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Proper Basketball Shooting Technique, Fundamentals, and Form
If you want to be a suberb shooter, you MUST HAVE very good basketball shooting form and technique. However, you don't need "perfect" shooting form.
In other words, your shooting form will never be 100%, and you don't want to be robotic.
With that said, you'll never be a great shooter unless you have "satisfactory" form and mechanics.
It's very common for players to have fatal flaws in their approach, and frankly they have no chance of becoming consistent shooters.
Stationary Basketball Shooting Form and Technique
In this section, we give you the raw form and mechanics of stationary shooting. In other words, this section does NOT address the fundamentals of shooting on the move and more advanced footwork you'll need for game situations.
Here's a quick roadmap of the stationary shooting fundamentals that we'll be covering:
- Eyes on Target
- Stance and Balance
- Shot Pocket
- Grip
- Balance Hand
- Delivery
- Upforce and Landing
- Follow Through
- Correct Shot
EYES ON TARGET
- To improve accuracy, locate the target (rim) as early as possible.
- Keep your eyes on the target and do not follow the flight of the ball.
- Keeping your target focus is very important!
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STANCE AND BALANCE
- Feet are shoulder width apart for good balance.
- Feet should be in a slightly staggered stance that is consistent and comfortable for you. Your shooting foot is slightly ahead of the non-shooting foot in a comfortable position.
- Point your feet in the general direction of the basket, but not necessarily directly at it. We prefer an open stance, but you can also use the closed (squared) stance if that's more comfortable for you. With an open stance, your feet point towards one side of the basket. For example, a right handed shooter will point his or her feet just to the left of the rim for a more natural position and shooting motion.
- Once you develop a comfortable stance, line up your feet the exact same way on every shot. Whatever stance you use, consistency is critical.
- Flex/bend your knees on every shot.
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SHOT POCKET
- As you catch the ball, move it quickly into the shot pocket.
- Line everything up so the ball and your shooting eye form a straight line to the basket. This is VERY important.
- Position the ball several inches above your waist.
- Grip the ball properly and be ready to shoot.
- Position the ball in your shot pocket the SAME way every time you catch it.
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GRIP
- Place the air hole between the middle and index fingers.
- Line up your fingertip pads parallel to the long seams of the ball, so you can monitor the back spin.
- Leave space between the ball and the middle of your palm. You should be able to insert a pencil between the ball and your palm area.
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- Spread your fingers far enough apart to comfortably balance the ball in one hand.
- The ball should sit on your finger pads.
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BALANCE HAND
- Your non-shooting hand should be on the side of the ball.
- Your balance hand should not add force or spin to the shot.
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- Your non-shooting hand should not move on delivery and should ALWAYS come off the ball FIRST.
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DELIVERY
- The ball should start motion directly upwards from the shot pocket (no dipping of the ball).
- Your elbow should be positioned comfortably under the ball.
- The ball stays in front of you and should not go behind your head.
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- Uncoil your body with your legs, core, and arm power all coordinated.
- Your elbow and wrist should extend in a straight line to the basket.
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- Your shooting hand should extend in a straight line to the rim.
- Hand position on delivery is very important. The ball should come off the hand with perfect symmetrical backspin.
- As shown in the picture to the right, your guide hand stays to the side and does not influence the flight of the ball.
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UPFORCE AND LANDING
- Release the ball on the way up, just before the top of your jump.
- Use your legs to generate upforce.
- You should land in the same spot that you jumped, which shows that you have good balance on your shot.
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FOLLOW-THROUGH
- Your wrists should be floppy (relaxed).
- Fingers should be pointed at the target (rim).
- Finish high. You should see your fingers at the top square of the back board.
- Hold your follow through position until the ball hits the rim.
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To learn more about improving your shot, we recommend...
Breakthrough Basketball Shooting - Drills, Workouts, & Guide
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Comments
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Anonymous says:
10/8/2008 at 11:30:23 AM
I'm already a fundamentally sound shooter
STATS: 16/17
But the intructions does help beginners that need some work
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Thomas Browning says:
11/3/2008 at 6:25:14 PM
I am a first time coach of 4th & 5th graders. What do i need to focus on with these boys to give them a good fundamental start. Thanks, any help would be great. TFB
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Joe Haefner says:
11/3/2008 at 8:45:52 PM
Hi Thomas,
If you go to this link and scroll to the bottom of the page, it will give you a good idea of what to teach: http://www.breakthroughbasketball.com/coaching/youthbasketball.html
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Hadi Sherazi says:
11/7/2008 at 7:39:54 AM
Hi, i am a pretty consistent shooter and am considering buying a rim reducer to take my shot to the next level
there are two i cannot decide from
one reduces the rim from 18 to 16 inches and raises it 1 inch
the other reduces the rim from 18 to 12 inches and raises it two inches
i am 15 years old
please advise
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Joe Haefner says:
11/7/2008 at 1:50:34 PM
Hi Hadi,
I have never used a rim reducer and I don't think you need one to become a great shooter, but here are some of my thoughts.
A rim reducer will force you to become more accurate when shooting. When you take the rim reducer off, it should feel easier to make the shots.
On the other side, it could decrease shooting confidence if you see yourself miss too much with the rim reducer on the hoop.
So, I would only shoot with a rim reducer part of the workout.
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Hadi Sherazi says:
11/8/2008 at 4:43:32 AM
Thank you thats a great help
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Nelson says:
12/11/2008 at 9:36:27 PM
I am 13 but i cant get a good form, i either shoot it over my head with a good release or i shoot with my elbow out if im trying to keep it below my head, i cant get in between is there a drill i could do to get it to be in the right spot
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Joe Haefner says:
12/12/2008 at 1:00:48 PM
Hi Nelson,
To figure out where your elbow should be:
1. Squat slightly and place your hand on your leg that is on the same side as your shooting hand.
2. Bring your hand up into the shooting position. Let your elbow just folllow where it would go naturally. That should be the placement of your elbow when you shoot. Don't strain your elbow.
The important thing is to have the ball travel from your shot pocket to your release to the hoop in a straight line.
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Ania says:
12/14/2008 at 1:43:31 PM
Thanks this helps me alot. I use to have my form shooting but when i was practicing vollyball i losted it. So thanks for you help. This will help me with not only my 2''s but my 3''s too. Go Lady Cards.
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R.C. Tayona says:
12/21/2008 at 8:22:59 AM
hi i am very good shooter in practice ..... but when it comes to the actual game why cant i shoot that well...?
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Joe Haefner says:
12/22/2008 at 7:54:24 AM
Hi R.C.,
There could be a number of reasons that this happening.
1. Are you taking the same mental approach as you would during practice? Are you rushing your shots?
2. In practice, are you practicing the same type of shots you take during the game? If not, you need to start practicing shots you take during the game
3. In practice, are you practicing at game speed? If not, you need to start practicing shots at game speed.
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Jimmy says:
1/2/2009 at 11:24:46 PM
I am 15 and sometimes when i shoot i hyperextend my elbow it hurts so what can i do to stop it from hyperextending.
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Joe Haefner says:
1/3/2009 at 4:07:04 PM
Hi Jimmy,
If you are hyperextending your elbow from shooting the ball, my guess would be that you are not using your legs enough. Your legs should generate most of the power to get your shot to the hoop.
Bend your knees and sit your hips back.
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