Stephen Curry Shooting Form: How To Shoot Like Steph Curry
If you’ve ever wanted to know how to shoot like Steph Curry, you’re about to find out. In this post, we did an in depthanalysis of Steph Curry’s shooting form…
This isn’t necessarily what you must do, but our goal is just to show you exactly what one of the best shooters in the world does when he shoots…
And most importantly towards the end of this post, we’ll discuss how you can develop shooting mechanics that can make you just as consistent, accurate, and deadly on the court.
(Hint: it’s not from trying to copy your favorite player’s form…)
[thrive_leads id=’3111′]ALIGNMENT
Steph Curry keeps his shooting shoulder, elbow and hip aligned.
You can see that his shoulder is directly behind his elbow, in line with his hip.
His forearm is slightly tilted away from this line, keeping the ball above his shooting eye.
THE TURN
Curry is a right handed shooter, so in order to align his right side, he turns his feet slightly towards the left.
Sometimes, off the dribble, curry’s feet point directly at the rim.
When this happens, he rotates his hips as he jumps, and turns in the air to maintain that alignment.
THE STANCE
Curry is predominantly a wide stance shooter with his knees pointing inwards.
THE DIP
Off the catch, Steph Curry dips the basketball and uses the momentum to create rhythm for his shot.
This means that after catching the ball, he brings it down to his waist before rising up to shoot.
Off the dribble, most of the time he is already low and the ball is already at his waist, so he doesn’t need to dip.
HAND POSITION
Steph uses a relatively relaxed hand position on the ball, with his index finger and thumb making a V-shape.
Also notice that his hand is on the side of the ball, and rotates towards the net as he extends his arm.
THE SETPOINT
When Curry shoots, the ball first travels backwards towards his head, before traveling forwards towards the net.
The point right before the ball starts moving towards the net is called the setpoint.
Steph Curry’s setpoint is just above his right eye.
At his setpoint, his thumb is in line with his eyebrow and his palm is facing to the side.
You will also notice that his arm makes a 90 degree angle at his armpit.
The angle between his arm and his forearm is much less than 90 degrees.
He always reaches his setpoint before his feet leave the ground, and then uses the power from his jump to push the ball forward.
PALM SHOOTER
Curry is a palm shooter.
This means that he rests the ball on his entire hand with the weight of the ball on his palm.
He then transfers the ball from this palm to his finger pads and off his fingertips as he snaps his wrist forward.
THE RELEASE
He uses a 4 fingers down release, and the ball comes off of his middle finger last.
Curry keeps his wrist relaxed and floppy on his release.
THE FOLLOW THROUGH
On his follow through, his elbow is right above his head and his arm is completely straight.
The ball travels in a straight line.
It starts off above his eye and on his follow through, his wrist ends up directly above his eye.
THE EYES
Steph keeps his eyes on the rim until the ball is released.
As soon as it leaves his hand, he follows the ball with his eyes all the way to the rim .
THE OFF HAND
Notice that his off hand comes off the ball right before he starts to snap his wrist forward.
Also watch how he tucks his thumb in next to his index finger on his off hand.
YOUR ACTION STEP
Almost every player I coach wants to get a shooting form that looks like their favorite player’s form…
You’ve probably tried to do this too. I know I did when I was obsessing over how to improve my shooting.
So you try to copy every single aspect by watching these breakdowns. But what happens?
You end up hurting your form more than helping it… Why? Because every player is different.
Every player has a different body type, different height, age, strength, shape, and even hand size. All of these things matter…
So when you’re trying to shoot like Steph or Kobe, you’re copying shooting principles that work for THEIR unique physical characteristics, not yours.
Now of course, if your shot is horrible, like you shoot with a set point over your head, then of course your form and shot will improve if you try to copy a pro player. But other than that, if you want to truly reach your MAX shooting potential…
Then you need to develop a set of mechanics that are UNIQUELY customized for YOUR body and YOUR characteristics. The way to do that is to learn the correct shooting principles and mould those around your unique characteristics like your strength, age, style of play, etc.
The worst part if you don’t train for your own unique style of shooting like that, you can never find a form that ‘sticks’. Which can get super frustrating because you never get that ‘reliable shooter’ status. Your consistency suffers. Your in-game shots are never as good as your practice. Teammates stop relying on you to take shots and no form ever starts to feel like “your own”… And now you know why.
Once you install those correct shooting principles into your own form by going through this training program, you’ll develop a beautiful, consistent, smooth shot that’s unstoppable on the court.
Coach Faizal
Kobe Bryant Shooting Form: How To Shoot Like Kobe Bryant
If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to shoot like Kobe Bryant, I made this Kobe Bryant shooting form breakdown for you.
Kobe Bryant’s genius when it comes to shooting is something every player should spend time absorbing and understanding.
Plus, I heard all your comments on which player’s shooting form breakdown you’d like to see…
Which is why in our newest video post, we did an in depth analysis of Kobe Bryant’s shooting form.
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SHOOTING STANCE
Let’s begin with looking at Kobe’s shooting stance…
You will most often see Kobe shooting with a wide base.
And he usually has his knees pointing inwards.
ALIGNMENT
Kobe leads with his shooting side.
This means that because he shoots with his right hand, his right shoulder, hip, and foot will be further in front than his left side.
