How To Shoot A Perfect Jump Shot

By: Amanda Ferguson

Break Studios Contributing Writer

Knowing how to shoot a perfect jump shot takes skill. Mostly importantly, it takes practice. Having the proper shooting fundamentals are going to create the perfect jump shot. Running a few drills will also help with the perfect jump shot. The jump shot is one of the most important shots to make in basketball. It helps to keep the shot consistent and keeping your shooting average up.

  1. Drill, baby, drill. It's very important to run drills. Start off with practicing passing the ball from one player to another. It's best to keep them in a position where the next step after the pass would be to take a jump shot. Once the passes seem to be consistent, begin drilling the jump shot.
  2. Stay open. In the mental sense as well as in the physical sense, staying open is a key in shooting the perfect jump shot. Keep confidence up is great, but being able to move to a position where the jump shot can be made is critical.
  3. Shooting. Whenever a player catches the ball before a jump shot, their knees should already be bent. This little tip will help the player with shaving off as much time as possible while in possession of the ball. It is imperative to remember, the ball should always be moving. If the ball is caught, then pass it or shoot it.
  4. Perfecting details. There are important things to remember when shooting the jump shot. These little details will help with perfecting it. Keep your left foot forward and your right foot back. Keep elbows in front of your body and close to it as well. Fingertips must be centered on the ball in order to have better aim. Its important to keep the hand cocked back enough to where you can see the wrinkles in the back of the wrist. Once the arm gets straightened out, that wrinkled wrist will snap forward and the follow-through becomes more controlled. Its also important to remember that the ball must be positioned between the left eye and the right shoulder but keep it high so that the player can see the partner just under the ball for the perfect jump shot.
  5. Throw. Before throwing the jump shot it is important to remember that the player's feet need to be parallel in between twelve-inches and eighteen-inches. Once the player is on the way up is when the ball should be released. This will help with assisting the aim as well as building momentum, this will really help with the perfect jump shot.
Posted on: Dec. 30, 2010