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How to make a bank shot basketball

How to Shoot a Bank Shot in Basketball Like Tim Duncan – Old Man Game Tips

The bank shot is a fun as well as useful and effective shot. Here’s how to shoot a bank shot like one of the greats, Tim Duncan.

In college, I often played basketball with this guy who I called “Mini Duncan.”

I didn’t call him this because he looked like Tim Duncan or because he was a San Antonio Spurs fan.

I called him this because 95 percent (probably) of the shots he took were bank shots (and also because of his short stature, hence the “mini” in his nickname).

If you don’t know much about Duncan, he was a master at the bank shot.

I don’t know the actual percentage of bank shots that he made, but he made a lot.

This shot (and how he sets it up) was the fundamental move that he mastered.

It was the move that he relied on throughout his career and the move that helped him get 5 NBA Championships.

Anyway, back to my story.

AdvertisementsI don’t know how “mini Duncan” did it so often, but he was amazing at the bank shot.

I was intrigued by his playstyle (or his ability to make these shots) and wanted to shoot like him.

It took me a few weeks to be able to semi-consistently make bank shots. I had to watch loads of Duncan highlights and online tutorials, and had to practise them on a daily basis.

But the payoff was worth it because, now, I had another weapon for my Old Man Game utility belt.

At first, I wanted to learn this shot because it was cool and fun to do.

AdvertisementsBut after using it in a few pick-up games, I noticed how resourceful it was.

Why the Bank Shot is Useful

At certain areas on the court, the type of basketball shot is actually easier to make than a regular jumper.

It’s because of the angle and whatnot (there’s a science behind it, but I’m not a nerd so I’m not getting into it. But you can read about it here if you like).

Additionally, there are certain situations when the bank shot is the only option.

For instance, imagine your defender is suffocating you (defensively, not violently).

Basketball: Will You Bank the Shot?

Science Projects

Abstract

You are right next to the basket and someone passes you the ball. Will you go for a direct shot or will you use the backboard and take a bank shot at the basket? Would different positions on the court give you a higher chance of making a shot using the backboard than others, even when keeping the distance from the hoop the same?

In this science project, you will build a scale model and test different positions on the court to determine if one results in a better chance of making a bank shot than others.

Summary

Sports Science

Short (2-5 days)

None

Readily available

Very Low (under $20)

Adult supervision is recommended when using the craft or utility knife.

Sabine De Brabandere, PhD, Science Buddies

Objective

Create a two-dimensional scale model to determine the relative chance of scoring a basket using the backboard from different positions on the court.

Introduction

With a tied-score and seconds to go on the clock who wins comes down to both who has the ball and where they are on the court. Even with the ball in hand it feels like some shots are harder to make than others—but is there science behind that gut feeling?

As you probably know, basketball players have several shooting techniques to choose from, like straight shots, where the ball enters the basket without touching the backboard, or banked shots, where the ball bounces off of the backboard before it enters the basket. They often have to make a split-second decision. Should a player decide based on his or her position on the court? Would it be easier to make a banked shot from, let us say, the point guard position (position 1 in Figure 2), the shooting guard position (position 2 in Figure 2) or the small forward position (position 3 in Figure 2)?

The NBA (National Basketball Association) keeps shot charts of actual games, and scientists use computer-based models to analyze which positions provide higher rates of successful shots. In this science project, you will build your own two-dimensional scale model to see whether different positions on the court result in a higher chance of making a successful banked shot.

In real basketball, the ball follows a complicated three-dimensional path (also called a trajectory) as it moves through the air, bounces off the backboard, and goes into the net. However, it is an example of a compound motion, combining a vertical and a horizontal movement. Both these motions are independent of each other and thus, can be studied separately. In this science project, you will study the horizontal movement of the basketball, which reduces the three-dimensional motion to two dimensions. This makes it easier to analyze for your science project. It is like having a bird's-eye view of the game; you will only study how the ball moves horizontally. This will also allow you to study a ball that is rolled instead of thrown through the air in your scale model.

Technical Note

Are you surprised that the ball's vertical (up and down) and horizontal motions happen independently? You can experiment with this type of compound motion by letting identical objects (like two coins) fall to the ground using different paths (e.g. one coin is launched off the table while the other is nudged right off the edge and falls straight down from the table). See when both objects land. If vertical movement (falling straight to the ground) happens independent of the horizontal movement (going sideways), both coins should touch the ground at the same time, even though the first object took a longer path.

To isolate the horizontal movement, imagine looking at the court from a bird's-eye (top-down) view. Imagine a player is shooting a ball. What would you see? Can you visualize the trajectory of the ball being shot, bounced on the backboard and landing in the basket? Do you imagine a trajectory as shown in Figure 3?

While sports people refer to positions on the court with specific names, scientists use variables to define positions on a two-dimensional field, like a basketball court. You need two variables to define a position on a two-dimensional field. In this science project, you will define the position of your player by the player's distance from the center of the basket and the player's angular position, as shown in Figure 3.

Scientists test one variable at a time to see the effect this one variable has on the outcome. In this science project, you will study how changing the angular position of the player changes the chances of making a successful banked shot. As you can only study one variable at a time, you will need to keep the player at a constant distance from the center of the basket.

