Great post as usual. This will definitely help me in my fts.

Great post as usual. This will definitely help me in my fts.

[...] A really cool look at some of the NBA’s best free throw shooters. [...]

This is really interested but my own experience shooting free throws is that it's all about hand and fingers guiding the ball. I'd love to see (probably can't with regular video clips) hand placement on the ball and role of fingers guiding the ball.

I think the problem with Shaq is proportion of ball to hand size .. he can't make his hand control the ball in exactly the same way as the guys above to make a repeatable 15-shot as easy as a layup.

This is really interested but my own experience shooting free throws is that it’s all about hand and fingers guiding the ball. I’d love to see (probably can’t with regular video clips) hand placement on the ball and role of fingers guiding the ball.

I think the problem with Shaq is proportion of ball to hand size .. he can’t make his hand control the ball in exactly the same way as the guys above to make a repeatable 15-shot as easy as a layup.

A friend of mine posted this to me like it was supposed to be the be-all and end-all of FT descriptions. I've got to be brutally honest with you, this article is poor analysis and terrible insight to quality FT shooting. It's as if it's written by someone who has never taken a FT in their life, only watched NBA games and gets off on stats and fantasy nba. The feet position is purely a balance mechanism, any player or coach know balance is critical ingredient to a shot because as body position will affect the release and the direction. Why do you think AI who was an amazing shooter missed so many every game?? Balance and fall away's!! Nothing dramatically insightful there. There is also no direct connection between feet position and success of shot shown. And you'll find the difference between feet aligned and unaligned comes down merely to comfort. This is determined by hip posture and joints. Some people walk feet pointing out, some feet pointing in. Some knees bend out, some bend in. Some people stand toes in-lines, some off-foot a half step behind. This analysis as a reason for success is flawed. Last time i saw shaq's feet for a FT they were pretty sound.

The 90 degree point is poor interpretation of the importance of the elbow. Firstly, the images clearly show Nash with the ball on his forehead, as does billups at 70 degrees or less. Dirk has the ball virtually above his head, but still resting on it. But interestingly, those 3 guys all have their feet almost entirely planted on the ground still, while Ray is on his toes already. This means he's using all arms in his shot and not his legs at all. He is likely raising, stopping, and then releasing. I think his video clip shows that. This is a completely different technique to the other 3, while they all hold the ball in different positions regarding their head and elbow angle making no sound assessment between their elbow and their success rate. A much more accurate assessment would be where the elbow is in relation to the wrist. If the elbow is under the wrist than on the rise and the release than the upward motion of the ball is straight and hence the only thing that could affect the shot is the power or rotation (the release/follow through). If the elbow was truly at 90 degrees the ball would never reach the forehead and would be head out in front of the shooter. This is susceptible to blocking and I think you complemented Dirk on his ball position to avoid being blocked (an odd compliment for a 7footer with 30foot range but whatever). The fact is 90 degress has no affect on the shot. The only part the elbow plays is in ensuring the rise of the shot to release point is in a upward and straight motion.

As for the release, Nash's is picture perfect, Allen isn't finished his follow-through yet but is leaning away from the basket which is bad for balance, not to mention he's pulling the ball back and tacking power from his shot. Dirk's looks nice with a good locked and snapped arm, but his hand seems directed away from the basket at the angle shown, that means he's pushing left with his arm on the rise and upward motion and developed a nature compensation in the follow-through by going right, however the angle could be misleading and that may be incorrect. Directly infront or behind is a better viewpoint. Billups' elbow isn't locked and his arm isn't straight. Apart from Nash, none of these are picture perfect technique and all differ in styles. Hence there is no sound analysis established for release equaling success.

As for rhythm, Allen stops at his head before shooting (did I mention he uses only arms before??). Nash pauses momentarily at his forehead, but his body is still rising so it's slightly offset by that, but it's still not a smooth rise to release. Dirk also pauses at his head somewhere between Nash's and Allen's pause length, but more concerning is he's at the top of the circle as the ball goes through the hoop. Billup's motion is the smoothest of the lot.

I think you've simply picked the best FT shooters statistically and tried to develop similarities between the 4. They all have positives in their action, and some negatives. But very few similarities in reality. You'd be better off writing an article about the intangible qualities these shooters have that make them great, like confidence, repetition of action and muscle memory.