When he shoots, his shooting shoulder, elbow, and hip are aligned.
His forearm is slightly bent towards his shooting eye.
He creates this alignment before he shoots by slightly turning his feet towards his non shooting side.
He is right handed so he turns his feet slightly to the left.
Kobe takes a lot of difficult shots where sometimes, his shooting or dominant side, is facing away from the basket.
When this happens, he turns while he is in the air to bring his shooting shoulder forward.
And only releases the ball once his shooting side is aligned towards the net.
THE DIP
Off the pass, Kobe dips the ball to his waist before rising up to shoot.
There is no need for him to dip the ball off the dribble because he is already low and ready to shoot.
THE SETPOINT
Kobe’s set point is much higher and further back than most players. At his set point, the middle of the ball is directly above his head.
His elbow is about at forehead level and the ball is above his right eye.
Because his elbow is already so high, when he shoots, he is pushing the ball more forward than upward, which gives him less arc on his shot.
Kobe gets a lot of elevation on his shot and is considered to be a two motion shooter.
This means that he has a significant pause in his shot before pushing the ball forward.
You can see here that he doesn’t start pushing the ball towards the net until he is already in the air. And releases right at the peak of his jump.
Even though he’s a two motion shooter with a high set point, he still reaches his setpoint before his feet leave the ground.
HAND POSITION
Kobe tries to keep a gap between the basketball and his palm when he shoots.
He places his hand on top of the ball and spreads out his index and middle finger.
If you look closely here, you can see him spreading out his index and middle finger to make a wide V.
THE RELEASE
Kobe dominates with his index finger.
You can see here that his index finger goes down the most, while the other three fingers stay up.
THE FOLLOW THROUGH
Because Kobe’s elbow starts off at forehead level, after he releases, his arm is straight and his elbow is very high above his head.
THE OFF HAND
He brings his off hand very close to his shooting hand so that his two thumbs make a T.
He starts to remove his off hand as he begins to extend his shooting arm.
SHOULDERS & FEET
Kobe’s shoulders go back on his shot.
So while he is in the air, this causes his feet to sweep forward.
The shoulder’s swaying back and the feet sweeping forward, is what the guys at Pro Shot call the sweep and sway.
THE EYES
Kobe keeps his eyes on the rim for the whole shot.
His eyes are locked on the target until the ball goes in.
YOUR PERFECT FORM
Almost every player I coach wants to get a shooting form that looks like their favorite player’s form…
You’ve probably tried to do this too. I know I did when I was obsessing over how to improve my shooting.
So you try to copy every single aspect by watching these breakdowns. But what happens?
You end up hurting your form more than helping it… Why? Because every player is different.
Every player has a different body type, different height, age, strength, shape, and even hand size. All of these things matter…
So when you’re trying to shoot like Steph or Kobe, you’re copying shooting principles that work for THEIR unique physical characteristics, not yours.
Now of course, if your shot is horrible, like you shoot with a set point over your head, then of course your form and shot will improve if you try to copy a pro player. But other than that, if you want to truly reach your MAX shooting potential…
Then you need to develop a set of mechanics that are UNIQUELY customized for YOUR body and YOUR characteristics. The way to do that is to learn the correct shooting principles and mould those around your unique characteristics like your strength, age, style of play, etc.
The worst part if you don’t train for your own unique style of shooting like that, you can never find a form that ‘sticks’. Which can get super frustrating because you never get that ‘reliable shooter’ status. Your consistency suffers. Your in-game shots are never as good as your practice. Teammates stop relying on you to take shots and no form ever starts to feel like “your own”… And now you know why.
Once you install those correct shooting principles into your own form by going through this training program, you’ll develop a beautiful, consistent, smooth shot that’s unstoppable on the court.
Coach Faizal
How To Get A Perfect Jumpshot: The First Most Important Mechanic
A lot of my players come up to me wanting to know how to get the perfect jumpshot…
When they ask me this, I know what they’re REALLY asking for are the moves, the drills, the “quick fixes”. They want me to show them how to get to their shot to look like Steph Curry’s (or their fav player’s) shot…
And when I tell them they’re not ready for that yet, they get disappointed and unmotivated.
That’s when I give them their first training; the FIRST mechanic that must be mastered, if they’re ever going to achieve the perfect jumpshot…
That first mechanic is what we’ll cover in this post.
[thrive_leads id=’3111′]The First Mechanic To Master For A Perfect Jumpshot
Whether you’re a coach teaching someone else how to shoot or you’re a player learning how to shoot yourself, the most important way for a shooter to reach their potential and achieve their perfect jumpshot is to develop the mindset that technique matters.
Before fixing a specific shooting mechanic like timing, posture, or release, the mindset that technique matters is what will truly set you apart from everyone else. Many shooters practice everyday without thinking about improving their technique. They will shoot the ball over and over until it starts to go in more often. And of course, with practice, they will improve.Once the ball starts to go in more often, it is normal to think that they are on the right track and that the process should be repeated. BUT this improvement is often a TRAP that can lead to some long term issues if shooters aren’t aware that they are developing bad habits.Let me use an extreme example to illustrate this point…If I practiced shooting the ball underhand every day, I would improve over time. But just because I am improving, does not mean I am training my shot effectively.Our job as shooters is not only to improve, but to improve with purpose. Shooting underhand, even though I may have gotten better at it, is not going to help me become an elite shooter in games.