You will use relative probability to express your results in a scientific way. A relative probability indicates how much more or less likely something is expected to happen compared to a chosen baseline. Let us say you choose position 1 of Figure 2 (the player's angular position is 90°) as the baseline for comparison. In that case, your relative probability will express how much more difficult or how much easier it is to score a banked shot at a specific position with respect to position 1 (the chosen baseline position). A relative probability lower than 1 indicates it is less probable, or more difficult, to successfully shoot a banked shot from that position than it is from the baseline position. A relative probability higher than 1 indicates it is more probable, or easier, to shoot a successful bank shot from that position than it is from the baseline position.

Alright, time to create your own scale model, roll some balls, and have a critical look at your results. Do not forget to keep this science project in mind the next time you are making that split-second decision about whether or not to use the backboard to shoot a basket!

Terms and Concepts

Banked shots
Three-dimensional
Compound motion
Independent
Two-dimensional
Variables
Relative probability
Baseline

Questions

What property allows analyzing the projectile motion in the horizontal plane and the vertical direction separately?
How does the trajectory of a basketball shot look in the horizontal plane?
What does a relative probability of 2 or .5 indicate?
Why would you only change one variable (like the angular position), keeping the other variable(s) (like the distance to the hoop) constant in a science project?
Do you expect a specific position on the court to provide a better chance to score using the backboard?
Do you expect any players placed on the court at equal distance from the center of the basket, but at different angular positions, to have a better chance to score using the backboard?

Bibliography

Silverberg, L. M.; Tran, C.M.; Adams, T.M. (2011). Money in the Bank: Using Backboard Can Pay Off for Basketball Shooters. NC State University Newsroom. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
The Physics Classroom. (n.d.). Independence of Perpendicular Components of Motion. Retrieved November 24, 2013.

Materials and Equipment

Test ball, approximately 4.5 centimeters (cm) diameter. A mini sports squeeze ball like the mini sports foam balls from Amazon.com work well.
- Note:You will need to scale the dimensions of the cardboard tube and the number of poster boards up or down to accommodate a smaller or larger ball.
Books (2), identical thickness, not too thick
Flat wall making a 90° angle with a flat floor
Ruler, metric
Poster boards (2), 22 x 28 inches; flexible or hard poster board will both work.
Thick markers, black and red
Compass
Sheet of paper
Tape that does not damage the wall
Protractor
Cardboard tube (50 cm long if you work with a 4. 5 cm ball ). The inner tube of packing paper works well. Note: Choose something that comes on a sturdy cardboard tube, not on a flimsy wrapping paper tube.
Utility knife or craft knife
Scissors
Cutting board
Toilet paper roll
Highlighter
Lab notebook

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Experimental Procedure

Defining the Variables

A position on a two-dimensional field is specified by two variables. In this science project, you will use a radial distance (the distance to the center of the basket) and an angle (the angle that the line through the player and the center of the basket makes with a line parallel to the backboard), as shown in Figure 4.

As mentioned in the Background information, it is important to study one variable at a time. For this science project, you will stick to one distance and study different angular positions, being the 0°, 30°, 60°, and 90° positions, as shown in Figure 4. A distance of 3 meters (m) will be used throughout the procedure. As a variation, you can replace this distance by your own preferred distance. (See Variations for details). Also note that metric units are used, as this is the convention for science projects.

You will determine how much easier or more difficult it is to bank a shot (relative probability) with respect to a baseline position. The 90° position is chosen as baseline for this science project, which means you will test how much more or less difficult it is to make the banked shot from the 0°, 30° and 60° positions with respect to the 90° position.

Creating a Scale Model

You will make your basketball court model to scale, which means it will have the same proportions as in the real-life game, only scaled down to the size of your chosen ball.

The experiment is symmetrical on the left and right sides of the basket, so you only need to test one side. The scale model described here only considers test positions on, or to the left of, the basket.

Determine how much smaller your scale model will be compared to the real game dimensions. To do this, you need to compare the diameter of your test ball to the official dimension of a basketball (9.4 inch diameter for a size 7 ball).
1. To measure the diameter of your test ball expressed in centimeters, hold the ball against the wall with a book on the other side, as shown in Figure 5. The distance between the wall and the book provides an accurate measurement of the diameter of the ball. Note your measurement down in your lab notebook.
2. The scale factor is the ratio of the diameter of the test ball to the diameter of a real basketball, or:
  Equation 1.
  [Please enable JavaScript to view equation]
  [Please enable JavaScript to view equation]
  For a 4.5 centimeter (cm) diameter test ball, this ratio is 0.479 cm/inch. This means that every 0.479 cm in the scale model will correspond to 1 inch on the basketball court. Calculate the scale factor by filling in the diameter of your test ball expressed in centimeters into the equation. Note the result down in your lab notebook. Do not forget to add the units (centimeters or inches).
3. Note that you need to divide by this scale factor to convert from your scale model to the real game. In other words, if you divide by the scale factor obtained in step 1. b., you see that every centimeter in your scale model corresponds to 1/0.479 or 2.09 inches in the real game.
4. For this science project, you will also need to convert the scale factor that you calculated in centimeters or inches to metric units (centimeters or meters). Could you calculate how many centimeters in the scale model correspond to 1 m on the court? (Hint: You will need to express the diameter of a real basketball in meters and use Equation 1.)

Calculate the dimensions of your scale model.
1. Copy Table 1 in your lab notebook; it will allow you to easily keep track of all numbers and units.
2. Note that this table has been filled in for a 4.5 cm diameter test ball. If you are using a test ball with a different diameter, recalculate all italic values in the third column by multiplying the distances on the real court expressed in inches (found in the second column of the table) by the conversion factor obtained in step 1. b.
3. Remember that although official basketball dimensions are expressed in inches, scientists always use metric units. For your science project, you should measure distance in metric units.

