Bank Shot Basics
Teach the bank shot from the angles where the backboard is the shooter's best friend.
- Duration
- 8 min
- Steps
- 4
- Equipment
- 2 items
- Difficulty
- Beginner
How to run it
- 1
Stand at a 45-degree angle to the rim, about 5 feet out.
- 2
Aim for the top corner of the square on the backboard.
- 3
Shoot softly so the ball banks down through.
- 4
Make 8 from each side, then 8 from straight on (no bank).
Coaching points
- The square is your target on angles — aim for the top corner.
- Soft touch banks it in; hard shots ricochet off.
- Straight-on shots go straight in, no bank needed.
Equipment
- Basketball
- Rim
Why it works
The backboard is a tool most young kids ignore, firing straight at the rim from every angle. The nugget: angle layups and floaters bank in far more often than they swish — using the square turns a 40% shot into a 70% shot. In games, most drives come at angles, not straight on. A kid who trusts the backboard finishes tough angles that other kids brick.
Bank Shot Basics
Purpose: Teach the bank shot from the angles where the backboard is the shooter's best friend.
▶How to run it
- 1Stand at a 45-degree angle to the rim, about 5 feet out.
- 2Aim for the top corner of the square on the backboard.
- 3Shoot softly so the ball banks down through.
- 4Make 8 from each side, then 8 from straight on (no bank).
✓Coaching points
- ✓The square is your target on angles — aim for the top corner.
- ✓Soft touch banks it in; hard shots ricochet off.
- ✓Straight-on shots go straight in, no bank needed.
▢Equipment
★Why it works
The backboard is a tool most young kids ignore, firing straight at the rim from every angle. The nugget: angle layups and floaters bank in far more often than they swish — using the square turns a 40% shot into a 70% shot. In games, most drives come at angles, not straight on. A kid who trusts the backboard finishes tough angles that other kids brick.