NBA shooters focus on and practice purposeful improvement.
How To Practice Purposeful Improvement For Long Term Success As A Shooter
Like pro shooters, we need to train our shot in a way that will transfer into games and give us range, speed, accuracy and consistency. We can’t be satisfied that we are getting better now, without knowing if we are training the right habits that will put the odds in our favour. One example of this trap that I see very often in the shooters I train who are just starting out, is that they hang in the air before shooting and release the ball on the way down. They may find success from close range, but once they get to the 3-point line, they struggle to reach the basket and their accuracy suffers. That’s why it’s important that every shooter understands (especially shooters from a young age), that just because the ball goes in right now, from this distance, in this situation, does not mean that they are building the right habits that will lead to long term success as a prolific shooter. They must understand that there are best practices when it comes to shooting form that will put the odds in their favour and help them find long term success.
When you study the best shooters in the world, it becomes very clear what those best practices are. I’ve spent years analyzing pro shooters and today I teach those exact same shooting principles in a step-by-step online training program.
One of the Most Effective Mindsets For Developing The Perfect Jumpshot
One of the most effective mindsets is knowing that there are good misses and there are bad makes. One way to reinforce this mindset is to implement a point system based on good misses and bad makes.For example: If you are practicing (or teaching) efficient shot timing, you can use a drill where the goal is to reach 20 points from a spot before moving to another spot. For each shot, you would receive:
Efficient Shot Timing Drill
- 2 points for a good make (MADE shot with CORRECT timing)
- 1 point for a good miss (MISSED shot with CORRECT timing)
- 0 for a bad make (MADE shot with INCORRECT timing)
- -1 for a bad miss (MISSED shot with INCORRECT timing)
Goal: Reach 20 points from each spot
The shooter should keep their own score and say it out loud so the shooter (and the coach if there is one) can confirm that score is being kept correctly.In order for you to know how many points you should get, you will be forced to constantly focus on HOW you are shooting. You will start to get a sense of what it feels like when you do it right and how it feels when you do it wrong.This will greatly improve your body awareness and allow you to correct yourself when necessary. This point system and mindset can be used for every technique that you need to work on.Once you develop this mindset – that technique matters – it should make the process of learning the techniques themselves much, much easier.
Your Next Steps To Become a 90% 3-Point Shooter
With that mindset, your next step to become a deadly shooter is to use the SAME techniques that all the best shooters in the NBA have consciously or unconsciously used to train their unstoppable jumpshots.
There’s no use knowing that technique matters, if the techniques you use aren’t the best, most reliable techniques. If they’re anything less than that, then you’re still wasting time learning a broken form that will get harder to change the more you practice it.
The best shooting techniques are those that are backed by science, physics, and biomechanics (the study of movement). Those that are backed by real world results, those that you can see show up over and over again when you analyze elite NBA shooters.
I’ve studied the science, I’ve analyzed the form of hundreds of shooters, and I’ve seen real improvements from the players I’ve coached. The right techniques matter and after buying and going through almost every online training out there, I have never seen those correct techniques taught anywhere, until I created this step-by-step jumpshot training program.
Inside that program, you’ll get over 50 videos on how to develop YOUR perfect shooting form using correct science-backed techniques. You’ll learn how to refine every aspect of your unique jumpshot, for your unique style, body type, height, age, and more.
If you’ve been feeling frustrated with your shot, or have a player that you’re coaching who is constantly feeling upset at his or her shooting performance, then this is for you.
The worst feeling is remaining mediocre when you know you have the potential to be great…
I know you have the potential. I know you’re capable of developing the perfect jumpshot that will leave people around you in awe of how well you shoot…
This is how we’ll bring that perfect jumpshot out of you.
Coach Faizal
How To Improve Your Shooting Performance During Games
“I’m a good shooter in practice but I can’t shoot just as good during games. How do I improve my shooting during games?”
This is a question I get from almost every player I coach. It’s a part of every shooter’s journey to struggle with transitioning their shooting abilities from practice to games…
Just like with shooting in practice, there’s a process to mastery of shooting effectively in games and that’s what I want to talk about here…
[thrive_leads id=’3111′]Here’s a specific question I got recently from one of our players…
“Hey coach, I’m a good shooter but I keep having bad shooting games where I can’t shoot anywhere near what I’m capable of. Sometimes every shot is way off and other times it goes straight in and barely even touches the mesh.
I have also started struggling with my free throws but that’s mainly because my coach is playing me more minutes now so my shots off because I’m a bit more tired.I know I’m an 80-85% free throw shooter but my fatigue is not allowing me to shoot that during games. This keeps happening and I’m just not sure why it’s not getting any better or how to fix it. I would really appreciate any advice. Thank you!”
There are two different answers to this question.
