The Problem: Players are impatient and do not want to work for the best shot for the team
- Too many players want to be the hero, and force bad shots
- Not enough ball movement or player movement to get a good shot
- Too many players shooting outside of their range
Strategies: Teach players that the team that takes the highest percentage shots usually wins. It’s important to emphasize that not every missed shot is a bad shot, and not every made shot is a good shot, so players work more for a good shot, and don’t settle for a bad one (especially if there is no shot clock!). A good shooter who is covered passing to a lesser shooter who is open, is considered good shot selection. You can define a Good Shot as:
- Within a player’s range
- Open
- Not rushed (keeping good mechanics)
Something to Try: Have your players use Shooters Challenge to help determine what their range is. If players understand what their range is, and develop confidence in shooting from within it, it’s much more likely they will be disciplined in their shot selection in a game (and therefore will shoot with a much higher percentage). With this drill, the player has to earn their way back by hitting a certain number/percentage of shots from a specific spot (ex: 4 out of 7) before they can move back and shoot from a further distance. Based on the age of your players, you can set the number of makes/takes at each spot (maybe 3 out of 5 for beginners, 4 out of 7 for Grades 3-6, and 7 out of 10 for Grade 7 and up). Don’t forget to give them a guideline on what their shooting range is. You can tell them that their range is a distance that they have no problem getting to when doing this drill, and therefore a distance they will be very confident in shooting from in a game. For example, if they have never made 7 for 10 in this drill (with no defensive pressure) from 20 ft and sometimes make 7 of 10 from 18 ft, but often can make 7 for 10 from 16 ft, then their range is 16 ft as they need to remember that their percentage will go down when they are pressured in a game so they need to shoot from a location they are VERY confident from.