HS 3pt and dunk contest

[upperdeck]

more arc always better, but it also has a diminishing pt of return since it takes more effort, time to get the shot off..

what is not factored in though is where the missed end up.. not sure anyone has studied where misses go and how they get rebounded.

I learned long ago it was much easier to rebound you own miss off a higher shot so in pickup games i would always shoot crazy high arc.. when you were on they barely touch the net, when they are off they come off 10 ft and no box out works for that. won a lot of money in college on betting shots going thru the gym rafters..

 

[sutomcat]

There is in fact an optimal arc for shooting. If you take into account ball backspin and trajectory to calculate the shot angle approaching the area of the rim, the highest margin for error (i.e. greatest chance of ball entry through the hoop) is at a 52 degree angle (IIRC, it's been awhile since I looked at the physics). This allows for the most right/left and long/short variance of the ball's position to still go through the hoop. When you actually calculate the angle and associated trajectory, it comes out that very few shooters in fact have arc as high as the optimal arc. So generally speaking, for putting the ball through the hoop you want more arc rather than less.

If you are interested in the derivation of the physics, there is an excellent book on the Physics of Basketball by John Fontanella (ex professor at the Naval Academy and former research collaborator of mine).

This link says the optimal angle is dependent on the height of the shooter and their distance from the basket.

...
What is the best angle to shoot from?

Launch angle is simply the angle at which you launch the basketball towards the basket. For our discussion here, having your arm straight out and parallel to the floor is a 0-degree angle. Having your arm straight up pointing to the ceiling is a 90-degree angle. Halfway in-between these two extremes would be a 45-degree angle. Your distance from the goal and the release height of your shot determine the ideal launch angle for a slow-moving ball at the rim. The closer you are to the basket, the higher your launch angle will be. A two-foot shot released from a height of 8-feet requires a launch angle of 72 degrees to produce the slowest moving ball at the rim. As you move away from the basket, your launch angle decreases, a free throw is approximately 51 degrees and a 3-point shot is approximately 45-degrees.

The release height of the basketball shot is largely determined by the height of the player shooting. According to Professor John Fontanella, the ideal angles from the free throw line are as follows:

• 5’4″ player should launch the ball at a 52.2 degree angle
• 5’8″ player should launch the ball at a 51.5 degree angle
• 6’0″ player should launch the ball at a 50.8 degree angle
• 6’4″ player should launch the ball at a 50.1 degree angle
• 6’8″ player should launch the ball at a 49.4 degree angle
• 7’0″ player should launch the ball at a 48.7 degree angle

These angles produce the slowest moving ball as it approaches the rim, which gives you a shooter’s touch.
...

The physics of free-throw shooting – Secrets of Shooting

 

[orangecuse]

I’m hoping he’s also a dribbler and a passer in between all of those 3’s and dunks

No doubt for sure. Watched Carey in warm-ups at the ACC tourney here in Charlotte and he had some spectacular dunks, including a very impressive windmill type slam. Here's wishing next year we have a point guard that has the essential PG skills required to run a legit O.

 

[Zelda Zonk]

There is in fact an optimal arc for shooting. If you take into account ball backspin and trajectory to calculate the shot angle approaching the area of the rim, the highest margin for error (i.e. greatest chance of ball entry through the hoop) is at a 52 degree angle (IIRC, it's been awhile since I looked at the physics). This allows for the most right/left and long/short variance of the ball's position to still go through the hoop. When you actually calculate the angle and associated trajectory, it comes out that very few shooters in fact have arc as high as the optimal arc. So generally speaking, for putting the ball through the hoop you want more arc rather than less.

If you are interested in the derivation of the physics, there is an excellent book on the Physics of Basketball by John Fontanella (ex professor at the Naval Academy and former research collaborator of mine).

I agree, and that's what i was saying. The key question, though, is "more arc rather than less" compared to what?

I thought Joe's was in that 'optimal' range, and Brycen's was 'more' than that. Not a crazy amount, but more. And Brycen was missing left and right and front/back, while Joe was largely missing front/back. I think...

 

[HoustonCuse]

Any link to video of this event anyplace?

 

[Zelda Zonk]

This link says the optimal angle is dependent on the height of the shooter and their distance from the basket.

...
What is the best angle to shoot from?

