Philadelphia 76ers: The truth behind Ben Simmons’ improved jump shot

Poor mechanics

Last season, I made the decision to keep track of every jump-shot Ben Simmons attempted via a Twitter thread. Though I missed a few attempts here and there, I watched more than enough film to understand how poor his mechanics are.

As you can see from the thread, many of the jump shots that Simmons attempted were in the paint. Most of them could even be considered floaters rather than jump shots. However, when he does take a shot with range, he is almost always fading away or leaning to the side.

Rather than setting his feet for a fluid shot, Simmons elects to leap forward (or backward) when releasing the ball. Sometimes, he doesn’t even stop moving at all and shoots the ball in a running motion.

Another popular concern around his shooting form is which hand he releases the ball with. Simmons sets the ball up to be released from his right hand but fires with the left. This causes an awkward pulling motion that removes any consistency behind the shot.

The conspiracy that he is shooting with the wrong hand grows stronger when you consider how he plays the rest of his game. Simmons has strong favoritism towards his right hand when shooting layups, yet he insists on releasing the ball with his left hand during jump shots.

Combine this with his tendency to shoot off-balance and it’s no surprise that he is a wildly inconsistent shooter. It’s almost as if he never intends to shoot a jump shot but only does so if he has no other option left after picking up his dribble.

Setting his feet before a shot may not turn him into Stephen Curry, it would go a long way to helping him improve as a shooter.

One final thing to note here is that as the season progressed, Simmons gradually began to attempt more jump shots. This could be an indication that he is growing more confident in his ability and might be on the verge of a breakthrough.