Squaring Up

Taking a deep breath, Jiang Shi continued explaining to Zhu Zhan, "You should know that there's constant physical confrontation on the court. Sometimes, opponents will even focus their defense on you. When that happens, forget about getting open for a shot—even catching the ball can become extremely difficult. At times like that, both your stamina and mental energy will be heavily drained, and your movements can easily become distorted. Then, the muscle memory built up in training can become deceptive, and there's no guarantee your shots will go in."

Of course, against opponents with weak, low-intensity defense, a shooter developed through that kind of forced practice could still perform steadily. But such shooters had a very low ceiling. They wouldn't have those godlike moments. A shooter with his own rhythm and soul, however, could enter a state where his shooting percentage became terrifyingly high, whether he was defended or not.

Take the NBA, for example. There were two classic examples. The first was the gifted shooter Ray Allen. Of course, the younger Ray Allen wasn't merely a pure shooter, but as he grew older, he gradually became one. You should be familiar with him, right?"

Zhu Zhan nodded.

Ray Allen was nicknamed Gentleman Ray. His style was graceful, his three-point shooting deadly accurate, and he was one of the NBA's premier sharpshooters. He had countless fans in China. Although Zhu Zhan wasn't a Ray Allen fan, he still greatly admired and liked the player. With Ray Allen's long-range shooting, it didn't matter whether there was a defender in front of him. As long as he had even the tiniest window to shoot, he could end the game with one shot.

Jiang Shi continued, "In sharp contrast to Ray Allen is Kyle Korver. He's a pure shooter. In other words, aside from shooting, he might as well not exist on the court. If you watch his shots closely, you'll find that when powerful teammates create space for him and give him enough room to shoot, his percentage can be very high—sometimes even over fifty percent. But once he doesn't have enough space, he completely loses his shooting opportunities."

Images of Ray Allen and Kyle Korver shooting surfaced in Zhu Zhan's mind.

It was indeed as Jiang Shi had said. Kyle Korver's shooting percentage was not all that different from Ray Allen's, but there was one major difference between them: Kyle Korver only shot when he had enough space.

Although Kyle Korver had put up some extremely high-scoring performances, such games were few and far between. And when he had superstar teammates, his play improved.

Otherwise, he paled in comparison.

In fact, in most games, Kyle Korver didn't take many shots. Most of the time, he only attempted five to eight per game. That showed that his shooting entirely depended on whether his opponents gave him space.

Ray Allen, however, was completely different. He didn't need much space to shoot, and his release was incredibly fast. Usually, after using his excellent off-ball movement to find a split-second gap in the defense, he would shoot decisively.

Jiang Shi said, "Ray Allen is among the very best shooters, but Kyle Korver can't reach that same height. His shooting was built purely through high-intensity practice, so he needs space. He needs to be open."

Zhu Zhan took a deep breath, looked at Jiang Shi, and nodded. "I understand, Uncle Jiang."

Jiang Shi smiled approvingly and patted Zhu Zhan on the shoulder. "Zhan, you aren't that type of player Kyle Korver is. You're highly talented. You have flexibility, height, and wingspan. And your feel for the ball is simply enviable, so you can do much more on the court. Don't force yourself down a single path. Being a shooter isn't your role."

Zhu Zhan nodded seriously again. "I understand, Uncle Jiang."

Jiang Shi smiled. "All right, shooting isn't something you can master overnight. Once you truly find your own method and rhythm, you'll realize that shooting isn't actually that difficult. But since we're talking about shooting, Zhan, do you know what matters most to a shooter?"

Hearing that, Zhu Zhan thought for a moment before looking at Jiang Shi. "It should still be shooting percentage, right?"

Jiang Shi smiled faintly but shook his head. "Shooting percentage is only the result. For a shooter, the most important thing is judging his shooting opportunities. And when it comes to shooting opportunities, that brings us back to creating chances. Let's use Ray Allen as an example again. Everyone could see Ray Allen's outstanding shooting, but few people noticed the running he did to find those opportunities.

It could be said that the most crucial reason he became one of the NBA's top shooters was his exceptional off-ball movement.

For a shooter like him, as long as he kept moving and searching for opportunities, even if he never received the ball to shoot, he was still a tremendous psychological deterrent to opponents on the court. He could also create offensive space for his teammates."

Zhu Zhan's heart jolted. That was right. Whenever Ray Allen was on the court, no matter who he faced, he was a massive threat. No one dared relax their defense against him.

His off-ball movement was not only constantly creating shooting opportunities for himself, but also creating offensive space for his teammates. Those were two enormous benefits.

Zhu Zhan felt that Jiang Shi's words had given him an entirely new understanding of shooters.

Seeing the yearning look on Zhu Zhan's face, Jiang Shi smiled and continued, "Off-ball movement requires a mature tactical system as well as a player's own talent. It's an ability developed gradually over a long period of time, so you can't rush it. Come on, let's play one-on-one today. I'll attack, and you defend. Let me see how good your defense is."

Zhu Zhan's gaze shifted at those words. He nodded. "All right!"

As he spoke, Zhu Zhan passed the basketball in his hands to Jiang Shi.

Jiang Shi caught the ball, dribbled it twice, and looked at Zhu Zhan. "Warm up first. We'll start in a little while."

Zhu Zhan hummed in acknowledgment and began jogging slowly around the court to warm up.

After jogging two laps around the court and feeling his body warm up, Zhu Zhan and Jiang Shi officially began their one-on-one game.

While dribbling, Jiang Shi looked at Zhu Zhan and said softly, "Today is mainly to see how good your defense is, so defend me with everything you have."

Zhu Zhan furrowed his sharp brows and nodded slightly. He walked toward Jiang Shi outside the three-point line and assumed a defensive stance.

Seeing Zhu Zhan square up, Jiang Shi smiled faintly. Rather than avoiding him, he took the initiative and moved toward Zhu Zhan. His movements were extremely steady, with no intention of attacking while Zhu Zhan had not yet found his footing.

Jiang Shi dribbled with one hand while observing Zhu Zhan. Suddenly, his shoulder feinted to the left, and he transferred the ball to his left hand, making a move to drive left.