Abstract:
A system and training method adapted to assist an individual in improving his or her basketball shooting skills and accuracy. The system includes an apparatus and glove that can be used independently or together. The apparatus is adapted for mounting to a basketball rim and includes flexible paddles for mounting to the rim so that the paddles project upwardly from the rim. The glove is adapted to be worn on the shooting hand and includes fingers, wrist and backhand portions. The fingers portion has three separate sleeves interconnected by elastic webs therebetween. The backhand portion interconnects the fingers portion to the wrist portion. The glove is configured so that the three middle fingers of the shooting hand are individually inserted into the sleeves and elastically held together by the webs, while allowing the thumb and outer finger of the shooting hand to spread outward and support the basketball during shooting.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This is a division patent application of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/755,732, filed Apr. 7, 2010, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/167,637 filed Apr. 8, 2009, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/174,042 filed Apr. 30, 2009. The contents of these prior applications are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention generally relates to sports training equipment and techniques. More particularly, this invention relates to an apparatus, a glove and training methods adapted to assist an individual in improving his or her basketball shooting skills and accuracy at all playing levels. 
     Various basketball training equipment and methods have been proposed. A notable example is an apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,881,161 to Heflin, Sr., whose contents are incorporated herein by reference. Heflin, Sr., discloses a basketball training apparatus comprising a base intended to be placed beneath a basketball rim, arms extending in radial directions from the base, shooting markers spaced along the length of each arm, and one or more vision markers adapted to be attached to the basketball rim and radially aligned with the arms. With this arrangement, a user, when standing on one of the shooting markers and facing the basketball rim, is provided with visual shooting assistance as a result of the arm being radially aligned with one of the vision markers located on a region of the basketball rim nearest the user, and therefore readily visible to the user. The apparatus is capable of improving shooting skills and accuracy on all playing levels, e.g., from elementary to professional. 
     Various other types of basketball training equipment and accessories have also been proposed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,932,723 to Klinger et al., U.S. Pat. No. Des. 368,942 to Mahoney, and U.S. Published Patent Application No. 2004/0043841 to Williams disclose basketball shooting aids that comprise a rigid barrier or wall placed above and along a basketball rim for the purpose of deflecting undesirable basketball shots. U.S. Pat. No. 4,206,915 to Woodcock is similar, but discloses the use of multiple targets rather than a single barrier or wall. Proposed accessories have included gloves intended to be worn during training to promote a shooter&#39;s grip, finger positioning, etc. Typically such gloves are equipped with sleeves for each finger and the thumb, and often cover the palm of the shooting hand. 
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a basketball shooting system and training method adapted to assist an individual in improving his or her basketball shooting skills and accuracy. The system includes an apparatus and glove that can be used independently or together. 
     According to a first aspect of the invention, the apparatus is adapted for mounting to a basketball rim and includes a plurality of flexible paddles, means for mounting the flexible paddles to the rim so that the flexible paddles project upwardly from the rim, and means coupled to the flexible paddles for adjustably modifying the rigidity of the flexible paddles. 
     According to a second aspect of the invention, the glove is adapted to be worn on a shooting hand of a user when shooting a basketball at the rim. The glove includes a fingers portion, a wrist portion, and a backhand portion. The fingers portion comprises three separate sleeves interconnected by a first elastic web between and attached to an adjacent first and second of the sleeves and by a second elastic web between and attached to the second sleeve and an adjacent third of the sleeves. The wrist portion comprises means for securing the glove to a wrist of the user, and the backhand portion interconnects the fingers portion to the wrist portion. The glove is configured so that, when worn on the user&#39;s shooting hand, most if not all of the palm of the shooting hand remains exposed and is not covered by the glove, the three middle fingers of the shooting hand are individually inserted into the sleeves and held together by the first and second elastic webs, and at least the tips of the three middle fingers protrude from the sleeves. The elasticity of the elastic material of the fingers portion enables the three middle fingers to be spread apart against an elastic tension created by the first and second elastic webs, which maintains the three middle fingers closer to each other than to the thumb and outer finger of the shooting hand during shooting. 
     Other aspects of the invention include training methods using the apparatus and/or glove described above. If the apparatus and glove are used together, the apparatus is installed on the rim, the glove is donned on the shooting hand of the user, and the user uses the shooting hand to shoot a basketball toward the rim and over one of the flexible paddles secured to the rim. 
     A significant advantage of the apparatus of this invention is that the flexible paddles provide flexibility yet provide some resistance when hit by a basketball to allow the basketball to enter the rim if shot with a sufficiently high arc and sufficient accuracy, but prevent the ball from entering the rim if the shot does not have sufficient arc and is not sufficiently accurate. The ability to adjust the flexibility of the paddles enables the apparatus to be adjusted for the skill level of the user. The flexible paddles can be color-coded to help the user visually align his or her shot relative to the rim by differentiating as to which paddle he or she must shoot over. 
