FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions about the Swish Hoop® Twister™
How does the Swish Hoop® Twister™ work?
The Swish Hoop® Twister™ shooting machine collects your made and missed shots,
counts your attempts, and returns the ball to any programmed position on the court. It
may be used as a standalone shooting machine or may be used in coordination with the
Swish Hoop® Skills Trainer LITE or PRO systems and the Swish Hoop® Player App.
The Swish Hoop® Twister is comprised of a ball collection net, an automated swivel
unit, a return ramp and a touch screen controller. It is the only automated shooting
machine system that does not need to be plugged into a wall outlet. This feature, its
portability and the fact that it is waterproof makes it ideal for outdoor use.
Is the Swish Hoop® Twister™ portable?
The Swish Hoop® Twister™ shooting machine weight less than 20 pounds (about 18.5
pounds = 8 kg), folds flat, and is very compact, making it very easy to store, carry and
set up on any hoop.
What is a semi-circular collection net?
All basketball return systems that can return both made and missed shots utilize a
collection net to capture the ball after the shot, be it a make or a miss. All other
collection nets have a rectangular or trapezoidal top edge shape. Also, the top edge of
these traditional collection nets may sag between their support poles, which means that
the distance between the top of the collection net and the hoop varies depending on the
court location from where the shot is taken. The Swish Hoop® Twister™ shooting
machine collection net has a perfectly horizonal, circular shaped top edge that presents
exactly the same profile independent of the shot location. This, along with its low-profile
support poles, make the Twister™ collection net more “invisible” to the shooter.
Can I change the height of the collection net?
The unique semi-circular collection net may be adjusted to different heights depending upon the types of shots that you plan to take. The higher the net height setting, the less likely a missed long-range shot will bounce over the top edge of the collection net; however, a higher-arc shot is needed to get the ball over the edge of a collection net set at a high height.
Three different height settings are available: 1.5, 2 and 2.5 feet above the rim, which translates to 11.5, 12 and 12.5 feet for a 10-foot high hoop.
How is it possible to make such a portable, lightweight, compact system that even has a motorized swiveling system?
- The structural frame of the system is made from aircraft grade lightweight
aluminum, which is both strong and low mass. - The collection net uses lightweight, glass-fiber-reinforced poles and thin
stainless-steel tension cables to support and shape the netting. The entire net
support system collapses in a similar way to a backpacking tent, with bungee-
cord-connected poles for fast assembly and disassembly. - Unlike other return systems, the Swish Hoop® Twister™ rigidly hooks around the
sides of the backboard, which alleviates the need for additional stabilizing
members to attach to a vertical ground pole or the playing surface.
Can the system be used on any hoop?
Yes, the Swish Hoop® Twister™ shooting machine may be used on any regulation-size
rim at any height and with any backboard shape. That means the system is just as
compatible with an 8-foot-tall hoop with a 3-foot-wide, fan-shaped backboard as it is
with a 10-foot-high hoop with a 6-foot-wide rectangular backboard. This is possible
because the system connects to both the rim and the backboard for stability. The
backboard hooks are adjustable to any backboard shape, width and thickness.
How do you install the system onto a hoop? Do I need to use a ladder, drop the rim, or have multiple people to install the system onto a hoop?
The Swish Hoop® Twister™ shooting machine is designed to be sufficiently lightweight
and have sufficient height to be installed by a single person from the playing surface.
Once the system has been configured for the desired collection-net height and backboard size,
the installation process involves the following steps:
- Lift the frame from the lower portion and pass the top opening over the front of
the rim. Removal of the swivel unit prior to installation makes the system even
lighter. - Move the system left to hook the left backboard hook around the left backboard
edge, then right to get the right backboard hook over the right backboard edge. - Center the system and drop the rim shelves onto the rim, just outboard of the rim
extension. There is no contact with the rim extension (the connection between
the hoop and the backboard), just the back portion of the rim itself. - Install the swivel unit and ball ramp onto the installed frame.
System removal is also simple, by reversing these steps.
There are a few additional steps required to initially configure the backboard hooks and
rim shelves to fit your particular hoop, but once that is done, those steps do not need to
be repeated unless the system is installed on a different-sized hoop system.
Does the system count my shots?
The standalone Swish Hoop® Twister™ shooting machine will count your total attempts,
but not your makes and misses; however, the system seamlessly works with the Swish
Hoop® Skills Trainer LITE or PRO systems (sold separately) to accurately count makes,
misses, swishes, streaks, percentages, etc. and save them in your account to be
reviewed at any time. Swish Hoop® Twister™ also has a mounting bracket for the
Swish Hoop® Personal Scoreboard (which comes with the PRO Skills Trainer system)
that allows the scoreboard to move with the swiveling mechanism and give real-time,
court-side feedback and drill guidance for an even more effective training session.
How does it count my shots?
The standalone Swish Hoop® Twister™ shooting machine has an optical sensor that
can “see” the ball as it moves down the ramp. The system only activates the sensor
when it also senses the mechanical vibration of the ball entering at the top of the ramp,
thereby minimizing chances for miscounting. The ball sensor is also used to sequence
the swivel motions in the various drills. The shot count continuously increments from
one drill to another and may be reset to 0 at any time by tapping the shot number
displayed on the touch screen. To count both makes and misses and save your stats, the Swish
Hoop® Skills Trainer LITE or PRO system should be used with the Swish Hoop® Twister™.
How is a shooting machine able to run without being plugged in?
The Swish Hoop® Twister™ shooting machine has a rechargeable battery that allows
the system to be 100% wireless. The amount of time the system runs between charges
is highly dependent on the type of drill being run (stationary drills can run a lot longer
than a drill that changes from left to right corner at every shot), but it will minimally run
for a couple of hours before needing to be plugged in for recharging. The system may
also be run while being recharged, allowing it to run continuously for as long as you
wish.
What types of shooting drills may be executed on the system?
The standalone Swish Hoop® Twister™ shooting machine comes with 12 different drills
(programs) that may be accessed via its touch screen and executed without connection
to the Swish Hoop® Player App including:
- Left/right corners
- Left/right wings
- Left/right elbows
- Left corner/wing
- Right corner/wing
- Single location shooting: left corner, left wing, left elbow, center, right elbow, right
wing, right corner
For the first five drills listed above, the user chooses the number of attempts at each
court location (1-100) before the shooting machine moves to the next location.
But, you are not limited to only these 12 drills. By connecting to the Swish Hoop® Player App and utilizing the Shot Monitor in the Swish Hoop® Skills Trainer, you can run 300+ drills and workouts including timed, progression after makes, REACTION shooting drills, and many others.