THE MOST IMPORTANT THING

In basketball, the difference between winning and losing usually comes down to one thing…SHOT SELECTION.

Here’s a statistic for you…  45% vs. 60%

In college and pro games, the team that shoots 45% or less (only 4 out of every 10 shots) loses 90% of the time.  But teams that shoot 60% or better (6 out of every 10 attempts) win 90% of the time.

Now that’s only a difference of two shots.  Do you really think only a couple of shots during a game can make the difference between winning and losing?

How many of you have ever taken a shot during a game that you knew was a bad shot to take? Maybe it was a shot that you rushed without getting your balance set first, or maybe it was a shot that was outside of your normal range.  Chances are that if it was a bad shot, then it was a shot that probably missed.  Let’s say each of you took one bad shot per game…that’s 10 or 12 bad shots per game.  In a close game, against a good team, it may very well be the difference between winning and losing.

You see, the typical player and average basketball fan loves the ill-advised shot…or let’s call it the ESPN shot.  You know the ones…the off-balance shot with a defender draped across your face.  Or maybe it’s the outside 3-pointer.  Those are called ESPN shots because they are rare and worth showing on TV.  However, good coaches (and good players for that matter) aren’t impressed by the ESPN shots because they know that the ESPN shots only go in about 10% of the time – that’s why everybody loves them so much…because they are so rare (because 90% of the time they DO NOT go in).  And when they are made…it’s mostly just luck.

To be a recognized as a good player, a player that looks special on the court, you need to learn to fall in love with “EASY SHOTS” and stay away from the ESPN shots.  

An “EASY SHOT” is a shot that you can make most of the time. 

When you see players that consistently shoot low percentage shots (ESPN shots), without trying to get a better-higher percentage shot, those players are typically immature shooters.  Meaning that they do not yet realize the importance of their shot selection and how such a poor shot can hurt their team.  When a player shoots one of those low-percentage shots, they hurt their team (remember that those shots only go in 10% of the time – meaning 90% of the time it will miss).  

What if you are shooting one of those low-percentage shot against a bigger stronger team.  The misses will then turn into rebounds…and which team will have the advantage on the rebound?  The bigger and stronger team.

The shooter will look at that shot and think it’s just a missed shot, but that shooter’s coach will look at that same shot and see it as an unnecessary turnover.  If any of you have had your coach get aggravated with you after a miss…it’s probably not because you missed the shot, but instead it’s because you took a shot that was not a very high-percentage shot to take.  In other words, it was a wasted scoring opportunity for your team.  How many wasted scoring opportunities does it take to decide a game?

Remember the 45% vs. 60% difference?  That’s only a two shot difference…but sometimes, just a couple of ill-advised shot attempts or a couple of ESPN attempts can cost your team the game. That’s why it’s so important for you to fall in love with the “EASY SHOTS” the ones close to the basket.

4:13