By June 2010, we are expecting to have the very first of three instructional videos available. There isn’t a much better feeling in sports than shooting a basketball, and that is where we are going to start. The first video is dedicated to the correct mechanics of shooting a basketball. We also plan on discussing effective ways to make those mechanics become second nature through proper conditioning.

Listen closely next time you are watching a great shooter on television. The announcers usually have some excellent insight as to the differences between good and good shooters. Take Jon Scheyer from Duke, for example. In a game against Iowa State, a game in which Scheyer had a tremendous game shooting the ball, the announcers brought up how he shot the ball “the same way every time.”

Why is that so important? In basketball, you’ll find only so many things a player can control. On a jump shot, a shooter can do everything right (that is the key!) but the ball still may not go in. We as shooters cannot control final results of all our shots, but we can control how we develop, improve, and maintain proper shooting mechanics, and we can make certain that the correct mechanics are used as often as possible in game situations by repeating those mechanics in practice situations. Most importantly, with consistent shooting mechanics, a player improves his or her chances of making more shots in games.

Our second video will be about ball-handling and dribbling. Just like with our first shooting video, both beginners and experienced players will benefit from the information, and here is why:

Most ball-handling videos have great drills and workout routines to share. The creativity that goes into these drills is spectacular, and a few of the things people are doing out there will blow you away. However, what is missing in a lot of cases is the connection to the real game. Players are not told how to use their newfound ball-handling and dribbling skills to influence the game in the very best ways possible.

Our aim of this second video is to present the entire picture to our viewers. We not only will explain to you how to become a good dribbler and ball-handler, but we will then take it to the next level and show you how to impact games on the offensive end.

Our third video in this introductory series will focus again on shooting, but our focus is not as much on the proper shooting mechanics discussed in the very first video. Rather, we will be discussing how players can create shots on their own.

At the high school level, players that can create high-percentage shots when guarded in many cases are times the best players on their teams and among the best in their leagues. Jonathan has a great quote on this subject that his colleague and fellow coach, Jeff Jahn, told him: “If you are open it is because either you are no good or the person guarding you is no good.” Look at that. If you plan on being a good shooter and/or scorer, plan on being guarded by good defenders. It’s important to learn how to create shots even when you’re not open.

I went to a clinic back in 2005 and Bruce Weber, the current head coach for the University of Illinois men’s basketball team, was the leading presenter. This was in September of the year they lost to the University of North Carolina in the national championship game. He was referring to his philosophy on offense and why he ran a freelance motion offense that emphasized offensive creativity versus many set plays. He said: “When you are in the state championship game, your plays and players are scouted well. Defenses have learned to guard your plays. So, when it comes down the final minute of the championship game, would you rather have two really good plays or two really good players?”

Coach Weber of course is in a situation that he can recruit those good players, where at the high school level coaches most time need to play the cards they are dealt! However, Coach makes a good point. When plays do stop working or are guarded well, coaches want (need!) players that could create offense on their own. The ability to create shots for oneself often leads to scoring opportunities for other players on the floor as well, since defenses have to focus so much on stopping the main offensive threats.

Creating shots may sound like a very advanced concept, but it is one thing developing players can start thinking about early on. It worked for me personally. I started focusing on “creating” various kinds of shots back when I was 12 years old, however wasn’t until I was 16, because I was big and strong enough, that it really started paying off, and to be able to create shots helped me have the ability to compete at the high school varsity level and in college.  Same thing with Jonathan: you will soon see that he has a tremendous ability to shoot the basketball, but that alone wasn’t why he was able to compete at the Division I level. He needed to be able to create offensive opportunities for himself, and his work on that started early.

More forthcoming. Stay in touch!

Billy Lewis & Jonathan Schneiderman

Aim High Hoops, Inc.