The first one touches on your mental approach to shooting and the second one has to do with transferability of skills from practice to games. The first piece of advice I can offer you is to approach shooting with the mentality that every shot you take is an accurate representation of your current skill level. If you shoot 50% from the 3 point line in one game, it’s easy to claim responsibility for that success.However, in the next game if you shoot 20%, you would say (as we all would) that you had an “off game” and that you didn’t shoot up to your actual skill level…But I would argue that IS your skill level.Shooting 50% one game and 20% the next is an accurate representation of your consistency. The games where you miss free throws because you played extra minutes, that is an accurate representation of your conditioning and your ability to shoot when fatigued.If some games you struggle because the defense is too fierce, that is an accurate representation of your ability to shoot under pressure. When you approach shooting with this mindset, you take complete responsibility of your performance. You take responsibility of the good AND the bad.
Too many players don’t practice accountability as it relates to shooting…
Remember, if you take responsibility for every miss, you will likewise be able to claim the glory of every make.
Many people will leave the gym after a bad shooting game and think “my shot was off today, hopefully it’s back before next game”. This puts ownership on ‘the shot’. Hoping that ‘it’ comes back. A more effective way to think about it is to put the ownership on YOU. So instead, any time you have an off game, ask yourself:
1. What is one thing that held me back from shooting the way I expected to?
2. What can I do to prevent this from happening in the future?
For example, if you are missing free throws in games because you are tired, fatigue is holding you back. I’m guessing you don’t want your coach to play you less, so the alternative is to improve your free throw shooting when tired. One drill you can try is Sprint 142s (1 sprint for 2 free throws)
Sprint 142s
- The goal is to make 10 free throws.
- Each sprint, there and back, earns you 2 free throws.
- Once you shoot 2, you have to run another sprint to earn 2 more.
- Continue this process until you make 10 shots.
Keep doing this and other drills like this to help you improve. If this doesn’t fix the problem, keep asking the same two questions above over and over. Keep practicing and keep adjusting. That brings me to the second answer.
There is often a significant drop-off from practice performance to game performance because most people do not practice at game speed.If you feel that could be an issue for you, try to replicate game intensity as much as possible. Practice against a defender whenever you can. Try to create pressure situations during your drills.
For example, going back to zero if you miss 2 shots in a row. Play in front of crowds when you can if that is an option for you. Be creative to make your training as similar to a game as possible.Now, even after doing all of this, there will still be a difference between your practice performance and game performance because it is still extremely difficult to recreate the excitement, adrenaline, arousal, nerves, pressure and intensity of a real game…
So, the next step to increase your “in-game” performance is to play as many real games as you can, whenever you can. If you do all of this, I am confident that you can greatly improve your shooting performance during games.
Lastly, if you’re shooting anything below 85-90% three’s in practice, you have room to grow as a shooter. The next most obvious and most important way to improve your in-game performance is to become a high percentage shooter in practice.
Get the jumpshot training to become a 90% shooter here.
Get your perfect shooting form down first, and you’ll be ready for when I release my in-game jumpshot training program in 2020.
Coach Faizal
Should You Practice Your Jumpshot With A Rebounder Or Shooting Partner?
It’s Saturday afternoon and you’re pumped to go to the gym and work on your jumpshot…
You get to the gym. You’re alone and getting every rebound, expending a lot of energy. With every rebound you get frustrated and think it would be so much easier and efficient if you just had someone to get your rebounds for you…
A lot of my players deal with this frustration. I did too…
When I started working on my shot, I would go to my local rec centre early in the morning and find an empty rim to start practicing. Everyday, without fail, someone would come into the gym without a ball and ask me if I wanted a rebounder (so that in turn, I would rebound for them).
Eventually I started always saying no. Here’s why…
[thrive_leads id=’3111′]Here’s a question from a player who is worried that he is not reaching his shooting potential because he doesn’t have a shooting partner/rebounder:
“I have been playing basketball for a few years and I have always had a lot of issues with my shot. After watching your videos, I started seriously working on my shooting form about 3 weeks ago.I have already improved a lot but my only worry is that I don’t have anyone to go to the gym with so I feel like I’m wasting a lot of time in between shots because I have to get my own rebound.How important do you think it is to have a rebounder when practicing?”I know this is probably not what you were expecting but I actually think you are better off without a rebounder when working on your shooting form.At least at first.
It seems like an efficient system; you rebound for one another and both people end up getting more shots up. This is true. But quantity is not the goal when you are trying to change a movement pattern and improve your mechanics.We need to be interested in the quality of each rep, especially when starting out. Improving your technique takes deliberate, focused, and conscious practice. Every rep needs your full attention.The problem I found with having a rebounder during these early stages is that it speeds you up. It doesn’t allow you to take your time and think about what you’re doing. It doesn’t give you a chance to experiment or make corrections.When someone is waiting for you to shoot, your mind will shift away from technique and you will start to speed up. You will probably feel uncomfortable to stop and reflect on why your shot felt good or bad – which is exactly what you should be doing.If someone is waiting for you, you won’t pull out your camera to record one rep at a time so that you can analyze what you are doing right and what needs improvement. When someone is watching you shoot, your mind will shift away from technique and you will start worrying about how many shots you make.On the other hand, if you’re training alone, you have the freedom to train your technique the right way – to slow down and focus on the important things. That’s why I think being alone in the gym and focusing all of your mental energy on each shot is what will actually allow you to see real progress. Then, once the correct techniques have become second nature for you, the time will come when having a rebounder will make your workouts a lot more efficient. But at first, I think a rebounder can often do more harm than good so don’t worry too much about that for now.
