You can see a lot of players shoot a two motion shot. This is because players are taught to shoot from their set point (level of the chin) when they are young. When players shoot from their set point, they have less momentum and energy to transfer into the ball.
When I’m teaching shooting, I want all players (young and old) to gather the ball around their shot pocket as quickly as possible, which is for me on waist level.
The shot pocket is the place you put the ball before going into your shooting motion.
The aim is to move the ball quickly and fluidly into the shot pocket off the catch and off the dribble, which takes a lot of repetition.
Drills I often use during form shooting are the roll up, one-two & through drill and hard pound into shot. These are 3 easy drills to teach shooting. These drills work on preparation, connection and sequence.
The players need to keep the ball moving from their shot pocket to the release point. They have to go into their release while going on the way up. The timing of release is crucial!
A term I use from shooting coach Rob Fodor is: “hands before feet”. We want the players to have their hands on the ball before the feet are set, so they can immediately go into their shot when the feet touch the ground.
Working on quick pick ups during practice is very important. We want players to eliminate wasted movement and excessive motion, because this can lead to the ball going off line or long distance shots going short.
Players need to be able to put their hands on the ball as fast as possible with good hand placement.
I will demonstrate the drills in the video below.
Mathieu Detiege is head coach and skills trainer at our Elite Academy. At EA he leads shooting specialization work and weekly mini-basket sessions at our Facility. Follow Mathieu at @mathieudetiege
