Stephen Curry may be the best shooter in the league, but his Splash Brother, Klay Thompson is not far behind. Klay was 2nd in 3-pointers made with 276 and 1st in catch and shoot points with 827 for the season and a lot of that is credited to his mechanics. Klay Thompson’s shot is a picture perfect image that young aspiring shooters can learn from.

A slow motion look at Klay Thompson’s shot.

Shooting form is taught early on as it is an important piece to the outcome of your shot. There are guys like Shawn Merion who still made it to the league with atrocious shooting form but that’s very rare. When you look at Klay’s shot, he has all the key techniques that you want in your shooting form.

He has his eyes set on the basket which forces all of his concentration in getting the ball in the hoop. A lot of guys look at the basketball as their shooting which can completely disrupt their focus. Check out this video via Sport Science that looks at the mechanics of Thompson’s shot and how his focus on the basket allows him to shoot in the dark:

Klay also does a good job of keeping his elbow in and aligned directly under the ball. When your elbow is in and it moves straight up and down, it allows for a precise shot. Shooting the ball with your elbow too inward or facing outward will cause your shot to miss left or right which is a bad habit for shooters, especially at a young age. Klay Thompson’s form is state of the art which is why he can hit so many threes and shoot it at 42.5%.

What I like even more about watching Klay Thompson’s shot is his ability to get his feet set. Similar to Ray Allen, no matter the situation, Klay always has his feet ready heading into his shot. Having the proper stance and balance gives the shot the proper strength it needs. Usually coaches teach shoulder width apart or hip width apart which are essentially the same thing, but that width gives a player great energy when elevating. If you watch Klay coming off a screen, in transition, or even off the dribble, his feet are in the proper stance and he gets great lift on his shot. The clip below from the Game 5 match-up against the Portland Trail Blazers is a perfect example. Klay Thompson and Anderson Varejao have a give and go exchange where Klay passes it to Anderson and then loses his defender for a split second. He quickly gets his feet set, has his hands ready (which is basketball 101) and knocks down the jumper. Check out the foot work and the stance going into the shot…. Just Beautiful!



Now when you combine those three quick factors, that leads to a quick release, an accurate shot, and the ultimate balance which is what Klay Thompson displays every time he shoots the ball. Watching him let the ball fly is poetry in motion and the perfect shot to study if you want to improve your jumper.