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(Photo by ERIC PLUMMER) Sandpoint sophomore Mya Darling lofts a tear-drop in the lane against 3A champ Timberlake earlier in the season. The tear-drop, also called a floater, is basically a layup when the player lofts a shot early with a lot of arc to get over defenders. The shot is a staple on New York City playgrounds, where guards either learn the highly-skilled shot or get their ball swatted. Gary Payton and John Stockton, among others, were masters of the shot, which takes a ton of touch to make as it’s usually lofted high over a shot blocker.

(Photo by ERIC PLUMMER) Clark Fork sophomore Dakota West shoots a jump hook earlier in the season. The shot is highly effective on the blocks, where the body creates space for the high release point. Anyone who has watched the Zags bigs, from Casey Calvary to Robert Sacre to Przemek Karnowski, knows how much they love the power drop step and baby hook. With a high release point, it’s tough to block, and with a lot of spin is a high percentage shot. Anyone remember Kevin McHale, who would hit the shot time after time, before finally faking and hitting his patented up-and-under?

(Photo by ERIC PLUMMER) Clark Fork senior Nona Young launches a jump shot earlier this season. Whether a set shot, a fade-away or a step-back, the standard jump shot is the most common shot in basketball. There are some common traits among the great shooters, like landing where you left the ground (not drifting), a fluid release and great rotation on the basketball. The top shooters today are usually 3-point threats, as the long range shot becomes more and more a part of today’s offense. The Splash brothers, Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, are widely regarded as the best shooting tandem i…