{"id":64163,"date":"2018-04-26T09:09:27","date_gmt":"2018-04-26T09:09:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=64163"},"modified":"2018-04-26T09:09:27","modified_gmt":"2018-04-26T09:09:27","slug":"inside-the-mind-of-cavaliers-guard-kyle-korver-one-of-the-nbas-greatest-three-point-snipers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/sports\/inside-the-mind-of-cavaliers-guard-kyle-korver-one-of-the-nbas-greatest-three-point-snipers.html","title":{"rendered":"Inside the mind of Cavaliers guard Kyle Korver, one of the NBA’s greatest three-point snipers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Inside the mind of Cavaliers guard Kyle Korver, one of the NBA’s greatest three-point snipers<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Kyle Korver wants to preface a discussion about shooting \u2013 his sublime three-point shooting in particular \u2013 with a caveat.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a journey, and I don\u2019t pretend to have the whole thing figured out, because I feel like there’s still a lot to learn,\u201d the humble Cavaliers shooting guard told USA TODAY Sports.<\/span><\/p>\n

If he doesn\u2019t have shooting figured out, he\u2019s as close as an NBA player is going to get. A 43.1% three-point shooter for his career \u2013 his 2,213 made threes are fourth all-time in NBA history \u2013 Korver perhaps saved Cleveland\u2019s season with four three-pointers, including two late in the fourth quarter of a 104-100 Game 4 victory on Sunday in Indiana.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI won\u2019t say mastered,\u201d said Lakers coach Luke Walton who was in Korver\u2019s 2003 draft class. \u201cBut he\u2019s come close to mastering his skillset of being an absolute knockdown shooter, and when you can do something better than everyone else in the world, then you\u2019re going to play for a long time.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

He has admirers throughout the league and in his locker room.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHis feet are always set and ready to go. His mechanics are the same. They never change,\u201d LeBron James said \u201cYou can tell he\u2019s put in that work over the years. True professional. Work ethic. He knows he\u2019s an NBA player, and that\u2019s been No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 on his list every single year.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

At 37 years old \u2013 an age when players are on the decline \u2013 Korver still makes an impact. This season, Korver made 43.6% of his three-pointers.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAs long as your body is holding in there, you should become a better shooter,\u201d he said. \u201cI do feel like I\u2019m better. I don\u2019t know if my numbers are better.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

He led the team in plus-minus \u2013 the Cavs scored 274 more points than their opponents with Korver on the court \u2013 and of players who were on the Cavs all season, he had the best net-efficiency rating. He might be the third most important Cav after James and Kevin Love.<\/span><\/p>\n

Former teammate Channing Frye called Korver a rarity. \u201cThere\u2019s only two or three guys who do what he does and that\u2019s create a double team without the ball,\u201d Frye said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Korver just doesn\u2019t put the work in, he puts thought into the work \u2013 a combination of science, philosophy, theory and practice.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI’m not afraid of changing something to try to be better at it. I think some people get just locked into \u2018this is the way it has to be,\u2019 and they’re afraid of messing something up. I don’t ever want to be that way with shooting or with anything really \u2013 not just shooting. It\u2019s good to always try to learn and try to grow. I’m always tinkering. I love that. I’m not thinking about the same thing every day. I\u2019m trying to find different things.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Three years ago when he played for Atlanta, Korver shared his 20-point checklist with USA TODAY Sports. The list identifies the key factors that make Korver\u2019s shot one of the best in NBA history.<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Wide stance. 2. Exaggerated legs. 3. Drop through heels. 4. Engage core. 5. Slight bend at waist. 6. Up strong. 7. Elbow straight. 8. One hand. 9. Fingers spread. 10. Slight pause. 11. Elbow up. 12. Land forward. 13. See the top of the rim. 14. Ball on fingertips. 15. Strong shot. 16. Shoulders forward and relaxed. 17. Ball and arm risen straight. 18. Hold the follow through. 19. Keep the release point high. 20. On turns, square shoulders.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI tried to be as detailed as I could,\u201d Korver said. \u201cAs you look at it, some things pull closer towards you. Some things fade away. It’s like that all the time. It’s just kind of the way it is. My understanding of each of these things seems to keep evolving and you spend a lot of time focusing on an area.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, especially as I get older, I feel pretty good about what I\u2019m doing mechanically. It\u2019s about training my body to groove certain things.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Some points on the checklist have morphed into one such as \u201cdrop through the heels\u201d and \u201cengage core.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s something that\u2019s hard to verbalize but I pretend that I’m trying to pinch something in my hip,\u201d Korver explained. \u201cAnd when I do that, I naturally have to use my legs, and I know that to do that well I have to bend through my heels and then I feel my hip more. I’ve knocked out two birds with one stone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Point No. 13 \u2013 \u201csee the top of the rim\u201d \u2013 has evolved into making sure the ball goes higher than the backboard on his shot. Is the ball actually going higher? \u201cIn my head it is,\u201d Korver said. \u201cThat helps me see the rim better.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Korver\u2019s focus on lifting weights \u2013 deadlifts in particular \u2013 has provided him with a counterintuitive process. \u201cA proper lift for me the day before a game is more important than getting 300 shots or 500 shots up,\u201d Korver said.<\/span><\/p>\n

About an hour before tipoff during his pregame workout, Korver stands at halfcourt and \u201cshoots\u201d a heavy ball into the air.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt activates my fingertips when I\u2019m pushing something that\u2019s heavier,\u201d he said. \u201cI shoot it as high as I can. I try to get into my hips. It triggers something. I get the ball high, and it\u2019s as simple as I can make shooting. I want the simplest and most powerful shot my body can shoot.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA basketball is lighter. You can shoot it with bad mechanics. But with a heavy ball, my elbow has to get tucked in. That\u2019s not for everybody. A lot of people won\u2019t like it. But that\u2019s what I\u2019ve found works really well for me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s what Korver is focused on now. \u201cYou ask me in a year or two and I may have a different opinion,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Korver has a belief system that works for him.<\/span><\/p>\n

Another great three-point shooter, Cavs teammate J.R. Smith, is the antithesis.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHis mentality is impressive,\u201d Smith said. \u201cHe has a tremendous checklist that he goes through when he shoots. Fortunately, I don\u2019t think as much. I just try to get it up whenever I can. He shoots the same way every time no matter what, and for me, that\u2019s hard. I take wild shots and stuff.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Korver entered the NBA at the early stages of the three-point revolution \u2013 a time when Coach Mike D\u2019Antoni\u2019s Phoenix Suns fired threes. The Suns led the league in three-point attempts in 2004-05 with 2,206. This season, that would\u2019ve ranked 26th.<\/span><\/p>\n

Korver led the league with Quentin Richardson in three-pointers made (226) in 2004-05. At the time, it ranked as the seventh-best single-season effort. It\u2019s now 31st.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:-https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/sports\/nba\/2018\/04\/25\/kyle-korver-three-pointers-shooting-philosophy-cleveland-cavaliers\/547422002\/<\/span><\/p>\n

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