Table 1. Table with dimensions of the real game and the scale model. Note the values in italic print represent a scale model using a ball with a diameter of 4.5 cm. You might need to adjust these values to represent your scale model.

Create your scale model. Take one of the poster boards and draw a top-down view of the basket and backboard, scaled down to the size of your ball. Figure 6, will guide you through the process.
1. Put the poster board lengthwise in front of you.
2. In the table you made (like Table 1), check how long your scaled down backboard needs to be. If you are using a 4.5 cm test ball, the backboard length should be scaled down to 34 cm.
3. Start about 20 cm from the right side of your poster board. Indicate this point with a small mark on the top edge of your poster board. Your basket will be placed at this spot.
4. From the point you just drew, measure a distance one-half the length of your backboard to the left and to the right, and make new marks. These outer marks represent the edges of your backboard. Note: Do not worry if the right edge of the backboard falls just off the poster board; you will be testing the left side only.
5. Make small marks, 1 cm apart, starting from the center of the backboard all the way to the left edge of the backboard. These marks will help identify the spot where the ball touches the backboard in your scale model.
6. Refer to the table (like Table 1) to find the distance from the backboard to the nearest edge of the basket and draw a line to represent the metal that holds the basket on the backboard (red line in Figure 6). This line is perpendicular to the backboard (edge of the poster board). This line will be referred to as the central line.
7. Measure the radius of the basket from the end of the central line drawn in the previous step. This point is the center of the basket.
8. Now place the sharp part of the compass on that point and use it to draw the circular basket on your poster; make it well visible by going over it with a thick black marker.

Indicate the player's directions on the poster board. You might want to start with a pencil line and accentuate part of this line with a marker if you wish to.
1. To indicate the 0° direction, draw a pencil line parallel to the poster board edge (and thus parallel to the backboard) through the center of the basket.
2. Use a protractor to indicate the 90°, 60°, and 30° directions by placing the center of the protractor in the middle of the basket and the flat line of your protractor parallel to the edge of your poster board. The 0° marks on your protractor should line up with the 0° direction you drew in step 4. a. Note: Make sure to measure the angle from the middle of the basket,—as shown in Figure 7—and not from the edge of your poster board.

Indicate the player's positions on the poster board. Note: You might need to attach poster boards (or pieces of paper) to the first poster board, as all of the player's positions might not fit on your first poster board.
1. Find the scaled down player's distance to the center of the basket in the table you made similar to Table 1. For a 4.5 cm diameter test ball, the chosen distance of 3 m on the real-life court scales down to a distance of 56 cm.
2. Put your ruler or measuring stick in the 0° direction, line up the 0 cm mark with the center of the basket and indicate the player's position at the correct distance (56 cm) with a marker.
3. Repeat step 5.b. for the 30°, 60°, and 90° directions.
4. Place your poster board on the floor near the wall, with the backboard drawing against the wall.
Create a scaled down backboard so you can easily identify the distance from the central line at which the ball touches the backboard. Let Figure 8, be your guide.
1. Look up the scaled down length of your backboard in the table you made like Table 1. Divide this by 2, as you will only use the left side of the backboard in your test.
2. On a separate piece of paper, draw parallel lines perpendicular to the edge of the paper, 1 cm apart and about 10 cm long, until you have enough to cover half of the scaled down backboard (i.e. 17 lines if you are using a 4.5 cm ball).
3. Number your lines starting from 0 (rightmost line) toward 17 (the line farthest away from the basket).
4. Tape this paper to the wall so the line marked "0" lines up with the central line. Make sure the tape you are using will not damage the wall.

Create a ramp for the ball, representing the path the basketball takes from the player to the backboard. Note that from a bird's-eye view, the ball's trajectory follows a straight line.
1. The ball rolling down the ramp will represent the approximate 3 m horizontal path the ball takes from the player to the backboard. If you are using a 4.5 cm ball, this path scales down to approximately 56 cm long. Cut your cardboard tube to about 50 cm long, leaving some space for the test ball to bounce back. Note: You can use scissors or a craft or utility knife for this and for the following step. Make sure to have an adult supervise or help you if you use the craft or utility knife.
2. Cut your cardboard tube lengthwise. Try to cut in a straight line, parallel to the length of the tube. Do not cut it in half, just one straight line cut.
3. Gently pry your tube open so it forms a long, U-shaped track, as shown in Figure 9.
4. You will elevate the track a little so gravity makes the ball roll. Test your track a couple of times to determine the best elevation.
  1. Let the ball roll down the track and bounce off of the wall, holding the far end (representing the position of the player) at heights from 5 cm up to 11 cm.
  2. Determine which height gives a nice roll to the ball and bounce on the wall, but that doesn't cause it to roll too quickly.
5. Cut a toilet paper tube so it matches the height determined in step 7.d. This tube will be used as a stand to slightly elevate the track, as shown in Figure 9. Feel free to decorate the tube so it looks like a player.

Evaluate if the data taken from the 0° position is realistic in your scale model.
1. Depending on your model, it might be very hard to collect data for very small angles. If you cannot collect data for the 0° angle, add a player's position at a small angle (such as 10°) by repeating steps 4.b. and 5.b. for the chosen small angle. In the data table like Table 2, introduced in the next step, write whatever information you can get for the 0° angle and add a column for the player's position at the small angle you added.

Testing

Before you start your trials, copy the table in your lab notebook to record your results.

