The Taylee Chirrick flat footed set shot

[aucat]

Taylee, thank you for bringing back the wonderful memories of the flat footed set shot made famous by the legendary Hall of Fame great Bob Cousy of the Boston Celtics!!!

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/McVWxihBkNA

[WalkOn79]

Why didn't anyone teach her how to shoot? Not that I'm complaining, but wow!!

[WyomingGrizFan]

Taylee, thank you for bringing back the wonderful memories of the flat footed set shot made famous by the legendary Hall of Fame great Bob Cousy of the Boston Celtics!!!

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/McVWxihBkNA

Talk about being before my time.

[Will23C1982]

I’m a big fan of 1950s basketball and Taylee’s set shot definitely feels old school, like Dolph Schayes or something.

As long as she doesn’t start smoking and drinking beers after each game, like some players from the ‘50s used to, then it’s ok with me! The set shot is a lost art form.

[rfischer94]

I’m a big fan of 1950s basketball and Taylee’s set shot definitely feels old school, like Dolph Schayes or something.

As long as she doesn’t start smoking and drinking beers after each game, like some players from the ‘50s used to, then it’s ok with me! The set shot is a lost art form.

The analyst for the Colorado game said that the set shot is hard to defend. I'm not sure why. Can you say more? Is this why you refer to it as a lost art?

[MSU01]

I’m a big fan of 1950s basketball and Taylee’s set shot definitely feels old school, like Dolph Schayes or something.

As long as she doesn’t start smoking and drinking beers after each game, like some players from the ‘50s used to, then it’s ok with me! The set shot is a lost art form.

The analyst for the Colorado game said that the set shot is hard to defend. I'm not sure why. Can you say more? Is this why you refer to it as a lost art?

I think it's hard to defend because it's pretty much instantaneous and the defender doesn't really have a chance to react to it and contest the shot. Especially because of Taylee's drive ability that forces the defender to back off a little when she's out there behind the arc.

[BelgradeBobcat]

Taylee is one of the most unorthodox basketball players I've ever watched. She's just amazing, but what she does can't even be taught. That winning layup yesterday-she just blew by two defenders who weren't ready for it. It looked like a simple play, but most players would not have gotten to the rim like that. We are witnessing greatness!

[Cataholic]

Taylee is one of the most unorthodox basketball players I've ever watched. She's just amazing, but what she does can't even be taught. That winning layup yesterday-she just blew by two defenders who weren't ready for it. It looked like a simple play, but most players would not have gotten to the rim like that. We are witnessing greatness!

And if you watch the shot closely, you will see that she shot the layup off the wrong foot. Completely amazing athleticism!

[MSU01]

Taylee is one of the most unorthodox basketball players I've ever watched. She's just amazing, but what she does can't even be taught. That winning layup yesterday-she just blew by two defenders who weren't ready for it. It looked like a simple play, but most players would not have gotten to the rim like that. We are witnessing greatness!

And my absolute favorite thing about that play is that after she makes the shot there's zero jumping around, zero celebration. She immediately gets right into defensive position to try and disrupt Colorado's inbound pass and does a good job of it too as it gets tipped out of bounds running almost all the remaining time off the clock.

[Joe Bobcat]

Taylee is one of the most unorthodox basketball players I've ever watched. She's just amazing, but what she does can't even be taught. That winning layup yesterday-she just blew by two defenders who weren't ready for it. It looked like a simple play, but most players would not have gotten to the rim like that. We are witnessing greatness!

And my absolute favorite thing about that play is that after she makes the shot there's zero jumping around, zero celebration. She immediately gets right into defensive position to try and disrupt Colorado's inbound pass and does a good job of it too as it gets tipped out of bounds running almost all the remaining time off the clock.

Yes Taylee did go right into defense mode, but she was not alone. Brianne Baily was also locked in on defense and she was the one who tipped the inbounds pass out of bounds.

[Will23C1982]

I’m a big fan of 1950s basketball and Taylee’s set shot definitely feels old school, like Dolph Schayes or something.

As long as she doesn’t start smoking and drinking beers after each game, like some players from the ‘50s used to, then it’s ok with me! The set shot is a lost art form.

The analyst for the Colorado game said that the set shot is hard to defend. I'm not sure why. Can you say more? Is this why you refer to it as a lost art?

Good question. I also heard the commentator making that observation. Generally, you’d assume it’s easy to defend against, since Taylee has both feet planted, so it could be blocked. But I think the shot takes defenders by surprise, since it’s so unexpected. Secondly, Taylee has a very quick release. It’s almost like a push shot, with little wind up motion.

In terms of it being a lost art form, it was the tried and tested shooting technique for about half a century. Players like Bobby McDermott in the NBL mastered the set shot before the NBA even existed. Later, players like Joe Fulks (the BAA/NBA’s first ever PPG leader) adopted the jump shot, and the set shot gradually died out.

[BobcatDel]

Taylee, thank you for bringing back the wonderful memories of the flat footed set shot made famous by the legendary Hall of Fame great Bob Cousy of the Boston Celtics!!!

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/McVWxihBkNA

Talk about being before my time.

Bill Russell a key teammate. I thought I saw John Havlicek flash across one play in the video. Tom Heinsohn was on those teams. Perennial power house teams.

[Bobcat4Ever]

Taylee is one of the most unorthodox basketball players I've ever watched. She's just amazing, but what she does can't even be taught. That winning layup yesterday-she just blew by two defenders who weren't ready for it. It looked like a simple play, but most players would not have gotten to the rim like that. We are witnessing greatness!