Of course, if you do end up training with someone, as long as you find that having a rebounder or partner doesn’t affect your ability to focus on technique, go for it.
There is also a deeper issue here for a player who thinks they don’t have a partner or rebounder to get more shots up quickly…
Most of the time, they’re thinking that the more shots they put up, the better their shot will get. That’s not how it works – that’s how the average player thinks…
The one that has been training his shot for years but still changes his form constantly, lacks confidence on the court, and doesn’t have a consistent shot.
Remember: more shots doesn’t equal better shot.
You have to train using specific methods to analyze, to adjust, to practice, to implant, and finally to enhance your shot. That’s how all elite level shooters train.
All those steps are necessary and if you want a complete step-by-step system that shows you how to train in that way in those steps, you can get that training by clicking here.
Once you get your perfect jumpshot down using those methods, you’ll finally develop that deadly consistency that will make you an actual threat on the court, and enable you to be the best player you can be.
Coach Faizal
How Should A Perfect Shooting Form Look?
Do you want a jumpshot that looks good? Do you wonder why your shooting form doesn’t look like your favorite player’s shooting form?
A lot of my players have asked me about this. Some have wondered if it should even matter what their shot looks like…
In this article, I want to shed some light on this very topic.
[thrive_leads id=’3111′]So should it matter what your jumpshot looks like? You probably won’t like this… but the answer is yes and no.
Here’s what I mean…
The ultimate goal for every shooter is to get the ball in the hoop. That is the most important thing.
However, we all think we know what a ‘good looking’ jumpshot looks like, even though a good looking jump shot is an extremely subjective term – which means everyone has a different idea of what ‘looks good’ as a jumpshot. A shot ‘looks good’ because we compare it to the template of the best shooters in the world…
So a good looking shot 50 years ago is different from a good looking shot today. The reason James Harden and Steph Curry’s shots ‘look good’ is because they are world class shooters who we NOW look to as templates for what shooting should look like. The reason we instinctively put so much emphasis on how a shot looks is because it shows signs of similar mechanics. James Harden and Steph Curry have similar efficient release timing, minimal to no pause in their release, etc.
Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan have similar looking shots because they both have similar release mechanics – 2 motion shots with high set points, hanging in the air before pushing the ball forward.
Someone whose shot looks similar to MJ’s or Kobe’s will probably display similar release timing.
So essentially, when we see a jump shot, we are always comparing it to the templates we know…
And if someone’s shot looks the same as a world class shooter’s, they probably have similar mechanics. If it looks drastically different, we start to wonder why someone’s shot would look so much different from the successful templates we know…
That is why Lonzo Ball’s jumpshot got so much attention – why was he not following the rules that almost everyone else follows? Why did he not match our template for what a good shot looks like?
Even someone with zero knowledge of shooting form can see that something is wrong with Markelle Fultz’ shot. He doesn’t match our template for what we see pro shooters doing.
When these differences become so big, it is important for us to question WHY these differences are there and if they need to be ‘fixed’. So yes, what your shot looks likes does matter in the sense that you are using the same principles and techniques that the best shooters in the world use…
But purely in terms of aesthetics (how pretty your shot is), it really doesn’t matter as long as the ball goes in the hoop!
Some players have shots that look great but don’t feel great. If your shot doesn’t ‘feel’ comfortable, but looks good, then you still have a form problem.
With a broken form, you feel the most embarrassment not at how bad your shot looks, but when you miss open shots, when your teammates don’t trust you to shoot, when defenders give you a lot of room because they know you can’t shoot…
Which is why you need to upgrade your shooting form first, BEFORE caring about your the way your shot looks. Once you get your form fixed, you’ll be able to reach your potential as a player and you’ll get your confidence back, along with a smooth, comfortable shot.
The way to upgrade your form is not by copying your favorite player’s form, or through trial and error on your own. It’s by getting guidance to help you find your OWN perfect shooting form for your unique style.
You can get your perfect form quickly when you have a step-by-step roadmap that’s reliable because it’s based on physics and extreme analysis of the best shooters in the NBA.
I’ve created that roadmap for you in the form of an online shooting form mastery training program. You can get in or learn more about it here.
Coach Faizal
Lonzo Ball’s Shooting Form: The TRUTH About His Unconventional Shot
Ever since the media caught a glimpse of Lonzo’s shot, a lot of people have been asking me why his shot looks different than most other right handed shooters…
So I decided to create a new YouTube breakdown video where I cover exactly why he shoots the way he does. I also explain how you can use that information to improve your own shot.
The information in this video also strengthens the case for you to find your own form.Every shooter is completely different and so you have to tailor your shot to your own personal makeup. You can watch the full video or read below.
[thrive_leads id=’3111′]When watching lonzo shoot, most people can see that his shot is a bit different than the conventional right handed jumpshot.
The conventional shooting form that is taught is for a right handed shooter to bring the ball up their right side, in line with their right eye, and for a left handed shooter to bring the ball up their left side in line with their left eye.
Lonzo, although he is a right handed shooter, brings the ball up the left side of his body and up to the left side of his head.
And Lonzo is not the only shooter who brings the ball closer to the opposite side of his face. There are many other shooters that do this. But it is much more obvious in Lonzo’s shot because he brings the ball all the way to the left side of his head and also has a low set point.
