Basketball Shooting Guide

When it comes to How to Shoot a Basketball there are typically uniform principles in teaching a player to shoot but terminology can often vary. Various shooting coaches teach different ways to shoot as well so who should you listen to?

Look for a respected coach, trainer, or do your own research to learn to shoot. You can rent Shooting DVDs by Mail from some of the best coaches in the game on our site. We suggest renting multiple shooting DVDs so that you can get various tips and techniques from various coaches.

Read our How to Shoot a Basketball guide here.

There are probably a thousand different shooting drills you can do but you should always start with some Form Shooting drills to keep bad habits out of your shooting form. Take 5 minutes before each workout to ingrain great form in your shot. Form shooting drills are done in close to the basket typically so you can get a lot of reps in in just 5 minutes.

Read our Complete Guide to Basketball Shooting Drills here.

Some of the best-known basketball shooting games are Horse, Knockout, and Beat the Pro. Horse is where one player shoots and if they make a shot the next player whose turn it is has to make that same shot. If they make the shot they do not get a letter. If they miss the shot they would get an H. The first player to miss 5 shots and spell H-O-R-S-E loses.

Knockout is a game where players form a line and there are two shots - the first shot where the line starts and then a layup. The object is to make the first shot and then that player would go back to the end of the line. If you miss the shot you would have to rebound the ball and make a layup before the next player in line makes their first shot or a layup after missing the first shot.

There are tons of basketball shooting videos available. Here are some of the top resources:

• HoopsKing Shooting Rental DVDs
• HoopsKing Shooting Videos to Own
• Free Shooting Drills on YouTube

Basketball Shooting Machines are tools that rebound made and missed shots. The more expensive shooting machines will pass the ball back to you. They come with apps and are computerized. Nowadays these are very sophisticated machines. Due to the cost, these are typically purchased by schools and colleges. These types of machines typically run from $4000 up to $8000. There are also home rebounding machines that are not computerized but will still rebound your makes and misses.

Here are websites for Basketball Shooting Machines:

• iC3 Basketball Rebounder (as low as $349)
• Dr. Dish
• Shoot-a-Way

These machines help you get up many more shots without wasting time chasing basketballs so you can get more shots up in less time making you more efficient in your workouts.

Your shooting workouts should be about getting Game Shots, from Game Spots, and at Game Speed. It's important to make your shooting workouts as similar to an actual game as possible. The more game-like practice you have the easier it will be to make shots in games.

You can do shooting workouts by yourself or with a partner. Having a basketball shooting machine as described above can be a huge help if you are practicing by yourself.

You can find many shooting workouts on the Internet but remember to work on shots you will get in your team's offense. We also have some great shooting workout videos available for purchase or rent if you want to see how the best coaches and trainers teach shooting workouts.

Should you attend a basketball shooting camp? Sure. Try to find a camp that isn't too crowded so you can get more personal instruction at the camp. Now keep in mind you aren't going to become a great shooter from going to several days of camp. It takes a lot of time and repetition to become a great shooter. If you want to become like Steph Curry you will have to get a millions of shots over the years. In a typical week if you want to be a decent shooter at the high school level you should get up to 1000 shots a week or make at least 500 shots a week.

One of the best ways to learn to shoot correctly is to hire a shooting coach or trainer. Finding someone who is knowledgeable about shooting the basketball and can work with you one on one is a great supplement to individual practice. You can meet with your shooting coach once a week to take lessons and then practice on your own. A shooting coach can diagnose any problems in your shot to make sure you stay on track with your shot.

The downside of a shooting coach is that it can cost a lot of money but having individual instruction can be worth the money if it helps you to become a great shooter which could lead to a college scholarship worth way more than the money invested in a coach.