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to this Newsletter has just passed the 1,300 mark! Thank you!!! Articles are written about this dilemma,
and people are looking for an answer. I feel I can provide that
answer. If you agree with what I'm saying, please help me get
my coaching methods out there. Refer people to my Website and
be in communication with me. Thanks. Bucks: I really like the shooting form of Tim Thomas. I feel he's underrated. His Release is quick and high and you can see his hand "snap" in the Follow Through. Glen Robinson is a streaky shooter. When he shoots quickly, on the way up, he does fine. His wrist relaxes. But usually he brings the ball too far overhead and winds up throwing the ball with arm and wrist/hand, difficult to do accurately with any consistency. Ray Allen is a wonderful shooter, as is evidenced by his winning the 3-pt Championship at the All Star Game this year. His setting and releasing of the ball is very automatic, a kind of catapult motion, though that requires that he get "set" before he shoots. He also has the habit of jumping and then shooting. He doesn't get all of the leg drive, and the mostly upper body action flattens the shot and adds some variables. But his performance has been great. An 89% free throw shooter during the season, he's 90.3% in the Playoffs. When he's on, he is really on. But he can be a little streaky. He's one of my favorite players, in awesome shape (I rarely if ever see him breathe hard or sweat) and very humble, non-demonstrative. Cassell, the third of the Big 3, is a streaky but dangerous shooter. He tends to throw/flip the ball up there, too, but must have great confidence in himself and is usually an effective shooter. 76ers: My favorite shooter is Eric Snow. I've always liked his form, though he hasn't been shooting as well this year as I would expect. His performance in Game 5 of this series was not surprising to me. He won the game at the end with those two great shots under extreme pressure, and he was 7 for 9 for the night on his broken foot. He shoots quickly, on the way up, and his wrist and hand are relaxed. That winning shot he made over a defender was an example: quick, high Release, dead center, swish! Tyrone Hill has a nice shot. He's one of the better big men shooters these days. Watch how relaxed his wrist and hand are in the Follow Through. However, with free throws, as so many of the guys do, he stops his body motion and then shoots. This minimizes body movement, which is why they do it, I'd guess, but it also eliminates the wonderful stabilizing effect of the lower/middle body, too. Derek McKie is a streaky shooter, but is playing well. He brings the ball way overhead, which requires a throwing motion. The throwing action allows him to shoot from far out and, sometimes, make them, but he can miss pretty easily, too. He almost lost the game Tuesday by missing two free throws right at the end. Lucky for him Robinson couldn't make the pressure-filled 8 footer and time ran out. Finally, Alan Iverson is a great scorer, not a great pure shooter. His technique varies all over the place, but he has tremendous focus, concentration and belief in himself, obviously. He's what I call an "emotional" shooter. When he's confident, positive and trusting, he can make any and every kind of shot. When he loses focus, he can miss everything. More often than not, he gets himself into the best frame of mind and is often unstoppable with his quickness. THE LAKERS: This team is clicking on all cylinders, a team that time will show us is probably one of the greatest teams of all time. With Shaq dominating the inside and Kobe dominating everything else, and with a great backup cast and a relentless and smothering team defense, they seem ready to set a record by being unbeaten throughout the Playoffs. The only major weakness I see is Shaq's free throwing and jump shooting. He's shooting just 53% from the Line, and if that continues and opponents decide to foul him every time down the floor in crucial moments, that could open the door to a defeat. If he can shoot 65-70%, then it's all over. He doesn't have much of a jump shot, but he doesn't need one. Derek Fisher is shooting brilliantly, and Grant, Fox and Horry are effective enough outside shooters to keep the opponents off balance. Brian Shaw is a streaky outside shooter but drives to the basket very powerfully. Tyron Lue is a very capable backup point guard. I saw him play during the summer a couple years ago in Atlanta, and he held his own with Stephon Marbury and other terrific guards. I'm sorry they couldn't suit Mike Pemberthy. I loved watching him drill those 3-pointers with great form. Watch how quickly Fisher gets the ball
off when he shoots, and note how high it goes. I feel his wrist
and hand could be more relaxed, but he's in a groove right now