Practice reading off the distance from the central line where the ball hits the backboard, as this can be a little tricky.
1. Place your toilet paper tube (player) at the 30° or 60° position. Put your ramp in place, put the ball on the ramp at the player position and let it roll. Note the point where the ball touches the backboard (wall). This is called the impact point. Read the distance from the central line to this impact point.
2. Place the lower end of your ramp at different positions, leaving the position of the player (toilet paper tube) untouched. Roll your ball again and read the distance of the impact point to the central line.
3. Make sure to note the location where the ball actually hits the backboard, and not the location where your cardboard track is pointing. These are not necessarily the same, as can be seen in Figure 10.

Now you are ready to start testing. Start with the small distances from the central line (0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 cm). Start with the 90° position.
1. Place the tube (player) on the player position.
2. Note down in your lab notebook the position you are testing, such as "90° position, goal impact point at 0 cm" in a table like Table 3. Clear notes help you keep track of your results.
3. As explained in step 2, aiming the track at a specific distance from the central line does not guarantee the ball will hit the backboard at that specific distance from the central line. In the following steps, you will use trial and error to aim the ramp and get the impact point you want to investigate.
4. Aim the ramp as well as you can so the impact point will be at the distance from the central line you would like to test, starting with 0 cm from the central line.
5. Let the ball roll and observe where the ball hits the backboard. If the impact position is not at the distance you want to investigate now, go back to step 3.d. and try again.
6. Roll the ball and observe.
  1. If the ball did not roll smoothly or did not roll quickly enough to make a nice bounce back, disregard this trial.
  2. If the ball bounced back and rolled over the basket in a way that means it would have gone in, it is a score. Put a tally mark in the "Scores" column in the Trial 1 row of your table like Table 4. If it rolled away from or not directly over the basket, it is a miss. Put a tally mark next to "Misses" Note: You might think it would be easier to cut out the basket and watch if the ball enters the hole. This would be true if the ball did not roll over the basket on its way toward the backboard. You will cut out the basket later in this science project to test larger impact distances. You can retest these smaller distances if needed by putting the cut out circle back in place and placing the poster board back on the ground.
7. Repeat step 3.f. until you have completed all ten trials.
8. Add up the total number of "Scores" and note this result down in the correct spot in your table like Table 3. Copy your result in your data table like Table 2.
9. Repeat steps 3.b.–3.h. for a distance of 1 cm to the central line, then again for a distance of 2, 3, and 4 cm to the central line.
Repeat step 3, placing your player at each of the following positions: 60°, 30°, and 0°.
Be sure you have the top four lines of your table like Table 2 filled in. Test any combination that is missing.
Now that you have tested the impact distances close to the central line, the ball should no longer roll over the basket area on its way to the backboard, meaning you can now cut out the basket.
1. Cut the basket out using a craft or utility knife. Adult supervision is recommended. Be sure to cut on a safe surface, like a cutting board, so you do not make cuts on anything like furniture or carpet underneath. Try to only cut on the outline of the circle (basket) so you can pop it back in and re-test the smaller impact distances if needed.
2. Take two books of equal thickness (not too thick). Place them on either side of the cut-out basket, under the poster board. This gives the poster board a small elevation and allows the ball to fall into the basket. Note: Do not worry if the ends of the poster board flop down a little. It is important that the area of the poster board against the wall where the backboard is indicated (to the left of the basket) is lifted equally.
3. Check if the central line lines up with the 0 cm line of the paper on the wall.
Start testing the larger distances from the central line (5 cm and up). The procedure is very similar to step 3, except here, the ball will roll into the basket if it is a successful shot. Here is a quick recap of the steps. See step 3 for details.
1. Put the player in position.
2. Note the test position in your lab notebook by creating a table like Table 3.
3. Direct the ramp at the desired test position and make test rolls until you get the desired impact distance.
4. Perform a trial and place tallies to keep track of your results.
5. Repeat step 7.d. until you have completed ten trials.
6. Count the number of scores and write it down in your table like Table 3 and Table 2.
7. Repeat steps 7.b.–7.f. for the other distances.
Repeat step 7 for the following positions: 60°, 30°, and 0°.

