How big of a role does vision play in Basketball?

[antonioray]

I have a visual condition called amblyopia where one of my eyes doesnt see so good

the doctors have said glasses and contacts wont help it and there is currently no surgery out there

so I see everything around me with one good eye, effectively
hypothetically it could cause some depth perception issues but

I still do just fine on my own when it comes to basketball, I dont, or i should say, I rarely overshoot or undershoot the rim, altho I was never too good at 3 pointers

still, I wonder if the times I miss or the times i throw a pass away can be avoided if I didnt have bad vision in one eye

Can I still be great, if it is never cured and

are there any other people here who have vision problems?

[1manfastbreak]

I have a visual condition called amblyopia where one of my eyes doesnt see so good

the doctors have said glasses and contacts wont help it and there is currently no surgery out there

so I see everything around me with one good eye, effectively
hypothetically it could cause some depth perception issues but

I still do just fine on my own when it comes to basketball, I dont, or i should say, I rarely overshoot or undershoot the rim, altho I was never too good at 3 pointers

still, I wonder if the times I miss or the times i throw a pass away can be avoided if I didnt have bad vision in one eye

Can I still be great, if it is never cured and

are there any other people here who have vision problems?

i can't read a computer screen from like 2 and a half feet a way. i tried contacts but just couldn't get used to them. So ill wear glasses if im on the computer, watchin tv, **** like that. But other than that ill never wear them.

[antonioray]

i can't read a computer screen from like 2 and a half feet a way. i tried contacts but just couldn't get used to them. So ill wear glasses if im on the computer, watchin tv, **** like that. But other than that ill never wear them.

so...
how does this affect ur performance in basketball?

[Automajic23]

so...
how does this affect ur performance in basketball?

A lot. How can you shoot if you cant get a clear view of the rim? How can you make crisp passes to cutting team mates? How can you see picks/screens, backdoors coming without good peripheral vision?

[antonioray]

A lot. How can you shoot if you cant get a clear view of the rim? How can you make crisp passes to cutting team mates? How can you see picks/screens, backdoors coming without good peripheral vision?

Well im not sure if ur refering to me or 1manfastbreak, but if it was me

I still get a clear image of the rim and teammates and stuff, its just that I only get it with one eye

so the question wasnt whether or not if you cant see the rim clearly, its more of, does it make a difference if you can only see it with one eye

As for peripheral vision, its not detail orientated anyway, my bad eye can still sense motion to the side just as well as my good eye

[MannyO]

Well im not sure if ur refering to me or 1manfastbreak, but if it was me

I still get a clear image of the rim and teammates and stuff, its just that I only get it with one eye

so the question wasnt whether or not if you cant see the rim clearly, its more of, does it make a difference if you can only see it with one eye

As for peripheral vision, its not detail orientated anyway, my bad eye can still sense motion to the side just as well as my good eye

good vision is vital in basketball. But Lebron never had good eyesight. He couldn't see well in classrooms and such but on the court he could see everything. Why? Simply because he had a feel for the game. Just keep playing a lot and you will get that same feel.

[Automajic23]

Well im not sure if ur refering to me or 1manfastbreak, but if it was me

I still get a clear image of the rim and teammates and stuff, its just that I only get it with one eye

so the question wasnt whether or not if you cant see the rim clearly, its more of, does it make a difference if you can only see it with one eye

As for peripheral vision, its not detail orientated anyway, my bad eye can still sense motion to the side just as well as my good eye

nah not referring to you just trying to bring up questions for the op to ask himself in general

[antonioray]

good vision is vital in basketball. But Lebron never had good eyesight. He couldn't see well in classrooms and such but on the court he could see everything. Why? Simply because he had a feel for the game. Just keep playing a lot and you will get that same feel.