Launch angle is simply the angle at which you launch the basketball towards the basket. For our discussion here, having your arm straight out and parallel to the floor is a 0-degree angle. Having your arm straight up pointing to the ceiling is a 90-degree angle. Halfway in-between these two extremes would be a 45-degree angle. Your distance from the goal and the release height of your shot determine the ideal launch angle for a slow-moving ball at the rim. The closer you are to the basket, the higher your launch angle will be. A two-foot shot released from a height of 8-feet requires a launch angle of 72 degrees to produce the slowest moving ball at the rim. As you move away from the basket, your launch angle decreases, a free throw is approximately 51 degrees and a 3-point shot is approximately 45-degrees.

The release height of the basketball shot is largely determined by the height of the player shooting. According to Professor John Fontanella, the ideal angles from the free throw line are as follows:

• 5’4″ player should launch the ball at a 52.2 degree angle
• 5’8″ player should launch the ball at a 51.5 degree angle
• 6’0″ player should launch the ball at a 50.8 degree angle
• 6’4″ player should launch the ball at a 50.1 degree angle
• 6’8″ player should launch the ball at a 49.4 degree angle
• 7’0″ player should launch the ball at a 48.7 degree angle

These angles produce the slowest moving ball as it approaches the rim, which gives you a shooter’s touch.
...

The physics of free-throw shooting – Secrets of Shooting

I'm 6'3" and i'm at a mean 50.266 angle. But, i'm working on it. It's that last .85 degrees that gets ya.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

This link says the optimal angle is dependent on the height of the shooter and their distance from the basket.

...
What is the best angle to shoot from?

Launch angle is simply the angle at which you launch the basketball towards the basket. For our discussion here, having your arm straight out and parallel to the floor is a 0-degree angle. Having your arm straight up pointing to the ceiling is a 90-degree angle. Halfway in-between these two extremes would be a 45-degree angle. Your distance from the goal and the release height of your shot determine the ideal launch angle for a slow-moving ball at the rim. The closer you are to the basket, the higher your launch angle will be. A two-foot shot released from a height of 8-feet requires a launch angle of 72 degrees to produce the slowest moving ball at the rim. As you move away from the basket, your launch angle decreases, a free throw is approximately 51 degrees and a 3-point shot is approximately 45-degrees.

The release height of the basketball shot is largely determined by the height of the player shooting. According to Professor John Fontanella, the ideal angles from the free throw line are as follows:

• 5’4″ player should launch the ball at a 52.2 degree angle
• 5’8″ player should launch the ball at a 51.5 degree angle
• 6’0″ player should launch the ball at a 50.8 degree angle
• 6’4″ player should launch the ball at a 50.1 degree angle
• 6’8″ player should launch the ball at a 49.4 degree angle
• 7’0″ player should launch the ball at a 48.7 degree angle

These angles produce the slowest moving ball as it approaches the rim, which gives you a shooter’s touch.
...

The physics of free-throw shooting – Secrets of Shooting

Never saw that before. That's awesome.

 

[tbonezone]

optimum release angle for 6'7 " 280 pounds ?

 

[TinyManInside]

I agree, and that's what i was saying. The key question, though, is "more arc rather than less" compared to what?

I thought Joe's was in that 'optimal' range, and Brycen's was 'more' than that. Not a crazy amount, but more. And Brycen was missing left and right and front/back, while Joe was largely missing front/back. I think...

My friend that I quoted (John Fontanella) did an analysis on a selection of NBA guards around 2005 and he found that something like 85% of them were shooting with less arc than was optimal for their size/distance of shot when shooting from the perimeter. So the general observation is/was "shoot with more arc" because most players (even professionals) don't shoot with high enough arc. I think if you did the analysis now you'd find that more players shoot with higher arcs than they did 15 years ago (Steph Curry comes to mind immediately).

 

[SWC75]

I remember getting a laugh when i described Arinze Onuaku's high arching foul shot "coming down at the basket like the comet that killed the dinosaurs".

 

[HoustonCuse]

I remember getting a laugh when i described Arinze Onuaku's high arching foul shot "coming down at the basket like the comet that killed the dinosaurs".

*asteroid

 

[SWC75]

*asteroid

Were you there?

 

[tbonezone]

if you ever played small ymca or church league gyms you know you had to shoot ropes or else you hit the roof.