And if you watch the shot closely, you will see that she shot the layup off the wrong foot. Completely amazing athleticism!

I’ve been shaking my head over that one. It seems like doing things the “orthodox” way would have been easier at some time. While she is right-handed, she uses her left hand a lot more than most players do. I wonder if she is nearly ambidextrous, such that her dominant hand, foot and eye aren’t so clearly defined.

I would tangle up and crash if I tried a lay-in off the wrong foot for the right or left hand. My left hand will catch a baseball happily, but my right hand prefers to throw them. In that case it’s a matter of practice and trained muscle memory for the glove hand.

I was thinking about the ambidextrous part. My uncle was a three-sport college athlete at Eastern Montana — basketball, track, baseball. And his handedness was confusing to me, but I suspect it played a part in his natural smooth athleticism. For baseball, he threw left-handed and hit either way, although left was his default. In basketball he shot with his right hand, although his left was pretty good. He uses his right eye for his sighting/aiming eye. He writes right-handed but that may be a result of schooling. I’ll try to remember to ask about his hurdling at which he excelled.

Taylee seems to be an uncommonly gifted athlete. She’s fast, quick as lightning, relentless motor. Basketball is (for us) entertainment — and she’s mighty entertaining. I’m glad she’s ours.

[Bobcat4Ever]

I’m a big fan of 1950s basketball and Taylee’s set shot definitely feels old school, like Dolph Schayes or something.

As long as she doesn’t start smoking and drinking beers after each game, like some players from the ‘50s used to, then it’s ok with me! The set shot is a lost art form.

The analyst for the Colorado game said that the set shot is hard to defend. I'm not sure why. Can you say more? Is this why you refer to it as a lost art?

I think it's hard to defend because it's pretty much instantaneous and the defender doesn't really have a chance to react to it and contest the shot. Especially because of Taylee's drive ability that forces the defender to back off a little when she's out there behind the arc.

Good point. On one of her threes she faked a drive and recoiled and was shooting the set shot while the defender was still flailing around. If nothing else, it’s something they are not used to dealing with.

I sat in on a WBB practice in September. The set shot is smooth and is really quick. She’s got a good, solid base. Her own teammates have difficulty and they know it’s coming.

[Will23C1982]

Taylee is one of the most unorthodox basketball players I've ever watched. She's just amazing, but what she does can't even be taught. That winning layup yesterday-she just blew by two defenders who weren't ready for it. It looked like a simple play, but most players would not have gotten to the rim like that. We are witnessing greatness!

And if you watch the shot closely, you will see that she shot the layup off the wrong foot. Completely amazing athleticism!

I’ve been shaking my head over that one. It seems like doing things the “orthodox” way would have been easier at some time. While she is right-handed, she uses her left hand a lot more than most players do. I wonder if she is nearly ambidextrous, such that her dominant hand, foot and eye aren’t so clearly defined.

I would tangle up and crash if I tried a lay-in off the wrong foot for the right or left hand. My left hand will catch a baseball happily, but my right hand prefers to throw them. In that case it’s a matter of practice and trained muscle memory for the glove hand.

I was thinking about the ambidextrous part. My uncle was a three-sport college athlete at Eastern Montana — basketball, track, baseball. And his handedness was confusing to me, but I suspect it played a part in his natural smooth athleticism. For baseball, he threw left-handed and hit either way, although left was his default. In basketball he shot with his right hand, although his left was pretty good. He uses his right eye for his sighting/aiming eye. He writes right-handed but that may be a result of schooling. I’ll try to remember to ask about his hurdling at which he excelled.

Taylee seems to be an uncommonly gifted athlete. She’s fast, quick as lightning, relentless motor. Basketball is (for us) entertainment — and she’s mighty entertaining. I’m glad she’s ours.

I remember she won some track events in HS and is clearly an outstanding athlete and runner. I wonder how her personal bests compare to other elite players? You summed it up beautifully: she has a relentless motor. And yes, such fun to watch. She plays with such heart and doesn’t seem intimidated driving to the basket against bigger, taller players. She’s got those leadership skills and intangibles.

[Will23C1982]

I’ve done some research:

400m:
Taylee holds the Class C record of 56.26 seconds. This would be competitive at a D1 college level.

800m:
Taylee’s PB is 2:12.97 which is about 4 to 8 seconds shy of a competitive D1 college standard.

100m:
PB of 12.81. About 0.5 to 1 second shy of a competitive D1 time.

So, very good but perhaps not as elite as I expected. Not that it matters, as this is basketball not track.

[arvcat2]

I’ve done some research:
400m:
Taylee holds the Class C record of 56.26 seconds. This would be competitive at a D1 college level.

800m:
Taylee’s PB is 2:12.97 which is about 4 to 8 seconds shy of a competitive D1 college standard.

100m:
PB of 12.81. About 0.5 to 1 second shy of a competitive D1 time.

So, very good but perhaps not as elite as I expected. Not that it matters, as this is basketball not track.

Chirrick was very elite at track & field. Her 800m is a state C record and she holds the 300h state C record at 43:06. Also, she is part of the All Class 400m relay state record when she was a sophomore at Billings West. If she would have stayed at Billings West, I'd be pretty confident that her personal bests would be higher due to increased competition. She would have won the class C cross country title if not for pulling up lame in the middle of the race. The girl can flat out run & could have gone anywhere in the country for track.

[thefrank1]

Back to the original theme, Tyrese Halliburton of the Indiana Pacers has been pretty successful in the NBA shooting a flat footed set shot. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.