#MicroSkills Michael Jordan | Episode 1: Mid-Range & Separation Moves

Drew Hanlen breaks down all of the #MicroSkills that made Michael Jordan so unstoppable in the mid-range.



Join the Pure Sweat Fam & follow us:



Pure Sweat is a basketball training company that offers a variety of products and services to players and coaches at every level.

Drew Hanlen is the CEO of Pure Sweat and an NBA Strategic Skills Coach & Consultant that works with Bradley Beal, Joel Embiid, Jayson Tatum, Zach LaVine, Kelly Oubre Jr, Jordan Clarkson, Meyers Leonard, RJ Barrett, Taurean Prince, Tacko Fall, Cheick Diallo, Solomon Hill, James Ennis, Mo Bamba, Langston Galloway, Shaquille Harrison, Michael Porter Jr, and Semi Ojeleye & countless other NBA stars as clients.

COMMENT below if you have any questions for us! We'll get back to you ASAP!

[unboundfull]

Arguably what makes MJ the GOAT is his mastery of the basics of the game.

[blogginsriverbymnlisabop]

This is partly why I laugh at the idiots who say that he's knocking down shots just because he's wide open. If you are able to get wide open, then you are fkn good.

[Chessbox]

With a normal superstar you wonder how they made such a difficult shot. With MJ you wonder how he made it look so easy

[sylence]

Everything jordan did was so fundamentally perfect and did it so gracefully

[Slamwoo]

Honestly, as much as his game was polished and allowed him to get separation, a good portion of his already difficult shots were also very well guarded. I mean go ahead and try, see, the fucking strength you need to properly release a contested turnourund 20 footer, just to keep the shot mechanics consistent, it's hard as hell. Imagine his percentages if the spacing was similar to the one in today's game, or if he just made shot selection a priority. The difficulty he actually chose to play at sets him apart, it fucked with the opponents psyche, and it drove him to be even better.

[jaquevius]

What's funny is that he did all of this instinctively based on how he had his defender leaning etc. I can assure you he wasn't thinking of mechanics and which move he was going to use. What was truly mind blowing is that he did the same thing IN THE AIR and would adjust his body based on how the defense was reacting/rotating etc. Obviously the athleticism required is out of this world, but the body control is what sets him apart from any player I have EVER seen. Have you seen that layup against the Nets in his earlier years where he slithers through 4 defenders WHILE IN THE AIR? OMG

[andgar]

THE best analysis of his game bar none. Anybody can make highlight clips, but it takes knowledge to understand what made him different, what made him great, what made him GOAT. People see the highlights and non highlight clips and don't grasp how he made everything look so easy. No disrespect to other greats, but the made the game look harder because they weren't as good.

I hope you get into an overlooked aspect of his success and that's his read+reaction time. Perhaps only Bird could compare to MJ's read+reaction times. MJ's court vision is 2nd to none which allowed him to scan the floor read the defence and react accordingly.

His read+reaction time wouldn't be as effective if he didn't have the foundation which you just illustrated, plus quickness.

Can't wait to watch the rest of the vids in this series.

Props!

[shadowwarrior]

I wish you existed back when I was way younger and desperately needed basketball guidance.

[hyoung]

my brain: easy, got it
my body: what the hell

[sleekrick]

Yes, we can copy his moves but his speed and mental agility are exceptional.

[UNGETABLE]

The more i watch him in slo-mo the more i understand why Grover needed to work so hard on fixing MJ’s groin and ankle issues. I mean look at those lunges, aggressive loading and maneuvering!
Mate your clips are awesome! 👍

[ericksonong]

people forget to mention his big hands allow him to simply grab the ball with no effort. this adds to his already insane footwork and repertoire of moves.

[kevins]

No wonder he was unstoppable.. look at how many goddam moves he

[andgar]

Perhaps the scariest part: He was able to do this while not sleeping, smoking, playing golf all day, drinking (apparently), and not having advanced metrics nor medicine. Let that shit marinate for a while.

[derikirie]

MJ BE SHOOTING OVER THREE PLAYERS THE GOAT 😆

[conditionallyunconditional]

His footwork was crazy! His hanging in mid air and double clutch was unguardable! He practiced hard so game time appeared easy!

[JonesyTerp]

I never thought about the idea that he “showed his elbow” so loudly early in his shot. It helped him sell his shot fake, and the way he put his elbow was on a straight line from the rim to to his chin meant defenders couldn’t come from below and put a hand in his face without going through his elbow and fouling him. He could always locate and maintain his view of the rim.

[bonbonvalmoria]

Mj style is modern even he is in the 80 90s era.

[grinchoi]

This is exactly what Iverson had to master as well in order to gain separation and get a shot off being shorter than all his defenders. MJ had such flawless techniques

[buckwildboys]

MJ is such a freak athlete even in todays league he would be considered a freak. People really dont understand how much strength he had in his lower body allowing him to balance like no other on a basketball court!