To the world of basketball:
Please, let’s examine the generally believed instructions for throwing a basketball. There are at least six common instructions used by most coaches, and I will address them in two articles.
Three of the rules are that (1) you must “SQUARE” to shoot, (2) you must have the “ELBOW DIRECTLY UNDER THE BALL” and (3) “FLIP THE WRIST” is the way to release the ball.
MAY I SUGGEST THAT NONE OF THESE THINGS ARE TRUE?
I have been researching and studying filming for over 18 years and I keep coming across these old “myths” of filming. It has been taught to children for decades and is still thrown in the trash at all levels of the game. Did you ever think that maybe they are part of the reason for the decline in filming?
THE BEST SHOOTERS DON’T SHOOT THAT WAY!
I am here to suggest that an open posture is more effective and powerful than squaring. That the elbow does not belong “directly” under the ball, and that an arm-powered release that is fully extended with the wrist and hand fully relaxed will lead to a superior shot (NOT a wrist twist). And, SURPRISE, this way of shooting is the “secret” of how almost all the best shooters have always done it.
(1) SQUARED UP WORKS VERY WELL … FOR TWO-HAND SHOOTING!
I don’t know where this all started, but, for me, the boxed stance is very effective … for two-handed shooting, which no one does anymore! I could shoot set pieces that way when I was playing, and I even used the two-handed and no-handed free kick technique for a while in high school. I was good at the first, but the second was uncomfortable, if not ineffective. Some people just can’t get that way of shooting free kicks, and no one likes it except 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 Two-handed shooting is obsolete!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 is no reason to square your shoulders and keep them that way while shooting with one hand. Any child, if asked to shoot a ball with one hand, would rotate the body while shooting so that the strong arm extends toward the target. And an open posture is more stable. As a coach once said when I mentioned the value of an open stance, “It’s like a boxer stands up to jab!” Yes, a left-handed boxer would take an open stance, with the right foot, right shoulder, and right arm extended toward the opponent. Standing firm would give you a weak posture. There is power and stability with an open posture. Push against a wall from a square position, then open your position and push again. Do you feel how much more power there is in the latter? To learn how to shoot quickly, the simple step 1-2 can be done in an instant. What’s more important, shoot quickly (and miss a lot of shots) or shoot in a way that helps ensure success?
(2) ELBOW UNDER THE BALL? WHY WOULD YOU WANT THAT?
If you line up your hand with your shooting eye and basket, and have your hand facing the basket directly on the shooting line, your elbow will stick out a little (5-10, “depending on your arm length), not directly underneath. 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 one do you think is more? with me that “What matters is the hand, forget about the elbow!”
(3) TURNING THE WRIST ENGAGES SMALL AND FAST MUSCLES
Moving your wrist is one way to add power to a basketball shot, but I think you will see that you are putting power and control on the small muscles that are less reliable under pressure. A flipping motion of the wrist is also a horizontal action, so it flattens the shot and makes it “hotter” (less effect of gravity to slow it down).
A PUSH ACTION IS SIMPLE, MORE PREDICTABLE
Alternatively, an action of pushing to full arm extension, directed upward with the wrist and hand relaxed, can be molded into a “constant motion”, eliminating all sorts of variables. Therefore, the shooter has a greater sense of what comes out of the fingertips. So the movement can depend on the larger, more reliable muscles of the legs and lower / middle body for variable power.
So here are 3 myths about posture, elbow, and release. In the next article we will examine three more and introduce the simple “Swish Method” approach to shooting.
Visit: http://www.swish22.com
Copyright © 2007 Tom Nordland All rights reserved