Price teaches NBA shooters to be on the mark

By Mike Tierney

For the AJC

Mark Price, shot doctor, watches Rajon Rando on TV to judge whether his recommended remedies have kicked in. If Price notices some slippage in Rondo's form, he is tempted to forward corrective measures to the Boston Celtics guard.

But he resists. Because Price serves as the Atlanta Hawks shooting coach, contact with his patients from around the NBA is confined to the offseason.

That does not preclude Price from admiring his handiwork from afar. Early Sunday afternoon after a Hawks practice, the part-time assistant expressed delight over the renovated Rondo, a regular last summer at the Mark Price Shooting Lab in Suwanee.

"He's made some good improvement," said Price, a distinguished Georgia Tech basketball alum and resident Atlantan since retiring from the NBA in 1998. "His free throw shooting has been a work in progress. In the playoffs, he's really picked it up."

A few hours later, Rondo affirmed himself as a cover guy candidate should Price ever distribute brochures promoting the lab. He persecuted the Cleveland Cavaliers with 29 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists .

Rondo's shooting progress may not be reflected yet in his percentages, but Price says a makeover can require more than one season to complete. Indisputably, Rondo is winding down a billboard-worthy year, having broken franchise records for assists and steals, made the NBA All-Star East team and outshined the Celts' blessed trinity of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen.

Rondo was directed to the lab by Boston coach Doc Rivers, a one-time Hawks player who knew all too well of Price's marksmanship. A 12-season pro, mostly with the Cavs, Price is the most uncanny foul shooter ever, at 90.4 percent over his career. His 40.2 percent on threes is tied for 15th.

"[Shooting] was definitely an area where he needed improvement," Price said of Rondo. The primary diagnosis: "flying elbow." The body part strayed from his torso upon launch. Instruction also dealt with Rondo's nasty habit of bringing the ball behind his head.

Price also found fault with Rondo's footwork. "Most people think shooting is just from the waist up," he said.

Despite his peccadilloes, Rondo struck Price as repairable.

"To be honest, I was pleasantly surprised," he said.

Of the nearly 20 NBA players who have sought Price's services, he noted that only a few have failed to benefit.

"We can give these guys the tools," Price said. "They have to take the ball and run with it."

The unidentified busts, he said, never applied the lessons conveyed to them.

The NBA venture is an extension of Price's shooting program at the Suwanee Sports Academy for players as young as 10. The visiting pros tend to work twice daily for three to four days with Price, who mixes old-timey, hands-on techniques with new-age technology.

A device called Dartfish involves two cameras that film the shooter from different angles and display side-by-side images. A radar system known as Noah traces the arc of free throws to enable the shooter to replicate proper curvature with each try.

"I call this the [Alcoholics Anonymous] of shooting," Price said.

How so?

Some players arrive in denial. "You show them [through video] and they go, ‘OK, I've got a problem,'" he said.

Price equates easily addressed problems to arthroscopic surgery, others to reconstructive surgery.

The latter category included Lou Williams, who proceeded directly from South Gwinnett High School to the Philadelphia 76ers with a flawed shot.

Williams' unflattering nickname among teammates was "Left-Right," which described the direction his hands took on a shooting attempt. Aided by Price's touch, Williams earned a lucrative extension in the summer of 2008.

"We try to keep it at a certain comfort level," Price said. "It takes a lot for a guy to say, ‘I need help for that.'"

Discomfort, however, can result from the foot drills.

"What a lot of people say are the best athletes in the world, well, after we first put them through footwork, they're a little sore the next day," he said.

Price has yet to hear from the league's most frustrated high-profile foul shooter, native Atlantan Dwight Howard of Orlando. He said Magic management broached the idea with him during the playoff series with the Hawks and that he would be willing.

As one of four designated shot coaches in the league, Price is ostensibly an independent contractor with the Hawks, bound exclusively to them from the opening of training camp to the last game.

The Hawks are aware of his fixer-uppers. The 76ers' Thaddeus Young, a former Georgia Tech one-and-done forward, underwent Price's shot surgery two summers ago.

In the Hawks' opener that season, Young scored 17 points during the first quarter against them, hitting all three three-point tries. The Atlanta coaches turned and glared at Price, who sits just behind the team bench.

Price shrugged and said, smiling, "Sorry, guys."

He aspires to take a seat on some NBA bench full-time, saying his reputation in league circles goes beyond that of a one-trick pony.

"I'm a two-time all-star," he said. "In the basketball community, everybody knows my knowledge of the game and what I have to offer."

For now, he focuses on matters such as showing Rondo how to keep his flying elbow tucked in, thus lending new meaning to shooter's touch.