OKC Thunder: How Muscala got his groove back

Mike Muscala had a less than stellar start to his tenure with the OKC Thunder. Then he got his groove back.

Mike Muscala has enjoyed a less than stellar start to his time with the OKC Thunder. In his first seven games, Muscala went 1-of-19 from deep, good for five percent. To say this is not what the Thunder were looking for when they signed the stretch-five would be an understatement.

Muscala took six shots from inside the paint during this time, making three of them. This gave him 4-of-25 overall which was only good for 16 percent.

Every time Muscala shot and missed, Michael Cage would say how good a stroke he had. He also said that Muscala needed to have a short memory and just keep shooting. However, taking a look at some of his play, Muscala was rushing his shot.

The following clips offer examples.

In the first, he receives the pass too low.

In the second clip, he doesn’t prepare in his usual way – instead, he moves almost in a cavalier way and doesn’t plant his feet the same way as he does when he hit shots.

Compare the two shots in the above and below clip, the form looks quite similar but in the second he takes that little extra beat to set his feet.

This also points to his habit of pulling the ball down before he puts it goes into his shooting motion which could prove problematic since it makes it easier for opponents to block the shot prior to him releasing it.

In the next clip, he rushes the shot again – not taking that extra beat he normally does before releasing the shot.

This isn’t a shot many players would hit. Muscala has to dribble off his original spot to clear space. He gets up the 3-point off balance not being able to take all his typical preparation techniques of pulling the ball down and the little hesitation beat prior to the release. The resulting effect is an airball.

In this clip, Muscala gets the time to prepare and use all his typical pre shot techniques such as pulling the ball down, planting his feet to a comfort level and parallel to the basket, the little hesitation before going into his shooting motion and the gooseneck follow through. The result —- nothing but net.

Next on the opposite side of the court – wash, rinse repeat.

The types of passes prior to this shot affected his efficiency. When he received it to the right and low, his shot went right. When he received a pass in a good position the ball was halfway down before coming out.

Ultimately, when Muscala gets the ball in a good spot and has the time to use all his techniques to prepare he is able to connect on the 3-pointer.

The Golden State Warriors gave him plenty of space to shoot. He only missed two shots on the night and one of them was a heave at the end of a shot clock.

Muscala was able to carry that confidence over into the next game versus the Bucks where he drained four 3-point shots in the first half. He would then go on to miss his next five but 44.4 percent from deep from a reserve is good going.

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Muscala got his groove back by being supported by the OKC Thunder coaching staff, he was told to stay aggressive and to keep shooting. He just felt that he needed to get a rhythm and the shots would fall.

This was also helped by his teammates supporting him. Dennis Schroder, in particular, was right there for Muscala, who describes Schroder as his best friend in the NBA.

The pair were drafted in 2013 to the Atlanta Hawks where they played together for five years. It is fitting that the assist on the bucket that broke the 3-point drought was given by none other than Schroder.

Let’s hope that the confidence, which is how Muscala got his groove back, stays for the rest of the season. It will be a fun one to watch.