"It's not how, it's how many." - Anonymous
"Eyes make layups; feet make jumpshots." - Kevin Eastman
"Confidence comes from proven success." - Bill Parcells
What: Discuss extending your range.
Why: Increasing range and effective shooting percentage adds points.
When: Situationally appropriate shots.
How: It starts with form.
Where: Beyond the arc.
Who: those who apply range testing.
Extending your range doesn't mean indiscriminate shooting. It means translating great shooting form and proven short and mid-range success into longer-range scoring. It annoys me to watch youth games where players/teams who have no business shooting threes miss ten or twenty in a row. That's not basketball.
- You become your own master; you give yourself the "green light" when you consistently make perimeter shots. That demands self-regulation.
- Roy Williams doesn't 'greenlight' players beyond the arc until they can make sixty percent in practice.
- Vary the shot. Learn to shoot off the catch, off the dribble, coming off various screens - downscreen, flare screen, elevator screen, etc. When you watch a game, notice how often a shot challenge forcing a pump fake throws off the rhythm of the shot. You need balance and rhythm within your range. Do not catch, take a leisurely dribble, aim, and fire. That's not a game shot. Don't...do...it.
- Get a shooting buddy...not that Buddy. A buddy provides competition, motivation, and a rebounder. The right buddy can improve your leadership, too.
Test yourself along radians at three foot intervals. Demand that you increase your percentage before you extend your range.
Growing your skills is about intent, about character and components of commitment, discipline, and persistence. Skill follows work.