“Jump Shooting”

Jump. Shot. That’s pretty much how it works: jump, shot. First you jump and then you shoot. Jumping is by itself a fun and healthful kind of thing to do (we think), sort of like sprinting. I mean why jog all the time, why not sprint? “Honey, I’ll be back in 30 seconds, I’m going out for a sprint.” But we digress. Here’s how you practice learning a jump shot: get as close as you can to the hoop, on a 45 degree angle to the hoop, take one step and, jumping, bring the ball as close to the backboard as you can get it, actually try to touch the board with the ball, extending your forearm/elbow/upperarm slightly past 90 degrees. When the ball is as close to the board as it’s going to get, flick your wrist and allow your arm to nearly fully extend (relaxedly), letting the ball release with a smooth and consistent backspin, thus assuring a safe landing (of sorts) for the ball and a certain two points! Gradually back up. Use the middle of the lane, shooting over the front of the rim, too. Jump. Shot. Shoot at or just before the peak of your jump. Use your legs and the energy of the jump for strength and range. The only other thing to think about is how you are going to react when someone says to you, perhaps for the first time, “Nice jumper!”

“Think Pass”

You want to be regarded as a good offensive basketball player? Pass the ball. You want other players to value you as a teammate? Set them up for easy scores. Getting by your defender, drawing a teammate’s defender and then passing to your teammate for an easy score is the essence of good offensive basketball. It has application in both zone offense and player-to-player offense. Work on your shot fakes and ball handling moves and going on a straight line to the basket not so much to get points for yourself but to give your teammate the gift of two easy points.

“The Simple Layup”

“The point is, don’t shoot layups the same way every time. In general, get up as high as you can, and keep your eye on the target. I tell my players to shoot different kinds of layups each day so that their shots and the movement of their legs don’t become stereotyped. If you jump each time you practice them, you’ll strengthen your legs. If you practice layups casually, you’ll shoot them casually in the game”.

pp. 54-55 "The Smart Take From the Strong"by Pete Carril, former Princeton University head coach and legend