and needs no coaching from me. My partner in the Camp is a long-time coach in the Santa Cruz area, Tom Curtiss. Two of his sons assisted us with the Camp, Conner, age 15, and Chase, age 17. Conner, a sophomore and one of the best shooters in the league for his age group, demonstrated for the group at one point how relaxed his wrist and hand were with his Release. Then throughout the first day's session he listened to my coaching and speaking and did a little coaching of the camp, mostly just keeping the kids focused on the exercises. (I had coached him briefly 4-5 months earlier in a group thing with 6-8 guys. His foot was in a cast at the time and he could not do all of the exercises, but he listened and learned some.) Well, the next day during a lull, he rather shyly told me he had made 150 shots in a row that previous night, after the camp. They were from what I call the "Learning Distance," a distance of about 5-6 feet away (for him), back to 10-12 feet. I asked him what he had gotten from the first day of the camp that permitted him to do that. He said he "got" the coaching of the "full out, to the end-of-the-arm Release" I talk about, which he hadn't fully understood before. (By "full out" I mean about 70-75% of max, quick and strong, the same every time, no holding back.) I asked him to share that with the camp and it was most impressive. He said it just "clicked!" A couple weeks later I asked Tom if there was any more to the Conner story. He said yes, and that I would be surprised (again). Conner had asked his dad one day to rebound for him as he wanted to do some "spot" shooting, shooting 25 shots from each of a number of spots. He wound up taking 550 shots from a distance of 6 feet out to about 18 feet. Tom said he's sure he made over 500 of those 550 shots! They didn't keep exact count, but he knew he hadn't missed more than 35-40 shots. Thus he made between 510 to 515 shots out of 550, a percentage in the range of 93-94%! These were mostly jump shots, with just the close-in shots being done with no leg power. Free Throws you might imagine a great shooter making 90% plus, but jump shots!!! This is approaching the performance level of the best shooters in the world. And he did this only a couple weeks after the "150 in a row," with no particular practice, maybe just an hour's worth. The point is that Conner had learned an effective way to control the flight of a basketball. And I don't mean just "some" control, I mean absolute control. He learned a way to repeat what he does, over and over and over. He was in a groove, but it's one that will always be there when you know what you're doing. He said he felt total confidence, and when he missed, it didn't phase him, as he knew exactly what had failed and was able to self correct on the spot. When we truly minimize variables and learn
to trust and shoot from the powerful and stable energy of the
lower/middle body, connected strongly to a target, who knows
what we're capable of? SET POSITION OVERHEAD "Hi, My son, just a freshman in
high school, has just started shooting the ball off to the right
of his head. I told him to try to shoot the ball more straight
over the head, but the habit seems hard to break. Any ideas
to stop this? He was a good shooter; now he's just an average
shooter. Help me." Tell your son it's important for accuracy to have the ball pretty much in line with shooting eye (right eye if right handed). If he's off to the right too much or left or even straight overhead, it's not exactly in line with what he's seeing and he has to make a slight compensation (the calculation of an angle) when he shoots. John Stockton is an example of a great players who shoots off his right shoulder. I imagine he was told to "square up" as a boy, but also told to have the forearm vertical, and to do both of those things without a lot of strain, you shoot off the shoulder. He's a pretty amazing shooter most of the time, but you have to realize he's incredibly athletic and plays basketball 4-5 hours/day. Jeff Hornacek is an example of what I coach, a player who "opens" his body, brings the ball directly in line with his right eye (at least very close), and I'll bet he beat John almost every time in any shooting competition. It's just "easier" that way, with no need for a calculation. To coach your son, ask him to tell you where the ball is each time he shoots. Is it in line with the shooting eye, is it right, is it left, and how much? When he becomes aware of where he brings the ball and has a goal of a different Set Point, then it will start to change ... if he wants the change! It would be powerful for him to see his Set Point in a mirror. Seeing is one thing, and very valuable, but feeling it in the moment is even more valuable and should be the goal. That is when the body gets the feedback it needs to really learn. Video taping him would also be very valuable so he sees what is. Be patient, and ask him to be patient with himself. It will take some time to change but with awareness it will be simple and natural. ----------------------------------------------------- "If the release is always up, and
if the release is always full out, HOW (mechanically) do you
change the arc for shorter or longer shots in order to control
