Youth
Basketball Coaching - Coaching Shooting With Large Groups
By
Tom Nordland, Shooting Coach
Author of the Swish Video
Introduction
Here are some simple suggestions a coach can use with teams and/or large
groups to develop shooting that don't require much individual attention.
I'll use the term "kids" to refer to the group, but this is
applicable to groups of all ages and sizes.
From my
experience working with large groups, I've learned how to structure
exercises that encourage and inspire self discovery and self learning!
All of us have learned things on our own. If we're interested in something
and not interfered with, what is called "Natural Learning"
takes place everywhere, all the time. The Key is knowing where to look,
where to focus attention.
The first
step is to have the kids come to KNOW HOW THEY SHOOT NOW. That's an
important step in any learning, because if you don't know where you
start from, you can learn something new but then slowly old habits can
creep back in without being noticed. If you know both where you were
and where you are and can feel and see the differences, then the learning
is deeper. This time (perhaps 20-30 minutes) could be the entire first
session if time is limited.
Learning
Where You Are - Simple Distinctions
Here are the areas you can ask the kids to look at:
POWER
HEIGHT (OR ARCH)
SPIN
SET POINT
RELEASE
FOLLOW THROUGH
--- DEMONSTRATIONS
FIRST ---
First, have the group sit down around the top of the key. To introduce
these areas of discovery, have 3-4 kids shoot in front of the whole
group and have a conversation about what the kids see in the shooters'
shots. Allow space for the shooters to shoot from the baseline area
where the group can see the arch best. Have a broad range of shooting
skill so the group can start to see how it is that some shoot better
than others. These are "general" awarenesses. As we proceed,
we'll get more specific. Have each of the demonstrators shoot a couple
shots for each question that follows.
(1) WHERE
DOES POWER COME FROM?
Ask the group to notice where the majority of power for shooting comes
from for each shooter. Is it more from the Upper Body, or is it from
a combination (integration) of Lower and Upper Bodies (it might be 50%-50%
, or maybe more upper body (75-25) or more lower body (25-75)? [NOTE:
Most kids shoot more from Upper Body, some entirely, so watch to see
if the observers can see that. Better shooters will be the "Integrated"
type shooters.]
(2) HOW
HIGH ARE THE SHOTS?
Next, ask them how high each demonstrator's shots get above the rim
and call out what they see. Ask them to look at the bottom of the ball
relative to the rim. (The top of the backboard is a good reference point,
3 feet above the rim, and the top of the white rectangle on most baskets
is about 1 1/2 feet.) Is the ball, at its highest point, 6 inches above
the rim? ...1 foot? ...1 1/2 feet? ...2 feet? ...3 feet or more? Ask
the demonstrators to shoot normally and not try to change their arch.
(3) OBSERVE
SPIN:
Watch Spin and notice if it's backspin, sidespin, forward spin or dead
in the air? It might be a combination. If it's backspin, how fast is
it? ...slow? ...medium? ...fast?
(4) SET
POINT
Observe where the demonstrators' Set Points are. (The Set Point is the
momentary stopping point in a jump shot where the ball gets "Set"
before the Release takes place. It's necessary with all the movement
of a jump shot to provide a stable starting point. With a free throw,
there is no need to stop since the body is already stable, so there
does not need to be a Set Point with that kind of shot.) Is the Set
Point below the eyes (the player looks over the ball at the target)
or above the eyes (player looks under the ball)? Note where it is exactly.
If it's
above the eyes, note where the bottom of the ball is. Is it even with
the eyes, middle of forehead, top of the head or even higher? Is the
back of the ball at the area of the front of the head, or is the ball
brought overhead, to the middle of the head, or to the back of the head
or more? Or is it out front of the head a few inches?
Look at
alignment, too. Is the center of the ball in line with the shooting
eye (approximately, within an inch or so), or is it off toward the ear
a few inches or more? (It might even be off center toward the opposite
ear.) Is it over the shoulder?
(5) RELEASE
AND SHOOTING ARM
Next observe how the ball is released and what happens with the shooting
arm.
Is the
Release ...
- a Pushing
Action?
- a Throwing
Action
- a Wrist
Flipping action?
What happens
to the shooting arm during the Release? Does it...
- straighten
or is it short-armed?
- stay
straightened in the Follow Through or break down?
If we could
imagine the person as a clock, and the shooting arm is the hour hand,
what time on a clock does the arm point to in the Release?
- (Let
9 o'clock be parallel to the ground and 12 o'clock straight up.)
