Impact of Shooting Distance on Oculomotor Strategy in Basketball Shooting

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of eye movements during basketball shooting from various distances. Fourteen male basketball players, equipped with an eye tracker and an inertial sensor, performed 40 shots on a basketball court, divided into free throws and 3-point shots. The results indicated that there were more correct responses than incorrect ones for shots taken from the free-throw line, whereas the number of correct and incorrect shots was equal for three-point attempts. Participants showed different visual strategies depending on the shooting condition. During the three-point shot, they exhibited more saccades, with greater peak velocity and amplitude compared to the free-throw condition. Additionally, participants took almost 800 milliseconds less to complete the three-point shot than the free-throw, as there were no spatial-temporal constraints. In conclusion, the high amplitude and peak velocity of the eye movements, along with the reduced time spent preparing for the shot, may have led to more errors in three-point shots compared to free throws. These findings suggest the need to identify and develop training exercises that effectively refine a shooter's control over release velocity. One potential approach may involve emphasizing feedback from visual cues that are more directly related to release velocity rather than focusing the shooter's attention on specific body movements.