distance? The concept seems very sound, but we don't seem to
understand how you can vary the arc if you're always releasing
the ball up and the extension is always full out. Help." If your power and distance are exactly the same for two shots, then you would not vary the height (or arc). But if, for the same distance, you generate different amounts of leg power (jump quicker, feel stronger, just decide to jump more strongly), then you have to change the arc accordingly or you'll be long or short. It's an instinctive thing. You will know to shoot higher if you have extra energy and lower if you do not. You aim upward at different angles to give you that variation in arc, not always "up" at the same angle. The goal is to develop a "constant" Release motion, "full out" (about 70-75% of max), but because distance and power are usually varying, you have to be willing to change the arc to compensate. I think most shooters try to have the same arc and vary the power in their arms, wrist, hand and fingers. That is very difficult to do, especially under pressure. The free throw can be managed by practice to be about the same UpForce (leg drive) every time, plus the same, practiced Release, so the arc will be about the same. But if you are fatigued and feel less power as you go to shoot, you can lower the arc. If you are excited or nervous and feel extra energy or adrenalin, you can raise the arc. Varying arc is how you control distance! It will all be instinctive, I feel, not something you create a formula for. ----------------------------------------------------- Here are several questions from one person: Q: " I am trying your technique, but my shot isn't very good right now. I don't really know what it is wrong. My old shot was almost the same as your technique. I just didn't open and turn 45 degree. Now my shot is even worse than before. I am not saying your technique is wrong. I shoot early, open my stance (Open means to open the feet farther apart right?) and turn 45 degrees. I think the problem is my wrist. I try not to use it as much and now my shots are short. I used to flick my wrist hard and it worked." A: I suggest opening your stance, meaning your left foot is back a bit. I didn't say how much you should turn. That's up to you. Larry Bird turned about 45 degrees, but maybe 20 or 30% will work for you. And no, "opening" does not mean opening the feet further apart. Have a natural, athletic stance, with the feet balanced, not too close, not too far apart. When you develop a Release with a relaxed wrist and hand, you lose power and gain repeatability. To make up for the lost power, you need, then, to shoot from more leg power, shoot earlier in the jumping motion. That is desirable because it gives you a quicker Release, a more upward action, and, most importantly, a more stabilized shot. If you are not getting a lot of leg power, then, yes, you're going to be short. Just shoot earlier, quicker and the ball will get lots of power and change the arc accordingly!!! Wrist flicking will never, in my opinion, give you consistently great shooting, only streaky shooting, because it adds variables and flattens the shot. Q: "Long ago I used to shoot upward and my shot would go really high and hit right in the center but when I missed it was an airball. Then a friend told me to flick my wrist harder and use my legs. He has a really good shot. I tried that and it worked for me a little, but the shot wasn't consistent. Then I found your website." A: If you shoot from a lot of leg force and have a relaxed wrist and hand, you should be getting accuracy right away. If your distance control is poor, look at your Release and how you use your leg power. Is the Release always the same speed and force? If yes, then all you have to do is vary height to compensate for differing leg power and you should start making your shots. Don't hold back with the Release. Do the same, what I call "full out," motion every time, and you'll start getting consistency and accuracy. Q: "Part of the reason I'm not shooting so well is, I think, I'm trying too hard to shoot the right way. Do you have any exercises I can do at home or on the court to improve my technique? I can't go outside because it is really cold, and in practice we learn plays and stuff so I don't really have a court I can practice on. But in the summer I can go to the court. Well, I am going to still keep on using this technique. Thanks for all your help." A: Yes, don't get too serious about this. It's really very simple. Worry is not a good pre-shot routine. If you just pay attention to how you shoot, with feel and awareness and a goal in mind, you'll learn very quickly. You can practice against a wall or with
a friend indoors. Maybe sit on the floor and shoot back and
forth, practicing the relaxed wrist and hand action. That is
probably the most important part of this to learn. When you
learn that, then you'll realize you HAVE to shoot from more leg
power because the Release is constant, less powerful than before.