Whereas, Kevin Durant for example, also brings the ball up his left side And above his left eye, but he has a higher set point and he doesn’t bring the ball as far over to the left as lonzo does, so it’s not as obvious.
So why does Lonzo bring the ball up to the left side of his face even though he is right handed whereas most right handed shooters bring the ball up to their right side? Well the most likely explanation is that he is a left eye dominant shooter. So now the questions that we’ll cover are:
What is eye dominance?
What does it mean to be left eye dominant?
How is this relevant to your own shooting form?Well, we all usually show a preference for one side of our body over the other.
Firstly, just like we show a preference for one of our hands in that some of us are right handed and some of us are left handed, we also show a preference for one of our eyes. Some of us are right eye dominant and some of us are left eye dominant.
That simply means that just like someone who is right handed will prefer to shoot with their right hand, someone who is right eye dominant will prefer to aim or sight with their right eye by bringing an object, in this case the basketball, in front or in line with their right eye.
And someone who is left eye dominant will prefer to aim or sight with their left eye by bringing the ball in line with their left eye.
Now when a right handed shooter is also right eye dominant OR when a left handed shooter is also left eye dominant, this is called ipsilateral dominance (same side dominance).
The conventional shooting form, which is for a right handed shooter to bring the ball up their right side, in line with their right eye, is taught with the assumption that all right handed shooters are also right eye dominant.
But this is not always the case…
Sometimes, a right handed shooter can be left eye dominant. So even though they are right handed, they will prefer to bring the ball up in front of or in line with their left eye (their opposite eye).
When someone’s hand dominance is on the opposite side of their eye dominance, this is called contralateral dominance or cross dominance. Same goes for a left handed shooter. The conventional form is for a left handed shooter to bring the ball above their left eye. But a left handed shooter can also be right eye dominant.
So in this case, you can see that even though DeAngelo Russell is left handed, he prefers to bring the ball above his right eye (his opposite eye).
Now I have I already showed some examples of basketball players who are cross dominant but this phenomenon is not exclusive to basketball. It is common in other accuracy sports as well.
Phil Taylor is a 16 time world champion darts player was well known for his cross dominance. While most right handed darts players line up the dart with their right eye, Phil Taylor is right handed but would line up the dart in front of his left eye.
And even when shooting a gun, many shooting coaches discuss techniques for cross dominant shooters to increase their accuracy by aiming with their opposite eye.
These techniques are actually very similar to the options basketball players use to address their eye dominance. Many times, a player who is cross dominant, can bring the ball up normally, with conventional shooting form, and never notice a difference.
But other times, if a shooter is forced to bring the ball up to their non dominant eye, in some case they will feel extremely uncomfortable and inaccurate and will often times do whatever they can to get the ball in line with their dominant eye.
So if you’re a cross dominant shooter, what can you do?Well when shooting a basketball, cross dominant shooters have 3 main options: 1. Turn their head to get their opposite eye behind the ball. Many times, a shooter will turn their head while they are shooting to get their dominant eye lined up behind the ball.
2. Bring up the ball directly to their opposite eyeThis is the option that you see with Lonzo but he took it to an extreme that you don’t see very often.And there are also some shooters who use a combination of the first two options.
Joe Johnson for example, brings the ball directly up to his opposite eye, but also has a slight head tilt. And finally The 3rd option and the one that I teach is to… 3. Bring the ball up your midline.
So for those of you who are cross dominant shooters, this is the adjustment that I would recommend for you.
In my opinion, this is the best compromise for a cross dominant shooter because It allows you to bring the ball closer to your dominant eye without compromising your mechanics. So Lonzo chose option 2 – to bring the ball up to his opposite eye. But he brings it extremely far off to the left. So how does this affect Lonzo’s shot? Well, in general, a right handed shooter bringing the ball up as far to the left as lonzo does can cause a lot of biomechanical issues and can make it very difficult to shoot the ball straight and bringing the ball up that far to the left isn’t something that I would recommend.
But Lonzo has made some adjustments to his shot help him accommodate his unconventional form in order to push the ball straight and become an accurate shooter. If you are a cross dominant shooter, let me know in the comments below what you have been struggling with and let me know if the advice in this video or post helped you. And finally, if you’re looking to improve your shooting, you can click here to get access to exclusive shooting videos that I don’t release on YouTube. Most of the greatest shooters follow the same general principles to shoot the ball with extreme accuracy. And I think this is something that all shooters should know before they start training their jumpshot. So if this is something that you want to learn for yourself to drastically increase your accuracy and shooting percentage, then make sure you click here and get videos that will help take your shooting to the elite level.
Coach Faizal
Klay Thompson Shooting Form: How To Shoot Like Klay Thompson
Have you ever wanted to know how to shoot like Klay Thompson? In this post, we did an in-depth analysis of Klay Thompson’s shooting form.
We broke down every step of his jump shot in order to teach you why he is such an efficient shooter and the little things you can take from his game to improve your own shot.
Coming from someone who has analyzed thousands of shooting forms, Klay’s shooting mechanics are as close to flawless as it gets.
In this post, you’ll learn why…
Plus how you can develop your own perfect shooting form.
[thrive_leads id=’3111′]STANCE
When shooting, Klay thompson uses a wide stance, around shoulder width apart.
