A jumper hovers above a trampoline mat. Students drag them up or push them into the mat, let go, and watch each bounce mark its peak while sliders change stiffness, mass, gravity and restitution.
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Free Throw Shooter
About this simulation
This simulation treats a free throw as projectile motion. Dragging the ball back sets the launch angle and speed, an optional guide draws the predicted arc, and the ball follows a parabola to the rim 4.57 meters away and 3.05 meters high. Toggles add air drag, and a gravity slider lets students shoot on the Moon or a larger planet. Readouts show launch angle, launch speed, peak height, made and shots, and streak. Teachers can use it to compare flat fast shots with high arcs.
What students can explore
- Drag the ball back and sideways to set the dotted arc, then release and check the Launch angle readout.
- Try a low, fast shot and a high, slow shot, and compare the Peak height for each.
- Lower Gravity to 1.6 and shoot again to see how the arc stretches.
- Turn on Air drag and see how much power the same shot now needs.
- Turn off Aim guide and try to rebuild a streak from your own predictions.
Learning objectives
- 1Describe the arc of a thrown ball as a parabola.
- 2Explain how launch angle and speed together decide where the ball lands.
- 3Compare shots under different gravity values and predict the effect.
- 4Use peak height and speed readouts to adjust a shot.
Questions teachers ask
Is the Free Throw Shooter simulation free to use?
Yes. It is free, needs no sign-up, and runs in any modern browser, including whiteboards, tablets and phones.
Why is the path of the ball curved?
After release only gravity acts on the ball, so its horizontal speed stays constant while the vertical speed changes by 9.8 meters per second each second. Together they trace a parabola.
What angle is best for a free throw?
A higher arc drops steeply through the hoop and gives a bigger target window, which is why coaches teach roughly 45 to 55 degrees.
How do I aim and shoot?
Drag the ball backward from the hoop direction to set angle and power, using the dotted arc as a guide. Release to shoot and read Made and shots for your result.
Embed this simulation
Drop it into your LMS, blog, or class site — free.
<iframe src="https://kiwibee.io/en/simulations/basketball-free-throw-3d-simulation/embed" title="Free Throw Shooter | KiwiBee" loading="lazy" allowfullscreen style="width:100%;height:min(70vh,620px);min-height:420px;border:0;border-radius:16px"></iframe>Continue exploring
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