The local YMCA or fitness center might have an indoor wall you
could practice against, if not a gym with baskets. This is not
difficult stuff, so you don't have to practice it for hours and
hours. When you do get a court, you can learn it quickly. How about an AWARENESS CLUB? From my experience, it's the "quality" of the shooting time that matters more than the "quantity." We learn by awareness of differences much more than rote repetitions. Instead of requiring that kids shoot tons of shots, maybe there's a different way to approach it that will increase "learning." It sounds good to ask (or require) kids to shoot a set number of shots per week or month, and have them record it, keep a log, etc. It seems to be an effective strategy, and some learning will happen just by the huge number of repetitions. It's how a lot of us learned things, but it's a slow way, and oftentimes does not result in the shifts in performance we want. How many people go through their tennis lives with a tentative, ineffective backhand, even though they've hit thousands of backhands? How many golfers spend time at the practice range and don't get any better. The problem with a regimen of large numbers is that it can lead to "unconscious" practice. The young girl or boy will obey and think it's helping, but maybe it isn't helping as much as it could. Here are some suggestions of coaching advice that could make a huge difference in learning to shoot more effectively: Ask your kids to spend a certain amount of time on a court consistently doing the following exercises in awareness (maybe a few of these each time they shoot): A. HEIGHT From my experience, most shots are very flat, in the 6" to 2' range above the rim. Players often tell me they think their shots are "medium" high when they only get 1.5 to 2' above the rim. If they get to 3' above, they think that's a "high" shot. High is a relative term, but could probably be considered in the range of 5', 6', 8' above the rim. There is a huge space above the basket to play with. A great exercise is to see how high you can shoot and still make shots or come close. This stretches the players' experiences and expands their vision and capability. B. USE OF LEG POWER VS UPPER BODY POWER C. OBSERVE THE RELEASE AND FOLLOW THROUGH What does your hand do as you shoot? Are the wrist and hand relaxed or tight? Does the hand stay in direct line with the target? ...or does it move to the side or up? Is it twisting as you shoot? Is there a feeling of "Letting Go" and Freedom when you shoot, or are you always controlling things and tensing your arm and hand as you shoot? D. SPIN E. HOW DO YOU CONTROL DISTANCE? F. ACCURACY If you hit the left side of the rim with the center of the ball, your shot was 9" off to the left. It's a good experience to stand under the basket (near out of bounds) and watch balls from other players come into the basket. Observe if they are dead center or off line, and by how much. G. DISTANCE Play with it. You might even "try" to hit the back rim, thus aiming to be about 9" long, and see what happens. Aim to hit the front rim. Your body will surprise you, once you start to trust it. You can even intend to brush the inside right or left of the rim by moving your vision 4" right or 4" left. (A coach I worked with in Iowa told me he got really good at hitting different parts of the rim to create rebounds for specific players. The only problem was that, when he played in games himself, he forgot to aim for the center of the basket and had to retrain himself.) Once you have an idea of your direction and distance and then start to play with it, your control of ball flight will improve. If all you notice is if you made the shot or not, the body does not get the feedback it needs to develop subtle control. H. CONFIDENCE Try unconditional confidence (trust): As you go to shoot, can you JUST TRUST that you're going to do your best and not interfere with things? Doubt and Fear create the problems that you don't want -- tension, hesitancy, awkward physical motion, a tentative finish to the shot. Can you be calm, and just see the basket, intend for the shot to go in, and trust your body to make it happen? I. WHERE DO SHOTS LAND TYPICALLY? If you are always short, notice exactly how short and keep shooting. Don't try to fix it by making gross adjustments. Just keep reporting how many inches short you are, over and over. I'll bet the body learns subtly how to increase power and find the right distance. J. NON-JUDGMENTAL FEEDBACK ---------------------------------------------------------- With attention and patience and accurate, non-judgmental feedback of what's happening, the kids will start to figure things out for themselves. A good coach can then introduce the "distinctions" that matter in shooting and the kids will learn like crazy. With this kind of awareness, tremendous learning is possible. Within this framework of practice, then"quantity" of repetitions is necessary to cement the learning and develop trust. How many repetitions, I can't say. But I do know learning can happen fast. Hundreds of shots, a few thousand? Who really knows? It depends on the state of awareness of the shooter, as well as her or his intention, commitment, dedication and trust. I'd love your feedback on this Quality
vs. Quantity suggestion. Do any of you do that now, emphasizing
awareness more than just raw quantities? Thanks.