Unlike many shooters who have a narrow stance when shooting off the catch and a wider stance when shooting off the dribble Klay almost exclusively uses a wide stance when shooting.
PREPARATION: LOWER BODY
One of the major aspects of what makes Klay such a great shooter off the catch, is his preparation before the shot.
Off the catch, when Klay is moving to his left, Before he catches the ball, he usually plants his inside foot. Klay is a right handed shooter, and because he is moving to the left, his right shoulder is already facing the basket.
So as soon as he catches the ball, he can drop his hips into a hop and immediately spring up into his shot
When Klay is moving to his right, his right shoulder is back and facing away from the net. Because he is a right handed shooter, this becomes a more difficult shot.
So what he does to counter this is that when going right, he often plants his outside foot which gives him more leverage to turn and bring his right shoulder forward on the hop.
Planting your outside foot is less conventional but because Klay has mastered using both his inside and outside foot, he can be in complete control of his timing off the catch.
Sometimes, off the catch, usually when he’s already stationary, he anchors his left leg down and prepares his lower body and hips so that as soon as he catches the ball, he can step into the shot with his right leg.
PREPARATION: UPPER BODY
His upper body preparation is exceptional and unbelievably quick.
Many players are not efficient off the catch because they try to position their hands and prepare for the shot after they catch the ball.
What makes Klay Thompson so deadly off the catch is that he catches the ball with his hands positioned perfectly so that as soon as he makes contact with the ball, he can pull the ball directly into his dip and quickly rise up to shoot without any wasted time or extra movements.
Whats even more impressive about his preparation off the catch is when the pass is not perfectly on target.
Off a bad pass, many players will have to readjust their hand position before shooting or not get the shot off at all.
When Klay gets a bad pass to his left side, most times, instead of overreaching with both hands and getting off balance, he is able to gain control of the ball with his left hand while preparing his right side and lower body to shoot. No extra movements and steps.
THE DIP
Another major reason for his success off the catch is his dip.
When we think of the dip, naturally, we think about the downward motion, but the upward motion is important as well.
Off the catch, Klay brings the ball down to his waist or slightly above his waist.
The downward motion allows him to bring his chest forward and flex his hips. The upward motion that follows initiates the upward momentum for the shot. So the dip is more of a quick bounce, and Klay is a perfect example of that.
SETPOINT
After the dip, there is a specific point that Klay brings the ball to before pushing the ball forward.This is called the setpoint.
At Klay’s setpoint, his arm makes a 90 degree angle with his body. The ball is around forehead level and closer to the right side of his face.
He always reaches his setpoint before his feet leave the ground and starts to push the ball forward on his way up. So he starts to push the ball forward just slightly after his feet come off the ground.
Even though he does have a ‘setpoint’ he still has little to no pause in his shot and that allows him to maximize the power created by his lower body and the momentum from his dip.
Sometimes, when klay in posting up or when he thinks his shot might be contested, he will raise his setpoint by bringing the ball up a bit higher to avoid getting blocked.
In these situations, he will often pause for a bit longer than he normally does
ALIGNMENT
Klay has his elbow in line with his shoulder just like most great shooters.
Earlier, we discussed that because Klay is a right handed shooter, when he is going left, his right shoulder is already ahead of his left and facing the basket, and that makes for an easier shot.
For right handed shooters, it is completely normal (and beneficial) for the right shoulder and right foot to be slightly in front of the left.
The interesting thing about Klay is that although he does have his right shoulder ahead of his left, and his feet are slightly turned, he has his shoulders more squared than many other great players and shooters.
Note: All great shooters (including Klay) have their shooting shoulder ahead of their non-shooting shoulder. When I use the word “squared”, what I mean is that out of all great shooters, he is as close as it gets to having your shoulders in line and squared to the basket.
Now although he turns less than most shooters, there are times when you will commonly see him turn in the air.
When his right shoulder and right foot are behind his left side, he will turn in the air, just like all other great shooters, to get his right shoulder forward.
Now, a fascinating part about Klay’s alignment is that normally, when a right handed shooter has their right foot and right shoulder ahead of their left side, they are perfectly aligned to the basket and can rise up to shoot without having to turn in the air to create alignment.
That is because he likes to have his shoulders a bit more square to the basket, when his right side is much further in front than his left, he will actually spin all the way back around in the opposite direction to bring his left shoulder forward so that he can get his shoulders a bit more squared up before releasing!
Another time you will see him turn in the air is when he is shooting from really deep. When Klay shoot’s from far beyond the 3 point line, he will turn a lot more than he normally does. This is because from far, he uses rotational power to add to his range and that causes his shooting shoulder to come further forward than normal.
BALANCE & BODY CONTROL
The reason his is able to maintain his form and time his alignment perfectly even when rotating in the air is because he understands how to stabilize and control his body.
You’ll notice that when turning in the air, Klay will almost always land wider than how he started.
He does this because spreading your feet or kicking out one leg while in the air allows shooters to increase their body control and their balance.
This is a really interesting topic that I discuss in more detail in a separate post so if you want to learn more about the science of balance and how that can improve your accuracy, you can click this link right here.
RELEASE
On Klay’s release, his middle and ring finger curl under while his index finger stays up. Normally, the finger that goes down the most is the one that players apply the most pressure with so if the index finger stays up, it usually means that the player dominates with their middle finger.
