“If you want to play in college, raise your hand.” I don’t know how many times I’ve asked this question when speaking to a high school team, and almost all the hands go up. I then spend an hour demonstrating and teaching the process of how to prepare yourself for the next level, how to train, how to practice, how to make the most of your time. I get done with the speech and the players all say things like, “Man, I’m ready. I’m going to work harder than ever!” I then step back and observe them for a few minutes before I leave.
Many times they have 15 minutes before their practice starts, so I want to see what they do. This is the typical response. Despite the fact they raised their hand, and despite the fact that they now know how to work, almost all of them will do the following: Shoot around, maybe try to dunk, or sometimes even throw up half-court shots or at least shots out of their range. I’m constantly reminded how few players are really willing to give it their all.
So I want to test you today. One of the best ways a player can keep their shot in-tune and continue to work on their form is with “mirror shots.” It’s simple. Get in front of a mirror and act out shooting. Wrist back and under ball, elbow under ball, punch through the ball on the release, lock the elbow, snap the wrist. Over and over and over again, a player can continue to work on their form and visualize their makes. I’m convinced that if a player would do just 100 of these every day, they would become at least a little bit better without even touching a basketball. Then, when they get in the gym, their shot just feels better!
I say this knowing many players won’t do this, but just in case you are one of them that will, I encourage you to give it a month. Do a 100 mirror shots every day before you go to bed, in the morning, or whatever works for you. Then, make sure you’re still working on your game in the gym. If you don’t get results, then call me a liar. But I bet it will make a BIG difference!
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