How To Do A Layup 12 Steps With Pictures

Layups are often taken off of a running dribble. Practice approaching the basket slowly at first, and increase your speed once you’ve got the footwork down. You can do a right-handed layup if you’re starting near the center or right side of the basket. If you’re approaching the basket from the left, you’ll want to do a left-handed layup.

When you’re doing a layup, the shooting technique is slightly different from that of a regular shot. Instead of using your left hand to steady the ball, you want to shoot the ball using only your right hand. This gives you more reach, and since you’re so close to the basket that it’s difficult to miss the shot, you don’t really need your left hand to steady the ball. As you shoot, slightly rotate your wrist inward to give the ball a little bit of spin, rather than snapping your wrist forward as you would for a regular shot. The gentle spin will keep it from hammering off the rim or backboard with too much force.

You’ll get two points no matter how you make your shot, but it’s better to aim for the backboard instead of trying to just tip the ball over the rim. The backboard allows more room for error, but if you hit the rim funny the ball will bounce right out. There’s nothing worse than missing a wide-open layup when you have full access to the basket, so work on hitting that sweet spot every time.

As you practice, you’ll start to get a good sense for how fast to approach the basket and from what distance to begin your layup footwork and launch into a jump. Work on doing layups while you’re being defended or off of a long pass.

If you’re right-handed, the left-handed layup may also be referred to as a reverse layup, since it’s the reverse of your standard layup. If you’re left-handed, the right-handed layup is the reverse. It’s difficult to do a layup with your opposite hand, but it’s completely worth the time and effort it takes to learn how to do it. If you’re approaching the basket from the left side, crossing over to the right side can be hard, and will slow you down. You’ll have a much better chance of scoring if you know how to sink one from the left.

When you’re doing a layup, the shooting technique is slightly different from that of a regular shot. Instead of using your right hand to steady the ball, you want to shoot the ball using only your left hand. This gives you more reach, and since you’re so close to the basket that it’s difficult to miss the shot, you don’t really need your right hand to steady the ball. As you shoot, slightly rotate your wrist inward to give the ball a little bit of spin, rather than snapping your wrist forward as you would for a regular shot. The gentle spin will keep it from hammering off the rim or backboard with too much force.

It’s better to aim for the backboard instead of trying to just tip the ball over the rim. The backboard allows more room for error, but if you hit the inside or outside rim, the ball could bounce right out.