- Is the
"time" ... 10 o'clock? 11 o'clock?, 10:30?, 11:30?, etc.
(6) FOLLOW
THROUGH: SHOOTING WRIST AND HAND
Is the Follow Through held for a second or two?
Are the
wrist and hand...
Does the
hand bounce during the Release?
Does it
stay pointed in the direction of the basket? ...
- or does
it turn one way or another?
These general
distinctions will help the kids start to understand shooting better,
both as observers of others and as observers of themselves.
Discover
How You Shoot Now
Now it's time to break up in pairs and go to a basket and observe these
same aspects in their shooting. Before they break, explain that they
are to do just a few shots for each area of discovery, and ask them
to please make it about what they are noticing, not whether or not they
make the shot. (STRESS THIS VERY STRONGLY -- THE KEY THING HERE IS AWARENESS,
NOT PERFORMANCE!)
Set up
the first three awarenesses (Power, height & spin) and have them
go off and examine how they shoot. With one partner shooting and one
rebounding (if pairs), tell them to take only 2-3 shots for each area,
do all three areas, and then switch with their partner. As soon as both
partners have shot, return to the gathering spot. Ask them to observe
their partner's shots, also. (If you have a mature bunch of kids, you
might even tell them they are to report on their partner AND themselves
and be able to point out differences.)
<<<
Break for shooting in pairs - for about 5 minutes max! >>>
Then gather
and discuss quickly what they discovered. To save time, ask for a raise
of hands for each area of focus (if you have time, you might ask individuals
to describe what they saw in their shooting):
POWER
- How
many saw they used mostly Upper Body power to shoot from?
- How
many saw their shots were more Integrated (75-25 upper/lower, or maybe
50-50)?
HEIGHT
- How
many had a "Low" arch, 6 inches to 1 1/2 feet above the
rim, in the area of the lower half of the backboard?
- How
many had a "Medium" arch, 1 1/2 to 3 feet above the rim,
the upper half of the backboard?
- How
many had a "High" arch, higher than the backboard, 3+, 4
or 5 feet above the rim or more?
SPIN
- How
many had Backspin?
- How
many had Sidespin?
- How
many had Forward Spin?
- How
many had a combination of Backspin and Sidespin?
- If Backspin,
how many had a Slow rate of Backspin?
- If Backspin,
how many had a Medium rate of Backspin?
- If Backspin,
how many had a Fast rate of Backspin?
Then set
up the last three areas: Set Point, Release and Follow Through.
<<<
Break for shooting in pairs - 5 minutes max! >>>
SET
POINT
- Above
eyes or below?
- If above,
is bottom of ball even with eyes, middle of forehead, or at the top
of the head or higher?
- Is back
of ball even with front of head, overhead a bit, overhead a lot?
- Is it
held out front of the head?
- Is the
center of the ball aligned with the shooting eye, or is it right or
left? How much?
RELEASE
& ARM
- How
many THREW the ball toward the basket?
- How
many FLIPPED the ball with their wrists?
- How
many used an upward PUSHING action to send the ball toward the basket?
FOLLOW
THROUGH AND WRIST/HAND
- How
many held their follow through?
- How
many pulled back?
- How
many hands were tense?
- How
many hands were relaxed?
- Did
any hand actually bounce, it was so relaxed?
- How
many hands stayed pointed in the direction of the basket?
- How
many hands moved to one side or the other or pulled back?
If done
in a spirit of discovery and curiosity, the team/group will come to
a powerful understanding of how to look at shooting and how they themselves
shoot. Tell them there are no "rights" or "wrongs"
in this; just different ways to do things.
New
Possibilities for shooting (about 30 minutes)
Now you're going to suggest some different ways of shooting, some "new
possibilities" that can lead them to discovering different, more
effective, ways to shoot a basketball. I'll group distinctions together
that are related.
As you
start each following segment, ask one of your players to demonstrate
briefly while you talk. As the player starts to shoot, ask him or her
to do the "suggestions" below, highlighting what you want
the group to do when they break into pairs. Don't take a lot of time
doing this, but this can be helpful to set up the exercise clearly.
(1) STANCE
Suggestions:
Invite them first to notice how they stand in relation to the basket.
- If they
tend to square up, ask them to experiment with opening their bodies
by rotating a little and a lot (to the left for right-handers, to
the right for left-handers), seeing which feels better, Square or
Open. THe strong foot will be forward, the opposite foot back a little
of a lot.
- In which
position do they feel more "under and behind the ball"?