Analyzing the Results

Calculate the total number of successful banked shots for each angular position.
1. Look back at your table like Table 2. Starting for the 90° position, add up the numbers in the column and write the result in the row "Total Number of Successful Banked Shots".
2. Repeat step 1.a. for the 60°, 30°, and the 0° positions.
3. Can you conclude from these results if a particular position(s) has a higher success rate?
4. Are your results as you had expected? If you play basketball, do they confirm what you have experienced on the court?
5. Make a scatter plot of the total number of successful banked shots (on the y-axis) with respect to the angular positions (on the x-axis).
Calculate relative probabilities obtained from your scale model, using the 90° position as the baseline. Check the Introduction if you need to refresh your memory on relative probabilities.
1. Find the total number of successful banked shots for the 90° position in your data table. This is your baseline number.
2. To obtain the relative probability, divide the total number of successful banked shots for a particular angular position by the baseline number. Note it down in your data table.
3. Check if the relative probability for the 90° position is indeed 1, as this position is chosen as baseline. If not, find your mistake in step 1.a. or 1.b. and make corrections where necessary.
4. Do your results show that it is easier (relative probability of higher than 1) or more difficult (relative probability lower than 1) to make a banked shot from specific angular positions with respect to the 90° position?
5. Are your results as you had expected? If you play basketball, do they confirm what you have experienced on the court?
6. Make a scatter plot of the relative probability (on the y-axis) with respect to the angular positions (on the x-axis).
Analyze where on the backboard a ball must bounce to end up in the basket.
1. Take a highlighter and highlight all the cells in your data table that have an entry of six or higher, as these combinations of angular position and distance to the center line resulted in a high rate of successful banked shots.
2. Are these regions the same for all angular positions? Can you see a trend?
3. Do some angular positions have a longer area on the backboard that leads to successful banked shots?
4. Make a plot with the player's angular position on the x-axis and distance from the central line on the y-axis. For each angular position, draw a vertical line on the graph going from the minimum distance that scored at least six baskets, to the maximum distance that scored at least six baskets.
5. For each angular position, calculate the width of the region where at least six baskets were scored. For example, if the closest distance to the central line where you scored six baskets was 5 cm, and the farthest distance was 12 cm, then the width is 12 − 5 = 7 cm. Now, make a new plot with angular position on the x-axis and this width on the y-axis.
Relate back to the real basketball court by converting the distance of the impact point in your scale mode to a distance on a real court.
1. Look back at section Create a Scale Model, step 1.d., for the conversion factor. This factor tells you how many centimeters in the scale model correspond to 1 m on the court.
2. Use your scale factor to convert the distance from column "Ball Impact Position from the Central Line in a Scale Model" to the corresponding distance on the court. Hint: You need to divide by a scale factor to convert distances from the scale model to distances on the court.
3. Note your results in the first column of your data table.
4. Check if these distances seem plausible. Hint: Your results need to point to a location on the backboard, which is 72 inches or 1.83 m long.
5. Repeat the scatter plot of step 3. d, this time indicating the distance on the real court on your y-axis.
6. If you play basketball, do these distances correspond with your experience on the court?
If you look up shot charts, model data, or other data indicating the success rate to make banked shots from different positions on the court, do your results confirm or contradict these results?
If you doubt your data, you can increase your precision by adding more data points (for instance, add the 15°, 45°, and 75° data points) and/or make more trials for each combination (angular position, distance to the central line).

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Variations

In this science project, a distance of 3 m is used as distance to the center of the basket. Do the science project again, but this time, use a different distance to the basket. Note that you will need to recalculate to which distance the new chosen distance scales down, as well as adjust the player's positions on the poster board and the length of your track (cardboard tube).
In this science project, you changed the position of the player by changing the angle and keeping the distance to the center of the basket constant. Do the project again, keeping the angle constant, but this time, analyzing the influence of changing distance to the basket.
Recruit some of your basketball-playing friends and test their success rates from the analyzed positions, using the backboard. Compare the average of these real-life results with the results obtained in your scale model. Analyze what might account for the differences between your scale model and the real game.
Look up "shot charts" for real basketball players (for example, do an online image search for "NBA shot chart") and compare your data to these shot charts. Does data from real basketball games match the trends you saw in your experiment, or not? What other factors do you think could influence a real game that were not present in your experiment?
Use algebra and geometry to calculate the relative probability to score using the backboard from different positions on the court.

Careers

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General citation information is provided here. Be sure to check the formatting, including capitalization, for the method you are using and update your citation, as needed.

MLA Style

Science Buddies Staff. "Basketball: Will You Bank the Shot?" Science Buddies, 20 Nov. 2020, https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Sports_p024/sports-science/basketball-bank-shot. Accessed 23 Oct. 2022.

APA Style

Science Buddies Staff. (2020, November 20). Basketball: Will You Bank the Shot? Retrieved from https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Sports_p024/sports-science/basketball-bank-shot

Last edit date: 2020-11-20

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what it is, execution technique, the best blockers

There are a lot of spectacular techniques in basketball, which is why this sport has so many fans. The performance of the reception is important for the players, its entertainment is important for the fans. The block shot in basketball is liked by both of them, it meets two criteria. It has other names - a block, a banana, a bank, a bathhouse, and even a fly swatter. In this article, we will look at the block shot basketball technique, why it is so important, how to do it correctly, in what situations it will be appropriate. Also here you will find a list of the best players who are excellent at blocking and have shown their skills to the whole world.

In basketball, a block shot is called a technique when a defender blocks the ball after a shot attempt and changes its direction in a favorable direction, away from the basket. This item is very exciting, especially when done professionally. He delights fans and motivates team members to win. The player whose shot was blocked in this way is credited with a loss of the ball or a miss.

Block shots are not ordinary and simple tricks. This is not just creating a hindrance on the way to your basket, but something more. A good blocker instills fear in attackers, no one wants to compromise their professionalism with a bad throw. Dikembe Mutombo is usually cited as an example, in his performance this protective element is ideal. No wonder Mutombo is considered one of the best blockers among the NBA professional league players. He has a trademark gesture, after each blocked shot, he expressively shakes his finger from side to side, as if to say: “Not on my shift.”

Finesse

Blocking shots is necessary to protect your team, and this is the most important of the techniques. Most of the best defenders use it on a regular basis. They have a title - rim protector, which means protector of the ring.

High height is important for a successful execution, it is easier for a tall player to block an opponent's shot. But that's not all, you also need to jump high, correctly assess the situation on the court and respond in a timely manner. A good blocker knows when to jump, what position to jump from. A useful skill is the ability to distinguish a real throw from a false one. If you jump ahead of time, then the fans will laugh at it.

Chasedown Blocks

Chasedown is a special performance and is considered aerobatics to perform. It happens like this: the defender runs after the attacker and jumps at the moment when the ball is already flying into the ring. If everything is done correctly, then the projectile will stick to the shield and fly off in the other direction or fly towards the stands, as is often done in another game, volleyball.

