Analysis of the mechanical characteristics of progressive one-handed underhand shooting in basketball play through kinematics

Background: Progressive one-handed underhand shooting is not only a key movement in basketball but also a primary method of scoring. Objective: This paper aims to compare the mechanical characteristics of players at different levels while performing the progressive one-handed underhand shooting movement to guide training. Methods: Ten athletes were divided into an excellent group and an ordinary group. The shooting was conducted using two SONY cameras, and the kinematics data were acquired through re-analysis in the Simi 3D Motion system for comparative analysis. Results: The average number of successful shots per person in the excellent group was 8.12 ± 0.81, which was significantly different from the ordinary group. During ball holding, the first step length of the excellent group was 1.91 ± 0.03 m, showing a significant difference compared to the ordinary group. At the beginning of ball holding, the right elbow joint angle for the excellent group was 121.26° ± 0.58° and the right hip joint angle was 135.64° ± 0.78°, both significantly different from those in the ordinary group. At the end of holding the ball, the excellent group had a right shoulder joint angle of 51.26° ± 2.36° and a right elbow joint angle of 70.34° ± 1.68°, which was significantly different from the ordinary group. At the end of jump, the excellent group had a right shoulder joint angle of 80.16° ± 2.21° and a right elbow joint angle of 87.45° ± 1.68°, which was significantly different from the ordinary group. During the shooting phase, the excellent group had a shooting angle of 60.12° ± 2.36°, a shooting height of 2.92 ± 0.03 m, and a shooting speed of 4.12 ± 0.46 m/s, all showing significant differences compared to the ordinary group. Conclusion: The excellent group with more sufficient stride, push, and extension and better shooting parameters performed better in performing the movement of progressive one-handed underhand shooting.