You want to know what makes these shooters so much better than the rest in my opinion?? Watch the embedded videos again and the 1 quality that each displays is an early focus on their target. They all find the ring with their eyes early in their FT routine. They've eliminated the distractions and focused on no doubt a singular point that is very precise and small, as they've done 100,000 times before in practice. This makes it simple, a walkthrough and the process becomes uncomplicated and not thought through. The real difference, between these guys and the 70% shooters out there is these guys think less and focus more. The ring is the only thing that they think about and they let their practice and experience handle the rest.

It's these qualities about the FT shooter that your article is missing that would truly provide insight to readers on becoming a great FT shooter. A focus on stats and technique is far too critical in your evaluation and I think you'd be better off with a little more hands on experience and little less theoretical evaluation.

This should be a required read for every NBA team.

A friend of mine posted this to me like it was supposed to be the be-all and end-all of FT descriptions. I’ve got to be brutally honest with you, this article is poor analysis and terrible insight to quality FT shooting. It’s as if it’s written by someone who has never taken a FT in their life, only watched NBA games and gets off on stats and fantasy nba. The feet position is purely a balance mechanism, any player or coach know balance is critical ingredient to a shot because as body position will affect the release and the direction. Why do you think AI who was an amazing shooter missed so many every game?? Balance and fall away’s!! Nothing dramatically insightful there. There is also no direct connection between feet position and success of shot shown. And you’ll find the difference between feet aligned and unaligned comes down merely to comfort. This is determined by hip posture and joints. Some people walk feet pointing out, some feet pointing in. Some knees bend out, some bend in. Some people stand toes in-lines, some off-foot a half step behind. This analysis as a reason for success is flawed. Last time i saw shaq’s feet for a FT they were pretty sound.

The 90 degree point is poor interpretation of the importance of the elbow. Firstly, the images clearly show Nash with the ball on his forehead, as does billups at 70 degrees or less. Dirk has the ball virtually above his head, but still resting on it. But interestingly, those 3 guys all have their feet almost entirely planted on the ground still, while Ray is on his toes already. This means he’s using all arms in his shot and not his legs at all. He is likely raising, stopping, and then releasing. I think his video clip shows that. This is a completely different technique to the other 3, while they all hold the ball in different positions regarding their head and elbow angle making no sound assessment between their elbow and their success rate. A much more accurate assessment would be where the elbow is in relation to the wrist. If the elbow is under the wrist than on the rise and the release than the upward motion of the ball is straight and hence the only thing that could affect the shot is the power or rotation (the release/follow through). If the elbow was truly at 90 degrees the ball would never reach the forehead and would be head out in front of the shooter. This is susceptible to blocking and I think you complemented Dirk on his ball position to avoid being blocked (an odd compliment for a 7footer with 30foot range but whatever). The fact is 90 degress has no affect on the shot. The only part the elbow plays is in ensuring the rise of the shot to release point is in a upward and straight motion.

As for the release, Nash’s is picture perfect, Allen isn’t finished his follow-through yet but is leaning away from the basket which is bad for balance, not to mention he’s pulling the ball back and tacking power from his shot. Dirk’s looks nice with a good locked and snapped arm, but his hand seems directed away from the basket at the angle shown, that means he’s pushing left with his arm on the rise and upward motion and developed a nature compensation in the follow-through by going right, however the angle could be misleading and that may be incorrect. Directly infront or behind is a better viewpoint. Billups’ elbow isn’t locked and his arm isn’t straight. Apart from Nash, none of these are picture perfect technique and all differ in styles. Hence there is no sound analysis established for release equaling success.

As for rhythm, Allen stops at his head before shooting (did I mention he uses only arms before??). Nash pauses momentarily at his forehead, but his body is still rising so it’s slightly offset by that, but it’s still not a smooth rise to release. Dirk also pauses at his head somewhere between Nash’s and Allen’s pause length, but more concerning is he’s at the top of the circle as the ball goes through the hoop. Billup’s motion is the smoothest of the lot.

I think you’ve simply picked the best FT shooters statistically and tried to develop similarities between the 4. They all have positives in their action, and some negatives. But very few similarities in reality. You’d be better off writing an article about the intangible qualities these shooters have that make them great, like confidence, repetition of action and muscle memory.

