Why Should I Use A Basketball Shot Chart?

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What is a Basketball Shot Chart?

A basketball shot chart is a great way to analyze a team’s and player’s game shots. A shot chart does a few important things:

  • Identifies where shots are taken
  • Identifies who is taking the most shots
  • Identifies who is making and missing shots
  • Identifies high percentage and low percentage shots

A basketball shot chart is a very helpful tool for all ages. College and NBA  televised games often use this graph when analyzing the game at halftime.

Offensively, it will help a team identify the quality of overall shot selection as well as the individuals who are taking the shots.

Defensively, a shot chart is very helpful. Often teams have defensive goals and defensive principles such as limiting 3 point shots, taking away points in the paint or limiting transition points. A shot chart will identify where opponents are taking and making shots. Analysis of the will help a team determine how effective they are reaching defensive goals.

It is really very simple to fill out a shot chart. There are a few different options. 

Team Shot Chart: A team shot chart is the most basic and easiest to complete. Remember our early post of Keep It Simple Stupid. The team chart will not be concerned with individual players. This is probably the most useful type of chart for youth coaches and players.

How To Fill Out A Team Shot Chart. The team shot will only use two symbols. Xs are for missed shots and will be recorded a circle from the location of the shot and for each miss. (no players) X’s and Os.

When a player is fouled it DOES NOT count as a shot attempt.

Team Shot Chart with Individual Players: For high school can college coaches and players this is a much more useful tool. This will keep track of both team and individual shots.

How To Fill Out A Team Shot Chart with Individual Players. Instead of using Xs and Os, the number of the player who shoots the ball will be recorded. When a player takes a shot, his number is written from the location the shot is taken. For a missed shot, do nothing, just leave the number. For a made shot, circle the number. Once the game is complete a coach can tally the field goal attempts (FGA) and Made Field Goals.

There are plenty of templates for a shot chart. The one that we use is by breakthrough basketball. Click here to download the Breakthrough Basketball Shot chart. They have a great post titled: Hubie Brown and Using Shot Charts To Improve Shooting Percentagese. The post analyzes Hall of Fame Coach Hubie Brown’s thoughts on how to use a shot effectively.. Breakthrough Basketball also has a shot chart app that might be worth investing in.