Shoot
The act of attempting to score points by throwing the ball through the basket, methods varying with the players and situations. The ball is usually shot by jumping (though not always) and extending the shooting arm. The shooting arm is fully extended with the wrist fully bent, is held stationary for a moment following the release of the ball, known as the follow-through.
Types of Shooting
Jump Shot
The jump shot is the most almost basic shot that there is in basketball, aside from the simple shot where you just stand. Its all in the name, you jump and you shoot, hoping the ball slides into the net. The jump shot can score all 3 type of points, the single-point, the basic two-point, and the three-pointer. The two-point, and the three-pointer is scored while the game is in action. The three-pointer can only be counted if the ball goes into the net from being released behind the three-point line. The single-point is only scored during fouls, or free throws.
Lay-up
The lay-up is where you are close to the basket and basically "lay" up the ball so that it will just fall into the basket. You don't even have to use the backboard, but it is definitely an option. More specifically, you run up to the net, and then jump up to just lightly bump the ball so that, the basketball will hopefully go through the net. You can only score two-points on this type of shot in basketball.
Slam Dunk
A slam dunk is an extremely awesome move, but to do this shot you have to be quite tall, or need to be able to jump pretty high. Many players in the NBA can be seen scoring numerous points by dunking. To achieve this, a player with the ball must jump up, have the ball above the rim of the net, and places the ball through the hoop. Hardly ever do professional players bring it down gently; they do it with great force. And to top that, some players even hold onto the rim after doing a tremendous dunk, to score 2 points. It may seem easy, but it is never that easy to do.
Hook Shot
Its all in the name; you shoot moving your hand in a hook motion. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the one that help this shot become more popular. It was used to shoot over the defense men, being quite tall. To do this shot, first, the player has his/her back to the net and only the outer hand is on the ball. Then, the player will turn and swing his/her arm with the ball in a hook motion and will go over the players head, in hopes that he/she will score. The quantity of the score given will depend on where you shoot from; two-points inside the 3-point line, or three-points outside the three-point line.
Alley Hoop
The alley hoop is a well known shot but not part of the four basic shots in basketball. The alley hoop ties in with the lay-up and the slam dunk. Basically, another player throws the ball up into the air, and a teammate jumps into the air to catch the ball for a lay-up or a tremendous dunk. This is sometimes seen in basketball games, but not very often. It always scores a single point as you will only get the chance during the game to do any alley hoop within the three-point line.