Klay’s release does look similar to other middle finger shooters. But there is also an article where Klay’s shooting coach talks about teaching Klay to make a V with his index and middle finger. And that makes it seem like he could potentially dominate with both his index and middle finger. And there are some clips that show signs of this.
But because Klay normally keeps his fingers so close together on his release, it’s tough to know for sure which finger he dominates with.
Because I wanted to be 100% sure, I asked him but he hasn’t responded yet. So if you’re curious as well, click here to re-tweet the question from our twitter page!
When klay shoots, he keeps his wrist relaxed. The bounce that you see in his wrist shows the lack of tension in his shot.
FOLLOW THROUGH
Klay always locks out his elbow on his follow through so that his arm is completely straight with his elbow right above his head.
OFF HAND
Klay, along with Durant and Carmelo, has the best and most fundamental off hand in the NBA.
His off hand is completely off the ball before he snaps his wrist forward and it does not interfere with the shot in any way.
THE EYES
And lastly, Klay is ball watcher, which means he follows the flight of the ball in the air as soon as it leaves his hand.
YOUR ACTION STEPS
Almost every player I coach wants to get a shooting form that looks like their favorite player’s form…
You’ve probably tried to do this too. I know I did when I was obsessing over how to improve my shooting.
So you try to copy every single aspect by watching these breakdowns. But what happens?
You end up hurting your form more than helping it… Why? Because every player is different.
Every player has a different body type, different height, age, strength, shape, and even hand size. All of these things matter…
So when you’re trying to shoot like Steph or Kobe, you’re copying shooting principles that work for THEIR unique physical characteristics, not yours.
Now of course, if your shot is horrible, like you shoot with a set point over your head, then of course your form and shot will improve if you try to copy a pro player. But other than that, if you want to truly reach your MAX shooting potential…
Then you need to develop a set of mechanics that are UNIQUELY customized for YOUR body and YOUR characteristics. The way to do that is to learn the correct shooting principles and mould those around your unique characteristics like your strength, age, style of play, etc.
The worst part if you don’t train for your own unique style of shooting like that, you can never find a form that ‘sticks’. Which can get super frustrating because you never get that ‘reliable shooter’ status. Your consistency suffers. Your in-game shots are never as good as your practice. Teammates stop relying on you to take shots and no form ever starts to feel like “your own”… And now you know why.
Once you install those correct shooting principles into your own form by going through this training program, you’ll develop a beautiful, consistent, smooth shot that’s unstoppable on the court.
Coach Faizal
Improve Your Shooting Form: The Science of Balance
Warning! This article has scientific terminology that you probably don’t care about unless you’re a bit of a nerd like I am, but I promise it will all make sense, especially once you watch the video demonstration at the end.
When many people think about balance, they often think about being on balance before the shot and overlook the importance of balance and stability once in the air.
There are 2 major ways to maintain balance while in the air:
1. Core stability – Tightening your core will prevent excess motion while in the air.
2. Lower body manipulation (Spreading the feet) – Increases the Moment of Inertia, thereby decreasing angular velocity (speed of rotation).
Lower body manipulation (spreading the feet) will be the focus of this article. Don’t worry if you are not familiar with the terminology. There is an amazing demonstration video at the end of the article that will clarify everything for you.
As a shooter, there are times when you will have to turn in the air. If you are right handed and driving to the right, often times, your right foot and right shoulder will be behind your left side, and you will be forced to turn in the air to bring your right shoulder forward. Twisting in the air, although sometimes necessary, can add an extra variable to your shot and can decrease consistency.
Clearly, aiming at a stationary target while turning in the air is more difficult than aiming while balanced and in control. There are some great shooters who commonly twist in the air and land at around 90 degrees – JJ Redick and Carmelo Anthony are two examples – but, most of their twisting happens after the release as a by product of the rotation created by pushing from the right shoulder. This type of turning is not the concern of this article.
I am referring to the turning that must occur before the shot in order to bring the shooting shoulder forward when the shooting shoulder starts off behind the non-shooting shoulder. In these situations, players will often kick out one leg or spread their feet in order to increase their moment of inertia (I), and slow down in the air so that they can remain stable and time their alignment perfectly.
As soon as you leave the ground for your jumpshot and start to turn in the air, your body begins to follow this formula of angular momentum:
Once you’re in the air, your angular momentum will remain relatively constant. This means that when your moment of inertia (I) increases, your rotational speed (w) will decrease. In other words, if you spread your feet or kick out one leg while in the air (increase moment of intertia), you will be able to slow down how fast you are turning (decrease angular velocity) and regain control and stability of your upper body.
In the following demonstration, you will see that by spreading out one’s arms while spinning, you can control your speed. The more you spread them, the slower you go. In the event that a shooter must turn in the air before releasing, they can use this same principle with their feet to slow down in the air and time their alignment! The further you spread your feet, the slower you will turn, and the more control you will have to time your alignment.
A method that most great players and shooters use, instinctively, is to kick out one leg or spread their feet in the air. This will cause the player to slow down and regain control of their body while in mid air and significantly increase their ability to time their alignment and hit their target. Little do they know, it is the conservation of angular momentum in action!
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