Shot Creation & Reads

Catch inside your shooting range, squared to the rim, in triple threat (ready to shoot, pass or drive). Catch too far out and the defender can back off you, because you're no threat to score.

Ball ready, weight on your pivot foot, eyes on the rim.

As the ball arrives, look at three things: how far away the defender is, whether they are still sprinting at you, and where their hands and feet are. Look at the open space in front of the defender too, not only at the defender.

Eyes up and scanning before the ball lands.

If the defender is flying at you (feet in the air, out of control), give a shot fake that looks like a real shot: ball, arms and eyes all go up, with the ball no higher than about your face. When they leave their feet, drive past them.

Sell the shot with your eyes, keep your legs loaded.

If the defender runs past you on the fake, take one or two dribbles and shoot the open jumper.

If the defender sits back or drops off after your jab, bring the jab foot back and shoot, as long as you're in range. If they take a retreat step as you jab, a quick step-back gives you even more room.

If the defender stays up and crowds you, drive. Attack the side of their forward foot. The arm that's up is almost always on the same side as the forward foot, so you can read the high arm and keep your head up.

Head up, reading the arm, not staring at their feet.

Keep your jab short, a count of one. A long jab puts your weight forward and you lose the shot and the quick drive.

Quick poke, weight stays back on the pivot foot.

If you jab and the defender's forward foot is on the other side, use a crossover step: swing the ball low across your body and step the jab foot across, then drive right off the defender's shoulder. Don't bring the jab foot back first.

Drive tight: go right off the defender's shoulder, not wide. Once your foot is past their hip, you've beaten them.

Against a high hand, use the step-through: if the hand is up on your jab side, step through past their lead foot with your head and shoulders under their arm; if it's up on the other side, cross over first and then step through. Protect the ball with your head and shoulders, then shoot.

If nothing is open, move the ball. Open threes in NBA tracking data came more often when the defense had to switch roles and rotate, so a pass that makes the defense move can create the shot your dribble couldn't.

Before you shoot, check that it's a good shot: one you make at a high rate, one your teammates expect, one two teammates can rebound, one that lets your defense get back, and one that fits the time and score.

A shot you'd be happy to take again.

Prefer open over contested. In NBA tracking data from 2012-13, threes with the nearest defender at least 6 ft away at release went in about 40% of the time, against about 32% with a defender closer than that. In a study of women's games, heavy defensive pressure made a miss about three times more likely than little or no pressure. If a defender is rushing at your three, shot fake and drive.

Take the shot balanced and squared to the rim. Off-balance shots and shots forced up after dribbling into a crowd are bad shots, even when they go in.

Don't pass up an open shot that's in your range. Unless your team is running clock, passing it up often ends in a turnover and no shot at all.

Late in a close game with a small lead, an early-clock three is usually a bad shot even if it goes in. Run some clock, get the ball inside or get to the free-throw line.

Know your range. Agree with your coach on which shots are yours. One coaching guideline (Coach's Clipboard): if you can't make at least 35% of your threes, the three isn't your shot yet.