Yea I guess but he probably wore contacts and eventually got Lasik

neither can cure what i have

but you I know what you mean a feel for the game, I dont even think I aim anymore(if i did in the first place)

I think I know how much strength to put behind shots depending on how far I am

I would consider myself a decent passer at best, most of the times I get picked off are the times when I get caught up in the air and I have to decide who and how to pass it before I want to

and btw, automajic, i wasnt doubting whether or not it affected him, I was merely asking how and in what ways it affected him

[NotYetGreat]

Depends. I, myself, have 300-275 vision (if I remember correctly), but I can still drain my shots even without glasses. I remember reading in a book before that there was this old pro during the 40s, I think, that was practically blind. He still averaged 12.4 PPG.

[1manfastbreak]

A lot. How can you shoot if you cant get a clear view of the rim? How can you make crisp passes to cutting team mates? How can you see picks/screens, backdoors coming without good peripheral vision?

those are all huge objects. yea my vision isn't crisp and clear but i can see fine. doesn't effect my game at all and never has. I never think about my vision either. Its muscle memory out there.

[Automajic23]

those are all huge objects. yea my vision isn't crisp and clear but i can see fine. doesn't effect my game at all and never has. I never think about my vision either. Its muscle memory out there.

I guess so, all I know is that when I lose a contact during play my shooting accuracy drops quite a bit from beyond 10 feet.

[1manfastbreak]

I guess so, all I know is that when I lose a contact during play my shooting accuracy drops quite a bit from beyond 10 feet.

yea then you can see with one eye and cant with the other. i dont see why sharp vision would help you anymore in basketball.

[antonioray]

well i mean, sharp vision helps with precision and depth perception, like

how much strenght and lift i have to put behind this jump shot

or, how hard i have to bounce the ball and at what angle so that it will reach my teammate( like iverson's full court bounce pass when he was on the pistons)

or, how much time do i have before the guy from the other team closes in on my fast break layup, stuff like that

[Automajic23]

well i mean, sharp vision helps with precision and depth perception, like

how much strenght and lift i have to put behind this jump shot

or, how hard i have to bounce the ball and at what angle so that it will reach my teammate( like iverson's full court bounce pass when he was on the pistons)

or, how much time do i have before the guy from the other team closes in on my fast break layup, stuff like that

yeah, but what 1manfastbreak is trying to say for most parts on the court you are not doing things to and from a far distance so it's not that significant

[JG000]

I always play basketball without my glasses on.

As a result my vision is blurry as hell.

And I'm still one of the best shooters on the court at any time.

You can kinda just automatically adjust. I do anyway

I'm still getting contacts eventually though

[antonioray]

I always play basketball without my glasses on.

As a result my vision is blurry as hell.

And I'm still one of the best shooters on the court at any time.

You can kinda just automatically adjust. I do anyway

I'm still getting contacts eventually though

yea but what i got, contacts dont help so if i keep on playing with the impaired vision in that one eye, could i still be great

did i adjust?
i dont know, i never played with 2 good eyes, so i guess im already used to playing like i do now

the one area that i noticed that could be due to the vision is

the 3 point arc, on the wings, where ur at a 45 degree angle to the rim or something

and if you shoot it too far, itll go straight over the rim, hit the backboard at a 90 degree angle and bounce over to the other 45 degree wing

that happens to me alot, could it be worked around, or is it due to the vision at all?

[JackTheRipper]

It's about muscle memory more than anything. I don't play with contacts, and even though my vision isn't that bad, I don't think getting contacts would help my shooting or passing at all. If anything, at this point it would probably throw me off.

As far as shooting, you should know where you are on the court at all times. If you are at the 3 pt line on the wing, and you're shot is sailing over the rim...adjust your power until it doesn't. If you shoot enough, whenever your feet are in that spot (even roughly), your muscle memory will take over and you will hit the shot. If your back is to the basket, you should still know exactly how far away from the hoop you are and how much power you will need in your shot.

It may take longer for you than for other people...but that's all up to you. If you put the effort into it, I don't see it ever being a limiting factor. Look at that guy who is going to play college ball with only one hand. He has an EXTREME limiting factor and he is still going to play at a fairly high level. You have a mild limiting factor that can definitely be overcome.

