How To Shoot A Two Motion Shot For Basketball
Want to be able to hang in the air and elevate on your jump shot. Maybe you want to turn back the clock and emulate Ray Allen, Micheal Jordan, or Kobe. Whatever the case, this article will be helping you some tips and techniques to get over some of the problems with shooting this way.
What is a two motion shot? In order to give you advice on how to shoot a two motion shot for basketball, I must clarify if you even have a two motion shot or what even is it. Simply put a two motion shot is a shot where you release the ball at the top of your jump and use your arms as the main source of power vs your legs. The reason it is called a two motion shot is because you jump first then shoot second which combined is two motions. Its important not to confuse a two motion shot with a hitch shot(a lot of players and coaches mix up the two). If you look up shooting of Ray Allen and then a guy like Carlos Boozer it is pretty obvious the difference in Mechanics of the two.
1. Getting Stronger
A lot of coaches and players get very uneasy and weary about this subject regarding basketball. The age old question is "will gaining strength ruin my shot for basketball". To be honest for a guy like Steph Curry a dramatic change in muscle mass actually will worsen his shot, because he relies so much on touch. Gaining a lot of muscle will almost be like learning a completely different style of shooting. But for a two motion shooter strength will not only improve your shot but actually make it easier. This is because you will learn very quickly as a two motion shooter that this style of shooting requires much more strength and effort. If your not strong enough you will see a lot of two motion shooters double clutching there shot or even chucking there shot instead of shooting it. This is why you rarely see youth players shooting this type of shot. Simply because they do not have the muscle development yet to effectively shoot this way. How Do you gain muscle strength to shoot this way? Its important when answering this question to address what muscles you will be using when shooting this type of way. The main muscles you will be using when shooting this way are your shoulders, triceps,forearm, and chest muscles. These muscles are important because they are your bodies natural pushing motions and obviously when your shooting, your pushing the ball toward the hoop. Athletes using a push/pull/leg split will be working these muscles on your push days. To work these muscles I recommend pressing for chest, especially a dumbbell press, shoulders- overhead press or any resistance where you push your arms above your head, Forearms- anything where you curl your wrist like with a dumbbell or cable machine and Triceps- I recommend diamond push ups or any style of push up where your hands are close together
2. Using Your Momentum
This is crucial if you want to know how to shoot a two motion shot in basketball. The more you play around with two motion shooting the quicker your going to realize certain situations are easier to shoot than others. Most one motion shooters will find shooting when your set and still is easier than when sprinting or coming off a screen. But with two motion shooting this is significantly harder. Vise versa getting speed or some type of momentum will actually make it easier to shoot a two motion shot in basketball. Examples of getting momentum is anything where your getting some type of speed when coming into your jump shot. Whether that's stepping into a shot off a catch and shoot or when your rising up for a dribble pull up. Now you might be asking yourself Why is this? Well if you think about it its simple physics. Since a two motion shot your using your jumping elevation as your source of power instead of your whole body. Getting momentum allows for more force off the ground on your jump. Can you jump higher off the ground from a stand still position or when you get some type of running start or gather steps. If your going to shoot a two motion shot you almost have to look at your jump shot as a jump test, to make it more effective and effortless you going to want to shoot with some momentum behind it.
3. Sway
What is It? The sway is when you use your forward momentum to relax your shoulders and pushing muscles, what naturally happens is that your feet will naturally go forward like a broom or sweeping motion and your shoulders naturally sway back. For more information on this search bball breakdwon on youtube and look at his shooting secrets video. The picture above shows a sway perfectly as you notice his shoulders pulling back and his legs naturally going forward. A reason a guy like Russel Westbrook (a two motion shooter) has always struggled with his shot is because if you notice on his shooting form when he goes into his jump shot he jumps up and down almost in the same spot and his body is extremely stiff and rigid as he follows through. On the contrary a guy like Micheal Porter Jr (also a two motion shooter) has such an effective jumper is because he totally relaxes his body and his release and follow through. Search up these players shooting highlights and you will know what I am talking about. Studying players like Ray Allen, Micheal Jordan, and Micheal Porter Jr will give you good examples of how to shoot a two motion shot more effectively and give you a better understanding on how they use the sway and how you can implement it in your two motion shot. Another cool benefit of the sway for two motion shooting is your gonna draw a lot of fouls. That is why a guy like Jamal Crawford (a two motion shooter) can get so many 4 point plays. This is because as a two motion shooter your leg sweep is going to be more pronounced causing you to have more fouls drawn.
4. Understanding When You Can Get Your Shot Off
I wouldn't be fair if I didn't give you this warning if you want to learn how to shoot a two motion shot in basketball. It is important to understand as a two motion shooter your shot is going to be a little bit more delayed than a typical one motion shot. But that does not mean you can not get it off. We have seen guys like Isiah Thomas and Jimmer Fredette get there shot off as two motion shooters even though they are smaller guards. You have to realize if the defender guarding you is taller or more athletic and your in a stand still position its going to be almost impossible to get your shot off over him. That is why I recommend to players if they want to get there shot off over taller or more athletic defenders as a two motion shooter, is too shoot whenever your defender is backing up or not in a situation where they can jump higher than you. For example if a player is flat footed or in a situation where they are backing up even if they are more athletic than you, you can still get a shot off over them simply because they are not in a position to jump off the ground high or block your shot. Jimmer Fredette used this understanding very well in college and that is why he was able to get his shot off so often. Examples of players getting blocked as a two motion shooter are situations where a defender is jumping at you on a close out. A simple rule to remember is if he has more jumping momentum than you then your shot is going to get blocked. Easy ways to counter this are pump fakes, or if your defender is out of control that is when you can draw fouls very easily. If you got anything out of this tip remember if he has more jumping momentum than you your not going to get your shot off.
Thank you for reading this article on how to shoot a two motion shot for basketball I hope I gave you some simple tips you can implement to become a better two motion shooter. Remember practice is key the more you practice this shooting style the quicker you will adapt and learn so you can get more range and shoot two motions easier and more effective. If your curious on why you should be a two motion shooter check out the link below.
https://www.detailedhooper.com/post/why-you-should-be-shooting-a-two-motion-shot-for-basketball