by Andrew on Thu Sep 21, 2017 1:02 am
So I've been experimenting with this as it pertains to jumpshots, since the meter is there to compare. I have found that if you pay attention to the rumble along with the visual cue of the shot meter, you can get a lot of green releases. I put up shots from all over the court, and although I couldn't nail the precise timing every time, the rumble feedback did help.
I also tried shooting completely by feel, i.e. looking away from the screen, releasing the shot in conjunction with the rumble, then looking back to see what my timing was like, as per the meter and shot feedback. I actually found myself getting quite a few excellent releases without looking and simply going by the rumble, so getting a feel for it can be very beneficial. Using it in conjunction with a visual cue such as the shot meter or familiarity with your player's animation (or indeed, a combination of the three) should yield good results. It'd be the same with layups, except you'd just have to go by the animation and rumble there.
Describing the optimal timing of the rumble is a bit tricky, but here goes. It's too early if it's just starting to rumble, but if it's towards the end of the rumble, it's too late. There's a split second where you might get a Good release rather than Slightly Early or Slightly Late, but it seems like Good releases are oddly worse than Slightly Early or Slightly Late releases once again this year, so if you can't get green, it's better to be slightly more off in either direction. I can't nail it every time, but by releasing it after the build up of the rumble but before it begins petering out, I managed to get long streaks of green releases, even from three-point range.
It takes practice, but I can confirm that it's a helpful cue in addition to the visual aids. I wish I could describe the timing better than that, but like I said, while I can nail the timing quite often using that method, I can't hit it 100% of the time. That could be by design, though; I know Beluba said green releases would be tougher this year, and I would say that the timing isn't as forgiving as it was in NBA 2K17. Handy knowledge and technique to practice, though.