     A significant advantage of the glove of this invention is that the elasticity of the webs limits the flexing and spreading of the three middle fingers of the shooting hand (the dominant hand used by the shooter) to allow a basketball to be properly supported by the three middle fingers and align the three middle fingers with the forearm of the shooting hand while the user is shooting the basketball and thereafter throughout the follow-through following release of the basketball, while allowing the thumb and outer (“pinky”) finger of the shooting hand to freely flex and spread out away from the three middle fingers to stabilize the basketball on the shooting hand prior to releasing the basketball during the shooting movement. 
     Other aspects and advantages of this invention will be better appreciated from the following detailed description. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIGS. 1 and 2  are top and side views, respectively, of a conventional basketball rim on which multiple flexible paddles of a basketball shooting apparatus are mounted in accordance with an embodiment of this invention. 
         FIG. 3  represents a detailed cross-sectional view of one of the flexible paddles and the rim of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIGS. 4 and 5  are views of a basketball shooting glove in accordance with another embodiment of this invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       FIGS. 1 through 5  depict a basketball shooting apparatus  10  and a basketball shooting glove  50  that can be used individually or together to improve the shooting accuracy of a basketball player. The apparatus  10  is represented in  FIGS. 1 and 2  as comprising five paddles  12  that are attached to the inner perimeter of a basketball rim  14 . The paddles  12  compel a shooter to shoot a basketball with sufficient arc so that the basketball travels over the paddle  12  with which the shot is aligned in order for the basketball to enter the interior of the rim  14 . 
     According to a preferred aspect of the invention, the paddles  12  located at the far left (leftmost) and far right (rightmost) of the rim  14  (as viewed in  FIGS. 1 and 2 ) are represented as being located diametrically opposite each other on the rim  14 , though other locations for these particular paddles  12  are foreseeable. The center paddle  12  (as viewed in  FIGS. 1 and 2 ) is equi-angularly located between the leftmost and rightmost paddles  12 , and the two remaining paddles  12  are represented as being equi-angularly located between either the leftmost and center paddles  12  or the rightmost and center paddles  12 . Again, these are believed to be preferred locations for the paddles  12 , and it is foreseeable that alternative locations could be chosen. Furthermore, the paddles  12  could be used in fewer or greater numbers. 
     The paddles  12  are shown as being individually attached to the rim  14  with U-bolts  16 , whose threaded ends pass through a plate  18  abutting against the surfaces of the paddles  12  facing the interior of the rim  14 . Various other techniques for securing the paddles  12 , individually or collectively, to the rim  14  are foreseeable and within the scope of the invention. The paddles  12  are formed of a firm but pliable/flexible material, such as a thick rubber material having a thickness of, for example, about five to fifteen millimeters, to confer a degree of flexibility so that the paddles  12  will allow a basketball to enter the rim  14  if shot with sufficient accuracy and a sufficiently high arc, but prevent the ball from entering the rim  14  if the shot does not have sufficient arc and is not sufficiently accurate. To promote shots taken with a high arc, the paddles  12  are preferably of sufficient length so that the paddles  12  extend vertically about five to about six inches (for example, about ten to fifteen centimeters) above the rim  14 . Furthermore, the paddles  12  are preferably about two to about three inches (for example, about five to ten centimeters) wide as measured in the circumferential direction of the rim  14 . 
     In addition to assisting in the securement of the paddles  12  to the rim  14 , the plates  18  are located at the inward-facing surfaces of the paddles  12  to provide additional rigidity and back-support to the paddles  12  when impacted by a basketball traveling toward the rim  14 . The plates  18  preferably do not extend the entire vertical height of the paddles  12 , but instead extend only a fraction (for example, about one-fourth to about one-half) of the vertical height of each paddle  12 . Furthermore, the plates  18  are preferably vertically adjustable relative to their respective paddles  12  to enable the flexibility/rigidity of the paddles  12  to be varied to accommodate various skill levels of shooters. For this purpose, openings in the plates  18  through which the threaded ends of the U-bolts  16  pass can be vertically elongated. Vertical adjustment of the paddles  12  is preferably at least five millimeters and can be adjusted to extend to roughly the mid-length point of the paddles  12 , especially if the paddles  12  are formed of a rubber material. According to another preferred aspect of the invention, the paddles  12  can be color-coded (for example, each paddle  12  having a different color from the others) to help the shooter differentiate as to which paddle  12  he or she must shoot over, thereby assisting the shooter to align the shot with the center of the rim  14 . 
