5 At-Home Shooting Footwork Drills (No Hoop Needed) | Workout to Improve Shot Prep & Stance

With gym space at a premium, it is often hard to find free court time. Many facilities are limiting usage due to COVID 19. How are dedicated players going to improve when they can’t get into a gym?

You can get better right at home!

Below are 5 drills you can use to improve your shooting skills, and they can be done right at home. No court or hoop needed. These drills will help your shooting stance when you are either set shooting or coming off of a screen.

Completing these drills five days a week will improve your accuracy and foot positioning when going into a 1-2 or a hop. It will improve your ability to stay low for balance to provide more power when shooting and establish better hand positioning on the ball when catching it. Ultimately, it will help improve your shooting accuracy and scoring average.

Many shooters fail to be consistent which holds them back from being GREAT shooters. To be consistent, you need to build good habits and improve your muscle memory. To do that, you must train and practice daily. If that means practicing at home, then you must.

First Drill: 1-2 Steps

This drill is good for stepping into your shot. The goal is to work on quick stabs when completing your footwork. When going into your 1-2, be aware of keeping your feet shoulder-width apart while staying on the balls of your feet. This will provide better balance and the ability to explode quicker into your shot. This drill will help develop the ideal shooting stance from your own pass.

Start with 1-2 footwork (right to left and left to right).
Toss the in front of you with backspin.
Catch the ball and bring it up as if you were going to shoot the ball.
Complete 10 repetitions stepping in with the right foot followed by the left foot.
Repeat the 10 repetitions stepping in with the left foot followed by the right foot.

Make sure your dominant foot is slightly ahead of your other foot for better alignment to the basket.

Great shooters know power comes from the legs. To effectively utilize them, your legs must be slightly bent and your body position is low enough upon catching the ball.

Second Drill: Hop Footwork

This is a good drill for getting into your shot but even quicker. The goal is to work on quick short hops. This can be done by hopping in and meeting the pass or simply by hopping in place simulating you are already open and you just need to gather your footwork for the shot. The benefit of using the hop over the 1-2 is you have not established a pivot foot, so you have more options to attack if the shot is not open.

Toss the ball in front of you with backspin.
Catch the ball and bring it up as if you were going to shoot the ball.
Complete 10 repetitions hopping in on the right side.
Complete 10 repetitions hopping in on the left side.

Stay aware of keeping your feet shoulder-width apart and staying on the balls of your feet. This will provide better balance and the ability to explode quicker into your shoulder. Also, make sure your dominant foot is slightly in front of the other for alignment. Stay low with your legs slightly bent for shooting power.

Third Drill: Side Hop Footwork

This is a good drill to improve your ability to get into your shot using a side hop. This is especially helpful when you need to position yourself in front of a pass that is thrown to the left or right of you. Remember, not all passes are great passes. This will help you create distance from a defender, meet the ball, and stay at the same level as your starting point.

Dribble the ball once to the side of your body.
Hop over and grab the ball with correct hand placement to shoot the ball.
Complete 10 repetitions hopping to the right side.
Complete 10 repetitions hopping to the left side.

As with the previous two drills, keep your feet shoulder-width apart while staying on the balls of your feet. This will provide better balance and the ability to explode quicker into your shoulder. Also, make sure your dominant foot is slightly in front of the other for alignment. You want your legs to absorb the weight of your legs on the way down into your hop to allow for more power on your way up.

Fourth Drill: Side Steps

This drill is good for stepping into your shot while moving laterally. This will also help you create distance from a defender, meet the ball, and stay at the same level as your starting point.

Dribble the ball once to the side of your body.
Using a 1-2 step, step over laterally and grab the ball with correct hand placement to shoot the ball.
Complete 10 repetitions stepping laterally to the right side landing with the right foot first followed by the left.
Complete 10 repetitions stepping laterally to the left side landing with the left foot first followed by the right.

When going into your side steps keep your feet shoulder-width apart while staying on the balls of your feet. This will provide better balance and the ability to explode quicker into your shot. Also, make sure your dominant foot is slightly in front of the other for alignment. As always, you want your legs to absorb the weight of your legs on the way down into your hop to allow for more power on your way up.

Fifth Drill: Forward Pivot

This is a good drill for simulating come off a screen and having a defender trailing you.

Start off with your back toward the direction you want to perform the forward pivot to allow for a half turn.
Drop the ball behind you far enough to create space from the defender with your first step with a forward pivot.
Complete 10 repetitions to the right side.
Complete 10 repetitions to the left side.

To perform a good forward pivot, your first step should be towards the basket followed by your second step. If you are right handed, make sure your right foot follows quickly behind your left foot when stepping in with your left foot first. Your right foot should land slightly in front of your left foot. They should be shoulder-width apart.

Remember, having a strong base and consistent footwork is a trait of ALL GREAT shooters. So be sure to practice your footwork several times each week, even if you can’t get to the gym.

Shooting & Ball Handling Workout for the Gym

It is important to get do these basketball drills with no hoop but when available, you also want to get in the gym to get up real shots. When you have access to a hoop, try this 10 Step Shooting & Ball Handling Workout. My past clients have seen really impressive results by following that workout… so I think you’ll like it. It’s both efficient and effective.

If you have any questions or comments, reach out to me or leave your comments below.