You want to know what makes these shooters so much better than the rest in my opinion?? Watch the embedded videos again and the 1 quality that each displays is an early focus on their target. They all find the ring with their eyes early in their FT routine. They’ve eliminated the distractions and focused on no doubt a singular point that is very precise and small, as they’ve done 100,000 times before in practice. This makes it simple, a walkthrough and the process becomes uncomplicated and not thought through. The real difference, between these guys and the 70% shooters out there is these guys think less and focus more. The ring is the only thing that they think about and they let their practice and experience handle the rest.

It’s these qualities about the FT shooter that your article is missing that would truly provide insight to readers on becoming a great FT shooter. A focus on stats and technique is far too critical in your evaluation and I think you’d be better off with a little more hands on experience and little less theoretical evaluation.

This should be a required read for every NBA team.

Thanks for the comment, but I am going to disagree here. I don't think you can just say, hey these guys focus on the rim that's why there good shooters. Sure, focus has something to do with it, but let's say Shaq sits there with his eyes on the rim for 30 seconds before shooting. Is he magically going to make it?

I think you are discounting the importance of feet position, arm position, and the release. Look at some of the worst shooters in the league:

http://nbaplaybook.com/2010/07/23/free-throw-shooting-form-of-some-of-the-worst-shooters-in-league/

What they do wrong is what these four guys do right, that can't be just a coincidence. Also, for each guy's motion, maybe rhythm is the wrong word, maybe I should have talked about their natural releases, because that is what these are, natural and pure. Yes, there are is a pause in each of their shots, but it happens smoothly (if that makes sense). It isn't a prolonged hitch, and there is no herky-jerkyness about it. These small hesitations look like they should be in the shot (instead of guys like Shaq who triple clutch and it doesn't look natural).

So in conclusion, yes the mental aspect (which is something that you seem to be really a believer in) is a part of it (and I do feel like I could have covered the muscle memory bit better), but it isn't the whole story. These four aspects (again, in my humble opinion) are important as well. If it is all about mental focus Kobe Bryant would never miss a foul shot.

Thanks for the comment, but I am going to disagree here. I don’t think you can just say, hey these guys focus on the rim that’s why there good shooters. Sure, focus has something to do with it, but let’s say Shaq sits there with his eyes on the rim for 30 seconds before shooting. Is he magically going to make it?

I think you are discounting the importance of feet position, arm position, and the release. Look at some of the worst shooters in the league:

http://nbaplaybook.com/2010/07/23/free-throw-shooting-form-of-some-of-the-worst-shooters-in-league/

What they do wrong is what these four guys do right, that can’t be just a coincidence. Also, for each guy’s motion, maybe rhythm is the wrong word, maybe I should have talked about their natural releases, because that is what these are, natural and pure. Yes, there are is a pause in each of their shots, but it happens smoothly (if that makes sense). It isn’t a prolonged hitch, and there is no herky-jerkyness about it. These small hesitations look like they should be in the shot (instead of guys like Shaq who triple clutch and it doesn’t look natural).

So in conclusion, yes the mental aspect (which is something that you seem to be really a believer in) is a part of it (and I do feel like I could have covered the muscle memory bit better), but it isn’t the whole story. These four aspects (again, in my humble opinion) are important as well. If it is all about mental focus Kobe Bryant would never miss a foul shot.

good article, definitely about the mechanics. the average person also has to understand though, shooting free throws at a park is very different from shooting free throws in a real game or tournament. mental toughness factors in a whole lot, most nba players would probably never miss at the park, but on tv they can shoot 65%. many people are like, “i can make 100 in a row, why can't these players making millions, do it.”

There are way too many variables to accurately determine what makes a good free throw shooter. Some may call it an innate ability, while others attribute it to years and years of repetition. Neither are really wrong. Why do certain big men with comparable strength and equally big hands have such different results? Why do certain guards who go through shooting coaches still don't produce consistently at the line?

With that said, your idea for an analysis would have provided for an interesting read, but I don't think you did a good job of it. Reading the article makes me wonder whether you chose pictures to fit your pre-determined ideas, or whether you actually based your analysis off of your findings.

