Basketball Footwork Drills: One-Two Step and Hop for Your Jump Shot

Struggling to shoot consistently? Coach Meech says it might not be your form. It could be your footwork. How your feet get you into the jumper matters as much as how your hands finish it.

Two sets of footwork. The one-two step and the hop. Pretty much everybody knows both at a basic level. Doing them at high efficiency is a different story. A beginner one-two into a shot looks totally different from Steph Curry doing a one-two into his.

This video breaks both of them down, shows the mistakes that wreck them, and gives you a drill for each. Both ways. Full speed. First without the dribble, then with it so the bounce and the step actually sync.

Not sure footwork is the thing holding you back? Find your training strategy with our free training quiz.

The one-two step

All the one-two step is, at its core, two steps into your shot.

Say you're a right-handed shooter going to the right. Most often you step with the inside foot first. Left foot goes. Then the right foot hits the floor second, and you raise into the shot. Coach Meech wants that right foot slightly ahead of the left once you're set. Left steps first, right finishes a little in front, then you go.

Lefty? You still want the left foot ahead. You can step into it the same way, but the right foot stays behind the left when you raise.

The inverted stance mistake.

Beginners get the stagger backwards a lot. Left foot stops first, then the right lands behind it. Now when they shoot they have to turn in the air just to get the right side closer to the rim. That mid-air rotation is what throws everything off.

Get the shooting-side foot slightly ahead on the plant and you don't need the twist.

One-two step drill

Start on the elbow facing toward the middle. Outside hand on the outside of the free throw line, and that same outside foot forward. Get nice and low.

Take two big steps toward the middle with the inside foot going first. Plant, turn and pivot so the outside foot hits second, then raise. Right-handed: left first, right slightly ahead. Left-handed: left ends up ahead of the right.

One small mistake Coach Meech keeps seeing on this drill: the back foot stays stuck on the floor while the front foot lands. Right foot never leaves. Left hits. Now both are stuck down at once. Treat that first step like a push, like you're sprinting into it. Both feet come off for a quick second, then left, then right, then the shot.

No dribble first.

Five makes going both ways without putting the ball down. Just the two big steps into the shot.

Then add the dribble.

Second time through, same drill, but now you're working the dribble-step timing. Outside hand outside, outside foot forward. As you take that first big push step, that's when the dribble happens. The ball goes with you. Don't dribble early, pick it up, then take two steps. It's as you're taking the step that you take the dribble. Turn, pivot, get into the shot.

Five makes both ways with the ball too.

The hop

Second most common footwork into a shot. Hop vs one-two comes down to the landing. Hop: both feet hit together and make one noise. One-two: one step, then the other.

Right-handed going right: inside step with the left. Off that foot, both feet go up, both feet hit together. One sound.

Going left as a righty: inside step with the right, then both feet lift and drop the same way.

Not a gallop.

Most people turn the hop into a quick one-two without meaning to. They jump, then land left-right trying to fake a drop. That still ends up being a one-two. Lift both. Land both. One sound. That's the hop.

It might seem simple when you break it down. Coach Meech's point: it's not about trying to be complex. Take the complex and make it super simple and easily repeatable, so the shot gets better.

Hop shooting drill

Same setup idea as the first drill. No dribble first, then the dribble. Three spots this time: both wings and the top of the key.

On the wing, whatever hand is closest to the baseline (not the top) is the outside hand, and that same leg starts forward. Left hand closest to the baseline? Left leg forward. Step with the inside leg first, drop so both feet make one sound, raise into the shot.

Same push concept as before. Both feet leave the floor briefly. Don't step and keep both planted. And don't hop way forward covering a bunch of distance. Drop straight down as fast as you can. Can't shoot till the feet hit, so get them down fast and stay balanced. The faster those feet arrive, the faster the rest of the shot flows through.

Switch wings, switch feet. Left wing: left foot forward, step with the right. Right wing: right foot forward, step with the left. At the top of the key, work both ways. Right foot forward stepping left first, then left foot forward stepping right first.

First pass: no dribble, five makes each way. Second pass: use the dribble. Time it with the step so the ball goes with you. Pick it up, drop low, one sound, rise.

Footwork first, then form

This video is all about the footwork. If you want extra help dialing in the form on top of it, start with basketball shooting form drills and the common jump shot mistakes. For deeper work behind the arc that still leans on getting your feet set, see our 3 point shooting drills workout. And if deep shots keep coming up short, how to increase shooting range is next.

FAQ

What are the two main shooting footwork patterns?

Coach Meech calls them the one-two step and the hop. One-two lands one foot, then the other. The hop lands both at once and makes one sound.

Which foot lands first on a one-two?

Usually the inside foot. Right-handed going right: left first, then right slightly ahead. Shooting-side foot finishes in front.

Why do beginners rotate in the air?

Stagger comes in inverted. Shooting foot lands behind instead of ahead, so they twist mid-air to face the rim. Fix the plant and the turn usually goes away.

Hop vs one-two: what's the real difference?

Landing. Hop is both feet together, one noise. One-two is first foot, then second. A quick left-right after a jump is still a one-two. Not a hop.

Should I start with a dribble?

No. Both drills start with no dribble, five makes each way. Second time through, add the bounce and time it with that first push step. Early dribble, pick up, then two steps is the pattern you're trying to kill.

How far should the hop travel?

Not far. Drop straight down. Covering a lot of ground forward slows your feet and the shot. Fast to the floor, on balance.

Do these drills work for lefties?

Yes. Keep the left foot ahead once you're set. Wing and elbow setups still work. Just mirror which foot finishes in front.

Find your training strategy

Footwork is one piece of the jumper. Want a plan for what to train next? Take the free training quiz. Find your training strategy.