     The basketball shooting glove  50  of this invention is intended to be worn on the user&#39;s shooting hand, i.e., the dominant hand used to propel the ball. Accordingly, the glove  50  will be fabricated to be worn on either the left or right hand, depending on the shooter. A right-handed glove  50  is represented in the Figures. The glove  50  is shown as having three main portions: a fingers portion  52 , a wrist portion  54 , and a backhand portion  56 . The fingers portion  52  has three separate sleeves  58  that are interconnected by two elastic webs  60 , each between an adjacent pair of the sleeves  58 . When the glove  50  is worn, the user&#39;s three middle fingers are inserted into the sleeves  58  and the elasticity of the webs  60  serves to keep the middle fingers close together during the shooting motion leading up to release of the basketball as well as after the basketball has been released by the shooting hand. The fingers portion  52  can be constructed by forming a ring or band of an elastic material, and the sleeves  58  and webs  60  can be defined in the ring/band by stitches  66 . Any number and type of stitches  66  and stitch patterns can be used, and the stitching material can be elastic or inelastic. The stitches  66  preferably run in a direction roughly parallel to the axis of the ring/band, so that the stitches  66  delineate the sleeves  58  and form the webs  60  to be roughly parallel to each other. With this construction, the sleeves  58  and webs  60  are both elastic. As shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5 , at least the tip and preferably the entire last joint of each of the three middle fingers protrudes from the sleeves  58 . 
     The glove  50  is further represented as including two ringlets  62  and  64  for the thumb and outer finger, respectively. The ringlets  62  and  64  are preferably attached to the lateral edges of the backhand portion  56  and can be, but are not required to be, formed of an elastic material. The ringlets  62  and  64  allow the thumb and outer finger of the shooting hand to freely flex and spread out away from the three middle fingers and stabilize the basketball on the shooting hand prior to releasing the basketball during the shooting movement, whereas during the same motion the elasticity of the fingers portion  52  and particularly its webs  60  generate an elastic tension that maintains the three middle fingers of the shooting hand closer to each other than to the thumb and outer finger of the shooting hand. 
     The wrist portion  54  is preferably formed of a substantially inelastic material, such as cloth, leather, etc., though it is foreseeable that an elastic material could be used in the construction of the wrist portion  54 . The wrist portion  54  is sized to completely circumscribe the wrist of the user&#39;s shooting hand, and can be fastened with VELCRO® or any other suitable type of fastening system capable of securing the glove  50  to the wrist. 
     The backhand portion  56  is also preferably formed of a substantially inelastic material, such as cloth, leather, etc., though it is also foreseeable that an elastic material could be used in its construction. The purpose of the backhand portion  56  is to connect the fingers portion  52  to the wrist portion  54 , thereby securing the fingers portion  52  to the hand and preventing migration of the sleeves  58  on the middle fingers during shooting. Notably, the backhand portion  56  is shown as limited to the back of the user&#39;s shooting hand. According to a preferred aspect of the invention, the palm of the shooting hand remains completely exposed and is not covered by any portion of the glove  50  so as not to interfere with the shooting hand during the shooting motion. As such, the glove  50  can be worn during training as well as during a game without interfering with handling, including dribbling, of the basketball. However, it is foreseeable that limited portions of the palm could be covered by the glove  50 , though preferably to avoid contact between the glove  50  and the ball during shooting other than where contact is made between the ball and the sleeves  58  and webs  60 . 
     As noted above, the apparatus  10  and glove  50  can be used together or separately. In the use of the apparatus  10 , the paddles  12  are secured to the rim  14  as shown in  FIGS. 1 through 3 , and the user then shoots a basketball at the rim  14  and over the nearest paddle  12 . The apparatus  10  encourages the shooter to align the shot with the nearest paddle  12  and forces the shooter to shoot the basketball with sufficient arc to travel over the nearest paddle  12  prior to entering the rim  14 . To use the glove  50 , a user is merely required to don the glove  50  on his or her shooting hand, and then shoot the basketball at the rim  14  (with or without the apparatus  10 ). During and after the shot, the fingers portion  52  of the glove  50  limits the movement and spreading of just the three middle fingers, which play a critical role in aligning the shot. In particular, the fingers portion  52  promotes proper support of a basketball with the three middle fingers throughout the shooting motion, promotes proper alignment of the three middle fingers with the forearm of the shooting hand while the user is shooting the basketball, and helps to maintain this alignment throughout the follow-through after the basketball has been released. All the while, the glove  50  allows and, because of the positioning of the three middle fingers, encourages the shooter to flex and spread the thumb and outer finger of the shooting hand away from the three middle fingers for the purpose of stabilizing the basketball on the shooting hand prior to releasing the basketball during the shooting movement. 
     While the invention has been described in terms of specific embodiments, it is apparent that other forms could be adopted by one skilled in the art. For example, the physical configuration of the apparatus  10  and glove  50  could differ from that shown, and materials and construction methods other than those noted could be used. Therefore, the scope of the invention is to be limited only by the following claims.