Sombor Shuffle: Basketball technique, drills and fixes

The Sombor Shuffle is the one-legged fadeaway associated with Nikola Jokić, named for his hometown of Sombor, Serbia. He jumps off his right foot, drifts away from the defender and releases the ball high, from behind his head. It is a jump shot with harder balance and a one-leg landing, so own a two-foot jump shot first. Rising off one leg, your balance on it and a high release with follow-through are what the analyzer reads.

Set up

Build a balanced two-foot jump shot first: jump straight up, release on time and land under control. This move adds a fade and a one-leg landing on top of that.

Jumper first, then the fade.

Pick one takeoff foot and keep it the same every rep. Jokić, a right-handed shooter, goes off his right foot; Nowitzki's version went off his left.

Same foot every time.

Bring the ball up high on the shooting side of your head before you rise.

Ball high and protected.

Stay legal

From a hold (post catch or jump stop), you may jump off your pivot foot to shoot, but the ball must leave your hand before that foot, or any foot under FIBA rules, touches the floor again. Don't shuffle or slide the pivot foot before you rise.

Ball out before a foot comes down.

Off a dribble, your steps count from the moment you gather the ball. The NBA allows two steps to stop or shoot after gaining control. Other leagues word this differently, so check your league's rule.

Let your free knee come up in front of you, but don't kick it or swing it into the defender. Impeding an opponent by extending a leg or knee is a foul.

Knee up, not out.

Shoot

Rise off your takeoff foot and drift away from the defender only as far as you need for space. A big fade costs distance and balance, so keep it small.

Rise first, fade second.

Keep your head and shoulders going forward and up toward the rim while your body drifts back. Leaning your shoulders back is a common cause of misses.

Body drifts, shoulders stay on the rim.

Release high, above and slightly behind your head. On longer shots let it go just before the top of your jump; close in, shoot from the top.

High release, on the way up from range.

Extend your shooting elbow fully and put real arc on it, an arm path of about 45 to 60 degrees. Hold the follow-through until the ball reaches the rim.

Reach up and hold it.

Land safe

Land softly on your takeoff foot with your knee and hip bending, and your knee tracking over your toes, not caving in.

Quiet landing, knee over toes.

Put your free foot down right after so both legs share the load. In a lab study, one-leg landings produced higher forces and less knee bend than two-leg landings.

One foot, then two.

Check the floor where you'll land, away from other players' feet. Landing is the most common way ankles get hurt in basketball, and a previous ankle sprain was the biggest risk factor in one study. If your ankle or knee hurts, stop and go back to two-foot shots.

Clear landing spot.

Feel it

It should feel like your normal jump shot on one leg: the body drifts back a little, but your head, shoulders and shooting arm still go up toward the rim. The ball comes out high, the follow-through holds, and you land quiet and then get the other foot down. If the landing feels like a stumble, the fade was too big.

Fix-its

Shots fall short You're fading too far or not using your legs. Cut the drift, rise more before you fade, and finish the follow-through. Move closer until it reaches easily.
Shoulders fall back and the shot goes flat Send your head and shoulders forward and up toward the rim as you release. Lift the arm to about 45 to 60 degrees for more arc.
Wobbly or stiff one-leg landing Land soft with knee and hip bending and knee over toes, then get the free foot down. Go back to the no-ball single-leg hop drill until the landing is steady.
Called for traveling Keep the pivot foot still until you rise, and get the ball out before any foot comes back down. Off the dribble, count your steps from the gather.
Called for an offensive foul Your free knee or leg went into the defender. Bring the knee up in front of you, not out toward them.

Drill

Two-foot jump shot warm-up: start about 9 ft from the basket, 10 attempts; after 5 makes in a row move to 12 ft, then 15 ft.
Landing prep, no ball: two-foot hops landing softly first, then single-leg hops on your takeoff foot, holding each landing until steady with your knee over your toes. Injury-prevention work like this is recommended 2 to 3 times a week.
Close-range Sombor: a few feet from the rim, rise off your takeoff foot with a small fade and a high release, 10 attempts. Use the same rule: 5 makes in a row with controlled landings before you move back.
From the post: catch with a jump stop, turn, and rise into the one-leg fade from a mid-post spot. Only add distance when every landing is clean.
Add a defender: passive hand up first, then a live contest. Only go live once the landing holds up at that distance.

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-26.