Threading the needle and passing I can see being more difficult, but it still comes down to practice. I mean, unless your vision is constantly changing, you will see things the same way every time (roughly), and you can adjust when you make mistakes just like everyone else. People with 20/20 vision don't just walk onto the court and start draining three's and impossible passes. They make mistakes and adjust, and most importantly they work hard and practice.

It's up to you man.

[antonioray]

yea i guess when im shooting by myself, i can adjust and readjust until its just right but what about when im in an actual game?

Id have to estimate how much power to put into it in a split second, especially if a defender is closing in or practically breathing on me

and i dont know if thats possible with my condition

[mike12598]

I have a visual condition called amblyopia where one of my eyes doesnt see so good

the doctors have said glasses and contacts wont help it and there is currently no surgery out there

so I see everything around me with one good eye, effectively
hypothetically it could cause some depth perception issues but

I still do just fine on my own when it comes to basketball, I dont, or i should say, I rarely overshoot or undershoot the rim, altho I was never too good at 3 pointers

still, I wonder if the times I miss or the times i throw a pass away can be avoided if I didnt have bad vision in one eye

Can I still be great, if it is never cured and

are there any other people here who have vision problems?

yeah if its not really messing you up and you can deal with it fine i really wouldnt worry about it. and if it is a problem just practice until it isnt.:violin:

[antonioray]

yeah if its not really messing you up and you can deal with it fine i really wouldnt worry about it. and if it is a problem just practice until it isnt.:violin:

well yea but im worried its one of those hindering conditions that you cant practice ur way out of

you know, much unlike bad footwork or even hand eye coordination altho you dont need much of the latter in basketball, i would think

[phoenix18]

I have great vision so I dont know how much it would affect you to have bad vision. Basketball is really about feel. You have a basketball sense after a while. So you would be affective with okay to below average vision.

[antonioray]

ah lucky you

anyways ill give you guys an example

in parks that dont have nets on their rims, when im shooting a baseline jumper, i cant tell if i swished it or it went straight over the basket

not sure if its hard for you guys to tell too but

i also noticed that my jump shot is off to the left or the right a little altho that may be a product of inconsistent form?

one other thing that i noticed is that my jump shots and floaters, while they are right on track(in line with the rim), they backrim more often that i would like

i dont know if thats because of the vision or because of something else

[AtticusPigeon11]

Lol, it's really not a big deal at all. Courts are how long? 92 foot max.. most likely shorter outdoors. The ball's a large, spherical orange object and easy to detect, even behind a defender; and the rims 18 inches. Don't be too concerned with sharp vision. I'm slightly myopic, but it hasn't faced me. What I would focus on is aclled "soft eyes" (Bruce Lee) Basically you unfocus your vision so you can see what's going on around you and catch about 160 degrees of action ahead of you. Just pay attention, and you'll be alright, and muscle memory is right on.

[antonioray]

yea but since I have a lazy eye sometimes I see 2 images of the rim

this doesnt happen as much during a game because I am concentrating on scoring and w/e but when Im shooting by myself, it is boring sometimes so my eyes go out of focus and the second image of the rim becomes alot more noticeable

it doesnt throw off my shot wildly as I can still hit 7 or 8 out of 10 from just a step within the 3 point line (3 pointers, my percentage falls to like 4 out of 10, even when Im wild open)

but I cant help but think the 2 or 3 times i miss is due to the vision because what other reason could there be? I am wide open

[antonioray]

anyone

[shlver]

yea but since I have a lazy eye sometimes I see 2 images of the rim

this doesnt happen as much during a game because I am concentrating on scoring and w/e but when Im shooting by myself, it is boring sometimes so my eyes go out of focus and the second image of the rim becomes alot more noticeable

it doesnt throw off my shot wildly as I can still hit 7 or 8 out of 10 from just a step within the 3 point line (3 pointers, my percentage falls to like 4 out of 10, even when Im wild open)

but I cant help but think the 2 or 3 times i miss is due to the vision because what other reason could there be? I am wide open
It's probably your lazy eye that makes you miss shots, obviously.