This gets a standing ovation on par with a spectacular slam dunk, but it doesn't happen as often as we'd like.

In the history of sports there are special chasedown blocks. One of them was pulled by LeBron James in Game 7 of the NBA Finals four years ago. When only a few minutes remained until the end of the meeting, and the score was equal, he blocked the rivals' lake-up and these allowed his team to win and become the champion of this season.

How to block shot?

The block shot in basketball guarantees the stopping of the shot, so every defender should master it. This technique becomes a reaction to the opponent's action, so you need to be very careful. If you react to a feint, you can get a foul and give the other team the opportunity to get easy points. In order not to be mistaken, you need to look at the body and legs of the attacker, as soon as the legs come off the surface of the site, then it's time to act.

You should always stand on your toes, from this position you can react to changes in the situation in a matter of fractions of a second. During the jump, it is important to control the position of your body and limbs. You need to jump strictly along a vertical path, without deviating forward or to the sides. If you lean towards the opponent, then you can commit a violation - touching. Hitting the ball backhand is very spectacular, especially at the moment when it has not yet left the attacker's hands. But this, too, can provoke a touch. It is more practical to block-shot at the moment when the ball is already released.

Another important point: to bet or not to bet. The player needs to objectively evaluate their own physical data. Performing a technique is appropriate if you are well prepared in general and ready to jump at a particular moment. You should not try to block someone who is superior in skills and size, this often leads to a foul and lost points.

The best blockers

In basketball, each player has personal statistics. These defenders excelled in block shots.

Hakim Olajuwon

He has 3830 completions, averaging 3.09 per game, and is the clear leader in total. This is a versatile basketball player, he showed himself equally well both offensively and defensively. Included in the four of those who made a quadruple-double. This is the name for a set of more than ten points due to block shots, assists, rebounds and interceptions.

Dikembe Mutombo

His name has already been mentioned in this article. One of the most effective blockers in the history of the sport. Did 3289considered blocks, which in terms of the number of matches is an average of 2. 75 for each. As many as four times he was recognized as the best defenseman in the NBA. His gesture of shaking his fingers began to be repeated by other players of different levels.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

He was always highly regarded as an attacker, but few people attached importance to his blocking skills. And in vain, because he is in third place in this rating, he completed 3189 cans during his career, which is 2.57 for each meeting.

Mark Eaton

Ranked fourth in total with 3,065 but leads in average at 3.5 per game. No one else has such an indicator. Mark Eaton is an interesting figure in basketball, he did not think about professional training until the age of 21, but the height of 225 cm could not go unnoticed. He was drafted 72nd, but after the first season in the NBA, it became clear that this is one of the best defenders of all time.

Tim Duncan

He is called the most powerful forward, and also - "Mr. Fundamental". Such universal players are appreciated. In defense, he plays not very impressive, but very effective. Completed 3020 receptions, 2.17 for each exit.

David Robinson

Nicknamed The Admiral, he is Tim Duncan's mentor and partner. They were called “twin towers”, and only the most daring and desperate dared to attack their basket. In personal statistics, 2954 blocks, 2.99 per game.

Patrick Ewing

A true legend, the best center of all time. He was always distinguished from others not only by his powerful dimensions, but also by his special intuition. He seemed to always know when to block and when to jump out. True, his instincts let him down when Michael Jordan ran one of his most famous dunks through him. On account of his 2894 great performances, 2.45 in each match.

Shaquille O'Neal

Bet 2,732 pots at 2.26 per game on average. With his impressive size, Shaquille has always been very mobile. His achievements in attack are discussed more often, but one cannot ignore the fact that he became a member of the second NBA defensive team three times.

Tri Rollins

He built a career as a defender, and it turned out great for him. Several times he got into the first and second defensive teams. Made 2542 blocks, 2.2 per meeting.

Robert Parish

Rounding out the top block shots in basketball with 2,361 shots, 1.47 per game. He is the leader in the number of executions of this move among representatives of the Boston Celtics franchise.

The Bomb Shot Gains Popularity in the NBA - Across the Atlantic - Blogs

The current NBA with incredible ease and speed destroys the foundations and practices that have been in basketball for many decades. The league is getting faster, lighter, centers are throwing 3-pointers on an industrial scale, point guards aren't throwing them at all. Those who do not want to change with her are in for hard times, such as one 10-time All-Star Game, who until recently was the main star in his club, but today is not needed in the NBA even on a minimum contract and can look after an apartment in Beijing -Shanghai.

There are a lot of shots in the NBA, good and different. They differ from each other in range, distance to the nearest defender, time left to attack, thrower's actions, etc. On NBAsavant.com, a site that specializes in shot-related statistics, shots are divided into 65 categories. This is a lot, although, probably, if you wish, you can do even more. But if you do not go deep into the descriptions, then they can be divided into four groups: jumpshots, lay-ups, dunks and hookshots, which we used to call hooks. It is from these groups that further clustering of throws takes place according to the game situation during the throw and (or) the movements of the body and legs of the thrower. Covering and describing each type of shot is quite a laborious task, so let's focus on one of them, which is becoming an increasingly frequent guest on the NBA grounds.

What is a floater?

