Skill Level – Shooting
Both Smart and Payton are not natural shooters. Smart shoots over his head, similarly to Kevin Durant in reference to his shot pocket. Payton has a more classic shot pocket with the ball to the right of his forehead. Smart worked on his shooting for his sophomore season and became a streaky shooter. He is now capable of being an explosive scorer once he gets good touch from the field.
Payton has a soft shot from the field. That isn’t a good thing. He shoots the ball to a certain point, waiting for the ball to drop from its trajectory to go through the hoop. Great shooters add more arc and a more consistent follow-through from the shot pocket with a similar flick of the wrist from the perimeter. This allows for a more consistent shot and creates better results.
Here, both Payton and Smart are taking shots at the end of the workout. Payton begins shooting at the 5:00 mark.
Payton’s shot compared to P.J. Hairston makes for a great comparison. It becomes painfully obvious who has the more developed NBA jumpshot.