It is important that young basketball players learn the fundamentals of shooting the ball at an early age so that they can perfect the form. There is no one single correct way to shoot a basketball but there are some important tips and points that all shooter should follow. Breakthrough Basketball sums it up by saying you do not want to be robotic, but you need satisfactory form and mechanics to ever become a great shooter.
Step 1
Place your shooting hand on top of the ball and your off hand on the side of the ball. Your shooting hang will rotate under the ball when you cock and prepare to shoot. Professional basketball coach Rob Babcock notes that you should control the ball in your fingertips and keep the palm off the ball.
Step 2
Square up your body to the basket before you shoot. Your feet, shoulders and head should be facing the goal as you prepare to shoot the basketball. You should also have good balance with your weight on the balls of your feet. Some shooters take a shoulder width stance, while others will prefer a more narrow stance, whatever feels comfortable and right to you is what you should go with.
Step 3
Pick a target and focus your eyes on the target during your entire shooting motion until you see the ball go in or hit off the rim. Your eyes should not follow the path of the ball as you release it, instead you should stay locked on the target. Babcock notes that the three most common targets are the front of the rim, the back of the rim and the center of the rim.
Step 4
Cock the ball up to your release position, be it over your head, in front of your head or to the side of your head. When the ball is properly cocked, your shooting hand should be directly under the ball with your off-hand directly on the side of the ball. Your shooting wrist should be bent back so that you can see wrinkles on the wrist.
Step 5
Release the ball by pushing your shooting hand up and out, your off hand should only guide the ball and should not move forward or up and down. Your hand should finish with your palm and fingers down, like you are reaching your hand into a cookie jar, which will force the ball to come out with backspin. Breakthrough Basketball says that you should hold the follow through until the ball hits the rim.
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