You state that players who have one foot slightly ahead of the other foot tend not to go on their toes during the shot, yet you provide pictures of Allen and Billups both going up on their toes. Then you blatantly label each player's elbow degree as 90 when it is clearly not.

Furthermore, you could have found a way to include hand positioning on the ball, follow through hand positioning (Dirk's hand is straight up), and the amount of fade they have in their shot (look at Allen in your picture above).

good article, definitely about the mechanics. the average person also has to understand though, shooting free throws at a park is very different from shooting free throws in a real game or tournament. mental toughness factors in a whole lot, most nba players would probably never miss at the park, but on tv they can shoot 65%. many people are like, “i can make 100 in a row, why can’t these players making millions, do it.”

Thanks for the comment James, but obviously I am going to have to disagree with you here. I never go into a post with a pre-determined ideas. Yes, I a general idea or opinions of situations, but if the tape/stats show something different, I change the direction of my post.

I rewatched Billups and Ray Allen's shot, and I still think that they go up on their toes a lot less than Nash and Dirk, just my opinion though. Also, I know that not all their arms at 90 degrees, but you still have that L shape that you want in the shot. I guess I could have explained that further and said “close to 90 degrees” instead of “90 degrees” but I think you are just being picky there.

You are totally correct about the hand position though. Couldn't find any clear pictures or images showing it, so I was unable to include that in the post unfortunately.

Finally, the fade is hard to judge because normally that only happens on the final FT, where a player starts to get back on defense after releasing the ball.

There are way too many variables to accurately determine what makes a good free throw shooter. Some may call it an innate ability, while others attribute it to years and years of repetition. Neither are really wrong. Why do certain big men with comparable strength and equally big hands have such different results? Why do certain guards who go through shooting coaches still don’t produce consistently at the line?

With that said, your idea for an analysis would have provided for an interesting read, but I don’t think you did a good job of it. Reading the article makes me wonder whether you chose pictures to fit your pre-determined ideas, or whether you actually based your analysis off of your findings.

You state that players who have one foot slightly ahead of the other foot tend not to go on their toes during the shot, yet you provide pictures of Allen and Billups both going up on their toes. Then you blatantly label each player’s elbow degree as 90 when it is clearly not.

Furthermore, you could have found a way to include hand positioning on the ball, follow through hand positioning (Dirk’s hand is straight up), and the amount of fade they have in their shot (look at Allen in your picture above).

like the work done here, but i think it is pretty clear that ray allen goes on his tippy toes when he shoots a free throw no?

Thanks for the comment James, but obviously I am going to have to disagree with you here. I never go into a post with a pre-determined ideas. Yes, I a general idea or opinions of situations, but if the tape/stats show something different, I change the direction of my post.

I rewatched Billups and Ray Allen’s shot, and I still think that they go up on their toes a lot less than Nash and Dirk, just my opinion though. Also, I know that not all their arms at 90 degrees, but you still have that L shape that you want in the shot. I guess I could have explained that further and said “close to 90 degrees” instead of “90 degrees” but I think you are just being picky there.

You are totally correct about the hand position though. Couldn’t find any clear pictures or images showing it, so I was unable to include that in the post unfortunately.

Finally, the fade is hard to judge because normally that only happens on the final FT, where a player starts to get back on defense after releasing the ball.

like the work done here, but i think it is pretty clear that ray allen goes on his tippy toes when he shoots a free throw no?

“What I noticed from watching a number of different players shoot foul shots is that guys who tend to keep their feet together are guys who rise up high on their toes during their shot.”

But you point out that Ray Allen has his feet offset, and the most obvious thing about his FT technique is how he first rises up high on his toes and then does all the shooting motion with his arms, wrists and fingers. I see some confusion in this post about foot positioning and what constitutes a set shot. First you say that the guys who put their feet offset are doing a set shot, then you go back and say that Nash is a set shooter. I've got to back up some of the objections from the Guest above – the arm angles are not all 90 degrees, what matters is whether the elbow is in all the way, i.e. whether it is directly below the wrist. That said, I don't agree with him that it's all just about the intangibles, but I think you have to get more fine-grained in your comparison to really pick out the common factors here. There's a lot of difference between these guys in their foot positioning, elbow angle, balance on the follow-through, and how much they rise up and how that is integrated into the rhythm of the shot. Some more digging is needed to pin down what's common to them all. Yeah, they all look good, smooth and comfortable, but that's not very specific.

