Session Nine

Phase Five: Arch of shot 2

As stated in Session eight, phase five occurs when the ball has left the hand and when it is on an upward path towards the basket. Following on from the release of the ball it must be accompanied by relaxation in the muscles of the shooting arm, with no excessive tension in the shooting arm or wrist and hand (Alexander & Way, 2014). Only the muscles required to project the ball should be contracted; and all the other arm and shoulder muscles should be loose and relaxed so as not to interfere with the action from the hand and wrist (Alexander & Way, 2014).

Unsuccessful shots are associated with a longer muscle activation period, which suggests that muscle tension should be minimal during release for success in shooting (Miller, 1999).

Design of session:

1.     Ball release-insuring the correct steps have been used

2.     Major focus on angles and ball position

3.     Practice ball release without shooting at hoop, just dropping ball down, 4 sets of 10

4.     Attempt 4 sets of 10 shot, combined both session eight and nine together.

Results of session:

·      Combining the ball angle of release that was practiced in session 8 and 9 was helpful, as I thought that my angle of release was still close enough to the suggested angle

·      Practicing the angle of release 40 times but not shooting at the hoops allowed me to repeat the phase over and over again so I got use to the angle of release

·      I got 31 out of 40 shots in the basket in this session, which was higher than session eight. So the repetition of the angle of release overall has helped

Reflection:

I believe that after this session I was more confident at producing the correct arch of shot, as my shot arch rates were higher in this session than in session eight. This was because I felt more comfortable performing the shot and I felt like everything almost just flowed together really well.

References:

Alexander, M., & Way, D. (2014). Mechanics of the Basketball Free Throw. Manitoba: University of Manitoba.

Miller, S. (1999). Electromyographic considerations of inaccuracy in basketball shooting. Paper presented at the International Society of Biomechanics in Sports, Perth, Western Australia.