You might be surprised by this NBA data on shooting…
It’s VERY important as it can greatly improve your shooting percentage by quite a bit… without any shooting practice!
Let me explain…
During the 2022-23 NBA season, here are the 3-point shooting percentages based on the distance from the defender.
- 0-2 Feet: 29.3%
- 2-4 Feet: 29.4%
- 4-6 Feet: 34.6%
- 6-8 Feet: 38.6%
When you compare a 29.4% and 38.6% 3-point shooter, that’s the difference between being a poor shooter and a Hall of Famer!
In fact, look at the 3-point shooting percentages of some of these all-time greats:
- Steph Curry – 42.6%
- Ray Allen – 40.0%
- Reggie Miller – 39.4%
- Chris Mullin – 38.4%
- Larry Bird – 37.6%
Also, since 3-pointers are worth more than 2-pointers, you can look at points per shot and effective field goal percentage.
- 0-2 Feet: 0.88 PPS – 44% EFG
- 2-4 Feet: 0.88 PPS – 44% EFG
- 4-6 Feet: 1.04 PPS – 52% EFG
- 6-8 Feet: 1.16 PPS – 58% EFG
Relative to 2-point shots, this is a 14% increase… just by shooting open shots!
Now this is data from NBA players. They’re going to be better at making contested shots than your average college, high school, or youth player.
It wouldn’t surprise me if you saw differences of 20% to 30% for open versus contested shots with teams below the NBA level.
So if you want to be a great shooter, simply take open shots that are within your shooting range!