepted instructions for shooting a basketball. There are at least six common instructions used by most trainers, and I’ll cover them in two articles.
Three of the rules are that (1) you must “SHIELD” to shoot, (2) you must have your “ELBOW DIRECTLY UNDER THE BALL” and (3) “FLIP YOUR WRIST” is the way to throw the ball.
MAY I SUGGEST THAT NONE OF THESE THINGS ARE TRUE?
I have been researching and studying shooting for over 18 years and I keep coming across these old shooting “myths”. It has been taught to children for decades and is still thrown away at every level of the game. Have you ever thought that maybe they are part of the reason for the decrease in shooting?
THE BEST SHOOTS DON’T SHOOT THAT WAY!
I am here to suggest that an open stance is more effective and powerful than confrontation. That the elbow does not belong “directly” under the ball, and that a fully extended Arm Driven Toss with fully relaxed wrist and hand will lead to a top shot (NOT by flipping the wrist). And, SURPRISE, this way of shooting is the “secret” to how almost all great shooters have always done it!
(1) SQUARE WORKS GREAT… FOR TWO-HANDED SHOOT!
I don’t know where this all started, but for me, the square stance is very effective…for shooting with two hands, which nobody does anymore! I could take set shots like that when I was playing, and I even used the two-handed free throw technique underneath for a while in high school. I was good at the former, but found the latter awkward, if not ineffective. Some people just can’t understand that way of shooting free throws, and nobody likes it, except for the amazing Rick Barry. Two-handed shooting is obsolete!
AN OPEN POSTURE IS MORE NATURAL, MORE POWERFUL…
An open stance and “stepping in” to shoot is a more natural way to shoot. There’s no reason to square your shoulders and keep them that way while shooting one-handed. Any boy, if asked to shoot a ball with one hand, would rotate his body as he shoots so that the strong arm is extended toward the target. And an open stance is more stable. As a trainer once said when I mentioned the value of an open stance, “It’s like a boxer standing up to jab!” Yes, a southpaw boxer would take an open stance, right foot, right shoulder, and right arm extended toward the opponent. Standing up straight would give you a weak posture. There is power and stability with an open stance. Push against a wall from a square stance, and then open your stance and push again. Do you feel how much more power is in the latter? To learn how to shoot quickly, the simple step 1-2 can be done in a flash. Which is more important, shooting quickly (and missing a lot of shots) or shooting in a way that helps ensure success?
(2) ELBOW UNDER THE BALL? WHY WOULD YOU WANT THAT?
If you align your hand with the shooting eye and the basket, and have your hand facing the basket directly on the shooting line, your elbow will be slightly out (5-10″, depending on the length of your arm), not directly under the ball. You can’t have both, one elbow directly under the ball and your hand exactly in line with the target. Try it! See if you can do both. If you can’t, which do you think is more I think you will agree with me that “It’s the hand that matters, forget about the elbow!”
(3) MOVING THE WRIST ACTIVATES SMALL, RAPIDLY CONGRESSIONAL MUSCLES
Twisting the wrist is one way to add power to a basketball shot, but I think you’ll find that it’s putting power and control into small muscles that are less reliable under pressure. A flick of the wrist is also a horizontal action, flattening the shot and making it “hotter” (less gravity to slow it down).
A PUSHING ACTION IS EASIER, MORE PREDICTABLE
Alternatively, a pushing action to full arm extension, directed upwards with the wrist and hand relaxed, can be modeled into a “constant motion”, eliminating all sorts of variables. Thus, the shooter has a greater sense of what is coming out of the fingertips. The movement can then rely on the larger, more reliable muscles of the legs and lower/mid body for variable power.
So here are 3 myths about stance, elbow, and release. In the next article we will examine three more and I will introduce the simple “Swish Method” approach to shooting.
Visit: http://www.swish22.com
Copyright © 2007 Tom Nordland All Rights Reserved