I'm really just getting into the whole NBA thing (well it's only been 2-3 years) and I hear all the time that the shooting in the NBA is horrible. Mid-range shooters are rare, and stuf like that. But the thing I was wondering was why? Is there any reason shooting % has decreased over the decades? Anybody have any idea how this problem could be fixed (if it's a problem at all)?
it shouldn't be low. Every player has a trainer to teach them specificly how to shoot and all that. So it shouldn't be low
Simply because too many kids are comin out of high school or leaving college early...so they are not being taught how to shoot or proper fundamentals...all through their lives they've been praised for their athleticism yet got blinded by all the attention and refused to work on their weaknesses...the pure shooters you see in today's game (peja, reggie, ray allen, etc) all put in long tenuous hours of working on their jump shots, but today's young kids dont have that same work ethic, and choose to just rely on their raw talent...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting TD21:</div><div class="quote_post">HoustonHoopa33, you?re right. Amen.</div> pfft... Then how come Duncan can't hit his FT's? How come Trajon Langdon with as great as he could shoot the ball could not hang around when he played at Duke and played huge in some big time college games? Last I saw Kenyon Martin was fundamentally sound in every area. Mateen Cleaves, what has he been up to? Courtney Alexander? Etan Thomas? Cal Bowdler? I can list guys all day that went to school for 4 years and paid their dues, and it did not help them as much as you would like to believe. Overrated.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting King James:</div><div class="quote_post">pfft... Then how come Duncan can't hit his FT's? How come Trajon Langdon with as great as he could shoot the ball could not hang around when he played at Duke and played huge in some big time college games? Last I saw Kenyon Martin was fundamentally sound in every area. Mateen Cleaves, what has he been up to? Courtney Alexander? Etan Thomas? Cal Bowdler? I can list guys all day that went to school for 4 years and paid their dues, and it did not help them as much as you would like to believe. Overrated.</div> I do agree with you in some ways, but just to answer your question: Courtney Alexander is with the Hornets but is injured right now. He's still been a solid backup until the injury so its not like his career went to hell. Etan thomas is actually having a better year this season also. whos Cal Bowdler?
It?s not only the 4 years, it?s that a lot of players want to dunk and not to score a simple basket. These things have changed.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting TD21:</div><div class="quote_post">It?s not only the 4 years, it?s that a lot of players want to dunk and not to score a simple basket. These things have changed.</div> That's it right there, when these cats are young they just don't work on shooting. Many NBA players start dunking at early ages, I am talking 13, 14 years old. Once they do that, throw everything else out the window. If you want to be a good shooter, you work on it from a very young age, you learn how to position yourself, it will just come natural to you before long. People can't shoot because they don't care about it, it's like "if I can dunk or cross them over, why work on shooting?"
That makes alot of sense to me, King James. That can easily explain why Guards and the little men have such better J's then 4's and 5's. The guards aren't dunkin why they young, so they keep shooting from the outside and practicing their stroke. Meanwhile, the Centers and Power Forwards are always trying to dunk, like you said. So while the Little men are getting better and better from the perimeter, the Big Men are losing whatever touch they have. It's not true for all players, there's a few exceptions, but it's true among many players in the NBA right now.
It's all pretty simple. Players would rather work on the flashy part of their game. High flying dunks and reverse layups are more entertaining than a mid range jumper. I hate the excuse of college basketball. High school ball also works on shooting and other fundementals to an extent. The players just have to practice and enforce it. It's one of those talents where you either have it or you don't. Shaq could go to college for 20 years and he still wouldnt be able to hit a free throw. Yes, you can make it better, but college isnt always the answer. The success rate for HS players is just as well if not better than college. Things are changing. Now days, kids will do just as well passing college and heading straight into the NBA.
But maybe that's what makes the game exciting, dunks, handles, and shots that hit nothin but net. Something I've noticed is the backboard isn't used much anymore on shots. I dunno, maybe I'm just dreamin.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Showtime1:</div><div class="quote_post">But maybe that's what makes the game exciting, dunks, handles, and shots that hit nothin but net. Something I've noticed is the backboard isn't used much anymore on shots. I dunno, maybe I'm just dreamin.</div> That?s what happens, you can think dunks, blocks, 3-pointers make the game exciting, but I can think the mid-range shots, footwork and hustle makes the game exciting, this has changed.
Exactly. Where I come from, people are more "crowd pleasers." But if you look in the NBA, it doesn't matter if you can do a 360 dunk - it's still two points. For example, let's look at Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan: the 2 most dominant PFs in the league today. People look as Garnett as a better player because he can dunk better, shoot three pointers better, but Duncan, a better player who understands fundamentals of the game, knows how to shoot closer shots, and hustles more down the court. As I looked (courtesy of NBA.com), Duncan has a better shot percentage than Garnett (TD with .509 and KG with .497). So, what I'm trying to say is for the past 3-4 years, people in the NBA are more trying to electrify the crowd and advertise more just because they excite the media more. This shouldn't happen like it didn't back in the day.
Maybe it's the money. Alot of people wouldn't much to see Tim Duncan play cuz he doesn't do much exciting things. I mean, you don't always go to watch a game, just to see someone do the basics the whole game. Now on the other hand, VC usually puls out a highlight dunk almost every game. People love him Its all about the money
And Duncan uses the backboard all the time. I have to admit, I tend to work on the flashy parts of my game, but I do work on my mid range jumper, and it falls pretty good, now. Beyond that, I can't shoot, though. But who says guards don't dunk at a young age? Plenty of them do - they just don't give it ungodly practice time. But also, guys are taking so many illadvised, well contested shots, it's pitiful.
You learn to shoot in your freakin' backyard by yourself. At least that is what I did. I worked on all areas of my game because I wanted to do everything. I did not dunk till I was 17, by then I already had my shot. The crossovers and "ESPN" type stuff came to me after all that. It's just like what Is aid, you won't be good at it if you don't practice (Right Iverson?) Who knows how my shot would be if I could dunk at the age of 13, because when I go to the court now (at age 23) everybody asks me to dunk it, and I like the attention. So who knows.