“What I noticed from watching a number of different players shoot foul shots is that guys who tend to keep their feet together are guys who rise up high on their toes during their shot.”

But you point out that Ray Allen has his feet offset, and the most obvious thing about his FT technique is how he first rises up high on his toes and then does all the shooting motion with his arms, wrists and fingers. I see some confusion in this post about foot positioning and what constitutes a set shot. First you say that the guys who put their feet offset are doing a set shot, then you go back and say that Nash is a set shooter. I’ve got to back up some of the objections from the Guest above – the arm angles are not all 90 degrees, what matters is whether the elbow is in all the way, i.e. whether it is directly below the wrist. That said, I don’t agree with him that it’s all just about the intangibles, but I think you have to get more fine-grained in your comparison to really pick out the common factors here. There’s a lot of difference between these guys in their foot positioning, elbow angle, balance on the follow-through, and how much they rise up and how that is integrated into the rhythm of the shot. Some more digging is needed to pin down what’s common to them all. Yeah, they all look good, smooth and comfortable, but that’s not very specific.

nice…

nice…

Dear Sebastian,

Like you mentioned, Steve Nash (being a set shooter) has very low release point. However, I've heard advice (from a Pete Maravich YouTube vid) about the “shooting window”. This involves avoiding putting the ball in such a position that obscures your line of vision to the basket. However, Nash seems to defy the rule.

Another thing I noticed is that Dirk, Steve, and sometimes even Ray Allen kick out their legs or otherwise have 'floppy' lower bodies after they release their shot, especially off the dribble or curl. This contrasts with Kobe, Rashard Lewis, Carmelo, who have a very consistent lower body after release. Do you have any comment/theories about this? Contrasting with intuition, the former group of shooters are better FT% shooters than the latter.

As a final point, I also want to ask a bit of advice; I am what you call a “set shooter” I believe, but I struggle to shoot off the dribble and on pull-up jumpers. Is there any thing I can do to work on this, or should I attempt to reconstruct my form so that I am a jump shooter (who tend to be better shooting off the dribble I believe).

Great Article!

Dear Sebastian,

Like you mentioned, Steve Nash (being a set shooter) has very low release point. However, I’ve heard advice (from a Pete Maravich YouTube vid) about the “shooting window”. This involves avoiding putting the ball in such a position that obscures your line of vision to the basket. However, Nash seems to defy the rule.

Another thing I noticed is that Dirk, Steve, and sometimes even Ray Allen kick out their legs or otherwise have ‘floppy’ lower bodies after they release their shot, especially off the dribble or curl. This contrasts with Kobe, Rashard Lewis, Carmelo, who have a very consistent lower body after release. Do you have any comment/theories about this? Contrasting with intuition, the former group of shooters are better FT% shooters than the latter.

As a final point, I also want to ask a bit of advice; I am what you call a “set shooter” I believe, but I struggle to shoot off the dribble and on pull-up jumpers. Is there any thing I can do to work on this, or should I attempt to reconstruct my form so that I am a jump shooter (who tend to be better shooting off the dribble I believe).

Great Article!

Everything is good what does STEVE NASH ..but otherwise ..why he cheated on his pregnant wife n he have a relationship w a young girl..i can't believe . i saw them together in Toronto…1 more

**DELETED** – Let’s keep the comments NBA-related please?

One of the most overlooked facets of the free throw: minimizing excessive movement. If there's any similarity between these players, it's this trait.

One of the most overlooked facets of the free throw: minimizing excessive movement. If there’s any similarity between these players, it’s this trait.

Great article.

I have to agree with several other posters here who criticize your claim of these top shooters having “your standard 90 degree elbow positioning”. Steve Nash, in your photo, has his elbow bent at closer to 60 degrees. This is not a trivial difference, and it is important, because I know some coaches who teach their kids that 90 degrees is best, and for most shooters 90 degrees is not optimal. The shooter ends up with a weaker shot with a 90 degree bend than say a 70 degree bend. Leandro Barbosa can get away with that, but most younger players can't, and most pros simply don't.