The floater is a type of jumpshot. It is often used in situations where a player goes into the passage after beating his opponent, but does not want to continue moving towards the basket, because. there is a blocking big man:

A vivid example: Cory Joseph, with the help of a screen from Sabonis, passed his guardian, Landry Shamat. You can go under the ring and finish the attack with a layup, but Joel Embiid is in the paint, who will clearly try to prevent Joseph from making a good throw or blocking. As a result, Corey decides to quit without going under the ring and getting close to Embiid. This roll is called jump stop two foot floater . Corey Joseph stops before jumping, jumping straight up and pushing with both feet. With this type of floater, the balance of the body is best maintained, which allows you to make the throw more controlled. If there is no defender nearby (restoring the position of the guardian or the safety big), the shoulders during the throw should be turned towards the basket, forming a rectangle with the ring (as in the video). If there is a defensive player nearby, then it is worth throwing with the shoulder of the non-throwing arm forward. The release time with this type of floater is the longest, but in this example, Joseph can afford to neglect it in favor of the quality of the throw, because. neither Shamet nor Embiid are in close proximity to him.

In general, the release time is what distinguishes the floater from the jumpshot. Here's an example of a jumpshot from Buddy Heald:

As in the previous example, the Sacramento guard screened Danny Green off center and decides to jumpshot from the free kick line.

The attempt is successful (and in general Hield against Toronto looked good), but look at the distance between him and Green at the beginning of the throw and at the release: that in the initial stage of the throw, Green loses to Hild by a meter and a half. When Hield throws the ball towards the ring, Greene lacks quite a bit to block it. With a floater, this problem would not have arisen.

In addition to the speed of the release, the floater is distinguished by the fact that it is thrown in a high arc so that the belaying big one does not have the opportunity to block the throw. In the next video, Jarrett Jack walks away from his defender and goes into the pass under the basket, where Andre Drummond advances towards him. This meeting is similar to the clash of David and Goliath, so instead of passing under the ring, Jack throws out the floater. The ball travels in such a high arc that neither the jump nor the arm length of a big man like Drummond is enough to block it. As in the Book of Kings, the giant is defeated.

video from 0:15

A variant of Jack's floater is called running one foot floater , because of the obvious reason from the name: the player pushes with one foot when jumping. This type of floater is distinguished by an even faster release, the work of the legs and body is like in a layup, and the release occurs at the top point with a gentle and smooth movement of the hand, while the movement of the hand should be continued until the ball hits the basket (if the situation is successful) or somewhere in another place (if unsuccessful). It is this type of floater that is most often used.

For lovers of the exotic, there is eurostep floater . But here the difficulties with the correct balance in the floater are multiplied by the difficulties in the performance of the Eurostep, so I found his video example only from the All-Star Game. In the video, it is worth paying attention not only to the excellent work of Harden's footwork, but also to the absolute disinterest of the defenders to even try to interfere with him.

As you can see, all examples of floaters involve back row players. This is no coincidence. The floater is the throw of the "little" people in the world of basketball. It allows them to throw big men with a higher release point and ball trajectory. This is a good alternative to block or contact with 7ft 250lbs. In the top 10 players who have thrown the most floaters since the 2015-2016 season, only TJ Warren can be classified as a wing and certainly no one as a big man.

Here's what Jarrett Jack says about his reasons for developing his floater:

“I was in elementary school and I tried to play against guys who were already in elementary high school. It is clear that everyone I played against was bigger than me and physically stronger. So the floater was the only throw I could make without fear of being blocked. I was very fast, so when I passed my guard, I had to throw the ball in a very high arc in order not to be blocked.

It's not like big men don't throw floaters at all. Among the players who made at least 50 floaters in 4 seasons, in terms of their percentage of the total number of throws, Kostas Koufos is the leader among the big ones: 7.5% of his throws are floaters. Usually, in order to make it harder for the defender to block your shot, big men use a hookshot. However, adding a floater to your shooting arsenal can allow the center to be more versatile offensively, which will create more problems when marking him.

In the same article where Jack talks about his childhood on the courts in Washington, Brooke Lopez says he started throwing floaters when he started playing more pick and roll. If, during pick-and-roll, the big defender tries to cover the paint from the passage and leaves free space between himself and Lopez in the area of \u200b\u200bthe mustache (which are on the court, and not on the face), the ability to throw floaters allows him to make a throw without getting close to his guardian and essentially without resistance. For three seasons, every twentieth Brook's throw was a floater. He's thrown just one floater this season, showing yet another transformation in Lopez's game: he now mostly shoots from behind the three-point line, opening up under the basket for the half-Greek demigod to pass.

Such centers also often use the floater. like Anthony Davis, who rose dramatically in high school. Before swinging up to 210 cm, Davis played for a long time in the guard position and, accordingly, developed the skills necessary for a player of this role, including a floater. Now, like Lopez before this season, he throws the floater about 5% of the time.

But for all its merits, the floater is not a throw that players use often. Even the basketball players who throw the most floater have a frequency of about 1 in 10, 1 in 9(Jeff Teague stands out here with 16%). In general, in the League last year, out of 211,696 shots made, only 10,120 were floaters. This is 4.78%. Why, with all its advantages in the form of release speed and non-blocking trajectory, the floater is used so rarely?

There are several reasons for this, but I guess they all have one main reason: the floater is an ineffective throw. Here are the number of floaters and the percentage of their implementation in the range of 0-20 feet (Freq. is the percentage of floaters thrown from a given distance relative to the total number of floaters, not all throws):

Same chart but in chart form:

As you can see the floater is mostly used in the 4-11 foot range from the rim (three quarters of the throw). Jumpers are usually played farther from the ring, layups or dunks are closer. Those. Basically, floaters rush from a distance that is included in the concept of short mid-range on the PBPstats website. Mid-range in the modern NBA sounds like a sentence, and in terms of floaters it works: only attempts thrown right from under the basket have a conversion rate above 50%. But there were only 52 such shots since the 2015-2016 season, which is 0.19% of all floaters, not to mention the total number of throws. In the working range of floaters, the percentage of their implementation is in the region of 46-48%. This is 96 points for 100 attempts. Let's just say it's not impressive.