- Does
the release action feel any less tense with one or the other?
Have them
go off in pairs for 5 minutes, then return and discuss what they noticed
in themselves and in their partners.
(2) POWER
& HEIGHT
Suggestions:
Invite them first to experience shooting from their leg drive or leg
lift. Ask them how they might be able to do that. Cany anyone figure
that out? [Note: The answer is to shoot earlier in the jumping (or free
throw/set shot) motion.]
Ask them
to notice what happens to the flight of the ball, and Height when they
shoot earlier.
- Does
it feel any more "effortless" when they use more leg power?
- What
percent of the lower body force are they noticing? (100% just means
they're using every bit of available leg force, shooting very quickly.
If Zero %, it means they're shooting at the top of the jump.)
- Invite
them to experiment with a higher and higher percentage, that is, just
keep shooting earlier and earlier and see what happens. They'll probably
have to get ready earlier than they're used to. See what happens.
Be creative! This does not necessarily mean to jump more strongly!
Have them
go off in pairs for 5 minutes, then return and discuss what they noticed
in themselves and in their partners.
(3) SET
POINT
Suggestion:
For those who take the ball over their heads, ask them to experiment
with having the ball more toward the front of their heads.
- If the
ball is to the side of their head (a la John Stockton), ask them to
experiment having it more over their shooting eye. A more "open"
stance may be required for this. See if they feel more "Under
and Behind" the ball in that position. Under and behind makes
accuracy easier.
- Watch
what happens to the shot when the Set Point is in different positions.
- Is it
more if a Throw or Flip one way and more of a Push the other way?
- A powerful
way to shoot is having the ball more in front and pushing the ball
upward, high above but in direct line with the target. Suggest. They
experiment with shooting that way. Remind them to keep using a lot
of leg drive to power the shot. Shoot earlier and earlier.
- Suggest
they aim higher, now that more leg power is being called forth.
Have them
go off in pairs for 5 minutes, then return and discuss what they noticed
in themselves and in their partners.
(4) RELEASE
& ARM
Suggestions:
Suggest they just straighten the arm, quickly, aimed high above the
rim. Let power come from the legs. Accuracy comes from the arm pushing
directly in line with the target with no interference from wrist and
hand.
- Notice
if they keep the arm straight as they finish the shot. If not, experiment
doing so.
- What
"time" do their arms point to during the release?
- Notice
what happens with this way of shooting. Is the shot more consistent
and repeatable this way?
If, by
eliminating any throwing or flipping motion, their release feels weaker,
that's okay because they Lower Body will provide most of the power.
Have them
go off in pairs for 5 minutes, then return and discuss what they noticed
in themselves and in their partners.
(5) FOLLOW
THROUGH (ARM, WRIST AND HAND) & SPIN
Suggestions:
How do they follow through? Is the follow Through held for a second
or two?
- What
happens if they relax wrist and hand and rely on the legs and the
arm straightening to provide the power?
- Can
the wrist and hand add "nothing" to the shot, just control
the ball and then let go?
- Does
it feel more consistent and repeatable when wrist/hand are relaxed?
- What
do they notice about accuracy?
- Is it
increased or decreased when the wrist and hand relax and do less?
- Invite
them to notice the Spin with this (different) way of shooting.
- How
does it compare with their original Spin?
Have them
go off in pairs for 5 minutes, then return and discuss what they noticed
in themselves and their partners.
Wrap
Up
The above routines are a suggested way for a coach to introduce powerful
self coaching ideas and experiences without having to spend a lot of
time with each player. Tell the kids the "Distinctions" will
do the teaching if they spend time and attention, "experiencing"
them. Invite them to experiment and exagerate. Tell them to expec to
miss baskets, but to learn from every shot. Missing is expected, but
pay attention!
A note
about this "perfect" stuff. One of my mentors said, "You'll
learn much more by prefect awareness of an imperfect shot than you will
with imperfect awareness of a perfect shot."
I don't
like the idea that you can only learn from "perfect" execution.
We would learn very slowly if that were true, because we're not perfect
often. I fell we learn from everything, even the worst mistakes, if
we're paying attention. Isn't that a much happier prospect?
In doing
these exercises, you'll see all kinds of learning happening. Some kids
will make extraordinary strides. Others will be confused. But I thing
a large majority will begin a process of exporation and discovery that
will alter the way they look at shooting forever. They'll understand
shooting better, and realize they, too, can shoot well. And they'll
begin to see how they can coach themselves in this skill.