And, you claim that having “your elbow under the basketball (along with a balanced knee bend) is what allows you to get arc on your shots.” What does this mean? If you mean that at some point in the shot motion the ball passes directly over the elbow, I agree that this is best, but not that it's necessary to get arc (and a balanced knee bend isn't necessary either, though again I agree it's best). If you mean the elbow being directly under the ball in the photos above, this is clearly not the case.

The last point I'd like to make relates to the rhythm of the shot. I agree with another poster here that rhythm is crucial in shooting free throws. And this is where I believe Shaq's form is most wanting. He puts the ball at the top of his forehead, then bends his knees, then flicks the ball towards the basket. It's like playing billiards by positioning the cue stick two inches from the cue ball, and striking the cue ball by just moving the stick forward from that position. His brain doesn't have enough time to develop the necessary feel, or touch, to control the amount of force applied to the ball. Einstein supposedly said something to the effect that one wants to make things as simple as possible, but not too simple. And Shaq or his handlers, in my opinion, have tried to make his free throw shot form too simple.

Great article.
I have to agree with several other posters here who criticize your claim of these top shooters having “your standard 90 degree elbow positioning”. Steve Nash, in your photo, has his elbow bent at closer to 60 degrees. This is not a trivial difference, and it is important, because I know some coaches who teach their kids that 90 degrees is best, and for most shooters 90 degrees is not optimal. The shooter ends up with a weaker shot with a 90 degree bend than say a 70 degree bend. Leandro Barbosa can get away with that, but most younger players can’t, and most pros simply don’t.
And, you claim that having “your elbow under the basketball (along with a balanced knee bend) is what allows you to get arc on your shots.” What does this mean? If you mean that at some point in the shot motion the ball passes directly over the elbow, I agree that this is best, but not that it’s necessary to get arc (and a balanced knee bend isn’t necessary either, though again I agree it’s best). If you mean the elbow being directly under the ball in the photos above, this is clearly not the case.
The last point I’d like to make relates to the rhythm of the shot. I agree with another poster here that rhythm is crucial in shooting free throws. And this is where I believe Shaq’s form is most wanting. He puts the ball at the top of his forehead, then bends his knees, then flicks the ball towards the basket. It’s like playing billiards by positioning the cue stick two inches from the cue ball, and striking the cue ball by just moving the stick forward from that position. His brain doesn’t have enough time to develop the necessary feel, or touch, to control the amount of force applied to the ball. Einstein supposedly said something to the effect that one wants to make things as simple as possible, but not too simple. And Shaq or his handlers, in my opinion, have tried to make his free throw shot form too simple.

Great article.

I have to agree with several other posters here who criticize your claim of these top shooters having “your standard 90 degree elbow positioning”. Steve Nash, in your photo, has his elbow bent at closer to 60 degrees. This is not a trivial difference, and it is important, because I know some coaches who teach their kids that 90 degrees is best, and for most shooters 90 degrees is not optimal. The shooter ends up with a weaker shot with a 90 degree bend than say a 70 degree bend. Leandro Barbosa can get away with that, but most younger players can't, and most pros simply don't.

And, you claim that having “your elbow under the basketball (along with a balanced knee bend) is what allows you to get arc on your shots.” What does this mean? If you mean that at some point in the shot motion the ball passes directly over the elbow, I agree that this is best, but not that it's necessary to get arc (and a balanced knee bend isn't necessary either, though again I agree it's best). If you mean the elbow being directly under the ball in the photos above, this is clearly not the case.

The last point I'd like to make relates to the rhythm of the shot. I agree with another poster here that rhythm is crucial in shooting free throws. And this is where I believe Shaq's form is most wanting. He puts the ball at the top of his forehead, then bends his knees, then flicks the ball towards the basket. It's like playing billiards by positioning the cue stick two inches from the cue ball, and striking the cue ball by just moving the stick forward from that position. His brain doesn't have enough time to develop the necessary feel, or touch, to control the amount of force applied to the ball. Einstein supposedly said something to the effect that one wants to make things as simple as possible, but not too simple. And Shaq or his handlers, in my opinion, have tried to make his free throw shot form too simple.

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