The floater is a difficult throw not only for the defensive team, but also for the thrower himself. It is difficult to keep the right balance, on time and well to make a release. The unnatural trajectory along which the ball goes during this throw also does not add to its stability. Return to the table with the players who throw the most floaters. Only Jordan Clarkson and Reggie Jackson make them more than once in two. Yes, jumpers from behind the arc also cannot boast of a percentage of conversions, but unlike floaters, they bring an extra point (floters from behind the arc usually do not throw, except when there is no time left. Out of 123 attempts, 32 were realized, this is 26%) . So it turns out that the floater is a good alternative to a block shot or layup with contact, but in any other situation you can find better throws or continuation of the attack. Floater is a utility roll for predominantly shorter players, helping them to have more options to complete an attack on passes.

Having more or less dealt with the throw itself, let's move on to the topic of collecting information about it. Information about all shots taken from stats.nba. The example shows that each throw is described by several parameters:

Who threw
Throw category (I couldn't think of a better translation to distinguish between Play type and Shot type)
Total (accurate throw or miss)
Type of shot (two or three)
Boxscore (reference to the boxscore of the game in which the throw was made).
Away team
Home team
Game date
Quarter
Throw time
Throwing distance (feet)
The team that took the throw.

There is quite a lot of information (although one could add, for example, data on whether a throw was made after the pass or not), but all of it, as far as I understand, is filled in by the operator, i.e. man. And this is where the human factor comes into play: due to the large number of throw categories, many of them practically duplicate each other, and essentially the same throw by two operators can be classified into two different categories.

I saw this in the data collected from floaters. Initially, I planned to take 4 full seasons, but due to the difference in the assessment of shots, I had to throw out the 2014-2015 season. Here is the number of floaters by season:

In just 4 seasons, their number has tripled. There are objective reasons for this (about them below), but still they alone could not give such a frenzied growth. The double difference between the 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 seasons, I believe, is due to the fact that in the 2014/2015 season, floaters made in the pass (Driving Floating Jump Shot category) were not taken into account separately (the category appeared only in the 2015/2015 season). 2016) and were included in the Driving Jump Shot. So the change, which happened very far from the NBA venues, changed the number of floaters dramatically.

Also, judging by the data, the indicators by the type of throws depend on the operator of a particular team: the list of leaders and outsiders in terms of the number of floaters is quite stable. Of course, the team's style of play greatly affects the number of shots of various types and it does not change dramatically from season to season (except when changing the coach), but still there is a share of the "human" factor in the stability of the results. As for the growth between last season and the year before last, there is no such obvious reason as in the first case, and in percentage terms the growth is not as large (although still noticeable). Let's leave it to the conscience of the events that take place directly on the site, and not in the computer.

So what affects the number of floaters from what happens directly on the site? As discussed above, floaters are usually thrown on the pass when the player decides that such a throw from 6-7 feet without getting close to a large opponent has a better chance of success than continuing to the ring. And the number of passes in the NBA is growing. On average in the League in the 2017/2018 season, the team made 459 passes more than in the 2014/2015 season. This is an increase of 15.73%. Last year, only 5 teams out of 30 made fewer passes than three years earlier:

Correlation analysis also confirms this relationship. The number of passes and throws in them have a statistically significant positive correlation with the number of floaters at the level of r=0.39 and r=0.65, respectively:

FGA – the number of floaters

DRIVES – the number of passes

in aisles

This is not surprising: a large number of throws fall into both the “passage” and “floaters” categories.

The well-known element of basketball, pick-and-roll, also contributes. This play is becoming more common in the modern NBA, and the variation in which the player who is screened (Pick & Roll Ball Handler) remains with the ball correlates well with the number of floaters. The number of throws in such a pick-and-roll and the number of floaters have a statistically significant positive correlation at the level of r=0.54.

FGA - number of floaters

FGAB - number of rolls in a Pick & Roll Ball Handler

And here the reason for the relationship lies on the surface: with such a pick-and-roll play, the ball carrier very often goes into the pass, and a further relationship is shown above.

Here is a video of a typical hand that falls into all three categories that correlate with each other: other throws.

Layup - number of layups made in passes ( Driving Layup Shot )

Float - number of floaters made in passes ( Driving Floating Jump Shot) ( Driving Floating Bank Jump Shot)

FloatFGA – sum of Float and Bank

F/L – ratio of FloatFGA to Layup

to the season. But the number of floaters is growing faster, which reflects the growth in F/L. This is visible on the chart.

The next graph shows the conversion percentage, and here the dynamics is reversed: the more throws are made, the lower the percentage of their implementation. Last season, they began to hit 7 fewer floaters per hundred attempts than two years earlier. This is a pretty significant drop.

On this I will finish the story about floaters. I will not write here about the statistics of individual players and teams. Firstly, the post turned out to be so big, so if it's interesting, I'll make an analysis of the players and teams in a separate post. And secondly, I will post links to Google Sheets with the data that I have collected, and with the help of filters, everyone will be able to find the information they are interested in.

Floater Shots Seasons 2015/2016-2018/2018

Link

Driving Layups VS Driving Floaters

9000 POWLEMENTS: Statistics on season 2018 (i.

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