Set Shot vs. Jump Shot

I have a number of players who are set shooters.  The fundamentals are there and when they are stationary the shot is usually made.  However, I've been trying to teach them how to jump shoot.  How do I teach a set shooter the jump shot? There are complaints from the players about the jump shot being off balance, or a lack of or loss of power.  I myself have had the same problem, and wasn't able to eliminate it.

Coach Dan Price

Coach Price,

The jump shot is a sequence of movements, which must be built through practice.  Many young players develop an adequate set shot but find as they progress up the playing ladder that this shot is too slow to get an adequate number of open looks at the basket in a game.  In fact at the highest levels you might only get one or two shot attempts a game where you can "set up".  

The jump shot I believe is a required fundamental, which must be learned along with dribbling, passing, and defensive footwork.  Unfortunately, many coaches never learn how to break down the jump shot into a teachable skill.  They simply say jump and shoot the same way you do your set shot.  

Here's the problem.  Most young players develop the set shot because it is more stable, requires less body and lower leg strength, and bring more immediate success than the more dynamic jump shot.  The set shot normally results in a player developing about a 50-50 ratio between the power generated by the upper and lower body to make the shot.  The jump shot however should be something more in the range of 70-80 lower body and 20-30 percent upper body.  If you think of building a skill in the same way you would write a computer program to send a rocket into space you can begin to visualize the problem.  If the original program took 2-3 years to write and when used released 50 percent of the rockets power, you might get a stable shot into space but not make it out of the atmosphere.  It will take time to write (more accurately re-write) that program so that 70 or 80 percent of the force comes from the lower body.  This is why the shot will feel different and off balance.  The body must learn to control this change in force.  

Secondly, the feeling that a player has lost the power is totally accurate.  In most cases the player has released the power (potential energy) in their legs prior to when they need it most.  This occurs because of two things.  First when most players jump stop they let the energy out of their legs completely before trying to re-gather it.  When pressured by a defender in most cases they cannot recover this energy effectively enough to produce the energy required to make a jump shot.  I have had success in teaching players to control this energy by using a drill called Ready-Shoot.
In this drill you have a player sprint to receive a pass.  The coach calls ready and the players must bring the ball to the last "set position" from which they start their shot release.  The player cannot shoot the ball until the coach calls "shoot".  By changing the time between "ready" and "shoot" you can force the player to learn to keep the energy in their legs until is required for the shot.  This drill should only be practiced after the basic shooting motion and release has been mastered.  

One of the best shooting videos available on the market is by a former Stanford University player Tom Nordland called Swish.  We recently did a review of this video and you can order it by going to http://www.swish22.com if you are further interested.  Tom does a great job of teaching the basics of jump shooting at a practical level and is much in line with what I have successfully taught over the years.

Remind your players too to be patient with skill change.  In some cases a player may have taken 100,000 shots over the first four-five years of their young basketball career.  Neither you or the player should expect a dramatic change in their ability before they have put in nearly as much time learning to shoot the correct jump shot technique.  Reserve judgement on their skills until you have given them as must practice time on the jump shot as they have previously invested in the older set shot technique.

Thanks for Asking the Coach