Shooting is, obviously, one of the most important elements of a player’s game. And, although not every player on the court has to be able to nail three-pointers every time, shooting is an essential skill that every player should develop. After all, it’s shooting that scores the points and it’s the points that win the game!
Thankfully, basketball is a sport with countless drills to improve shooting performance. If you’re game is super but you struggle to put the ball through the hoop then it’s time to give these four essential shooting drills a go next time you hit the court:
Drill #1: The Form Focus
Grab your basketball and ball inflation needle because the first drill is going to focus on your form. Shooting well is all about form, and this includes your balance, feet and knee position, as well as your shot and follow through. You should focus on your balance whilst squaring your feet and bending your knees whilst shooting with a firm wrist and follow through.
So, the first drill you do will be simple: stand at the free throw line and take a few shots, focusing on your form with every shot. Take at least 10 shots before having a little break and repeating the process. Soon, you will find your form improving and your guiding hand much stronger as you work towards the perfect shot!
Drill #2: The Catch & Shoot
Basketball is a rapid-fire sport that requires players to receive the ball and shoot in the same motion. With the shot clock ticking, and the high amount of points needed to win a game, there can be no time for messing around with too much dribbling in your attacking zone.
Therefore, the next drill you have to be able to master is the catch and shoot. There isn’t much to it: you will move around the shooting zone as your coach or teammate passes you the ball of which you will immediately shoot once you receive it.
You can practice this drill from any part of the attacking zone: the corners, three-point line, free-throw line – wherever you will likely find yourself catching and shooting in a match situation!
Drill #3: The Dribble & Shoot
Of course, a lot of shooting involves driving towards the hoop whilst out jumping your opponent’s attempt to block your shot. Therefore, you have to be able to dribble the ball towards the hoop and shoot without having your opponent steal the ball during your dribble or block your shot.
So this drill is really quite simple: start at the top of the key with the basketball in hand before dribbling to a spot around the hoop before pulling off a jump shot. Here, you want to focus on your balance whilst jumping as this is imperative to evading your opponent’s sturdy attempts at blocking your shoot.
Drill #4: The Repeated Position Shot
We are going to end with one of the more tedious-yet-imperative shooting drills. Obviously, you need to be able to nail shots from all parts of the attacking zone. This is because you have five defenders trying their hardest to keep you as far as possible from shooting anywhere within a couple of metres from the ring.
So, you have to focus on your ability to shoot from various positions and this includes the corners, three-point line, sidelines and more. This is just like the Form Focus drill except from these way out parts of the court as it will help acclimatise your basketball shooting for match situations!