Just a quick note to encourage you to be curious as you play the game of basketball. Please do not think you have to "know" things. You're "just a kid!" That's a great place to be. Keep up the enthusiasm you had for the game when you first started. Hopefully your coaches encourage you to be kids and make mistakes while you're trying your best. If you approach all the skills you have to learn to play basketball well -- dribbling, passing, shooting, playing defense, rebounding, blocking out, setting screens, etc. -- with a sense of curiosity and exploration, you'll learn like crazy! As soon as you think you have to do things "right," you'll start interfering with yourself and block the learning. I see so many kids shoot shot after shot and not learn much. They keep missing, but they don't seem to be experimenting and trying to find out what works. It seems like they think if they just "try" harder, it will go in. I remember Shaq O'Neal saying a year or so ago to a reporter that he was at some point just going to get mad and shoot better. He thought his problems were all mental and that he could just will them better by his mind. Not true, Shaq. No, the mind does not lead us to great learning. It's more interested in how we look, trying to avoid looking "bad" and seeking to look "good." Shooting, like the other skills of the game, is a physical thing. It's a bio-mechanical thing. If you do this, the ball always does that. There's a direct correlation between your physical action and the result. If you move your arm horizontally, the ball will fly horizontally. If you push the ball upward, the ball will go upward ... every time. It's a direct "Cause and Effect." To learn, then, you must pay attention to what is actually happening and let the body adjust. Notice I said "Let." The body will learn if we get out of its way. But if you're always trying and hoping to "look good," you won't be feeling and seeing what's happening, except in a judgmental way (that was good, that was bad), and judgment interferes. All I mean to say here is be curious and
explore. Try different things. Try a throwing motion and try
a pushing action. Shoot high and shoot low. See what works
the best. Shoot early in the jumping motion and shoot late.
Shoot with two hands and shoot with one. See what's the most
reliable and efficient. Shoot with a "square" stance
and shoot with the right foot forward (for right handers) more
than the left, what's called an "open" stance. Bring
the ball up over your shoulder and shoot and bring it up in line
with your strong eye and shoot. Bring it over and to the left
of your head like Marcus Camby and shoot. See if it works.
Notice the differences. Explore everything you can ... with
curiosity. You'll become a better player much quicker that way.
We call that "Learning," a lot different from trying
to do it "right!" Please tell others about my site and my
video. Send them the URL (http://www.swish22.com) and let them
know there's hope for better shooting. (More than "hope,"
it's a proven Method.) See my Website for the latest news about Clinics, Camps and Private Sessions. I'll be in Santa Cruz this weekend, June 2-3, Porterville, Calif. on June 9-10, and Seattle June 24th. I'm working right now on shooting clinics in Indiana July 3-11, approx. (Indianapolis and Evansville for sure, maybe Louisville and Paducah, Kentucky and Carbondale, Illinois on the same trip), Dallas (later in July possibly), New York City and the Twin Cities. Other possibilities include Ogden, Utah (late June), Akron/Cleveland, Portland, Oregon (early August), central Pennsylvania, and southern Florida. If you'd like to organize some clinics or camps for me, call or email me. Here's a direct link to the Clinics &
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