Chapter 2.2, Problem 33AE

Free-throw Shots According to physicist Peter Brancazio, the key to a successful foul shot in basketball lies in the arc of the shot. Brancazio determined the optimal angle of the arc from the free-throw line to be 45 degrees. The arc also depends on the velocity with which the ball is shot. If a player shoots a foul shot, releasing the ball at a 45-degree angle from a position 6 feet above the floor, then the path of the ball can be modeled by the function

$h\left(x\right)=-\frac{44x^2}{v^2}+x+6$

where $h$ is the height of the ball above the floor, $x$ is the forward distance of the ball in front of the foul line, and $v$ is the initial velocity with which the ball is shot in feet per second. Suppose a player shoots a ball with an initial velocity of 28 feet per second.

(a) Determine the height of the ball after it has traveled 8 feet in front of the foul line.

(b) Determine the height of the ball after it has traveled 12 feet in front of the foul line.

(c) Find additional points and graph the path of the basketball.

(d) The center of the hoop is 10 feet above the floor and 15 feet in front of the foul line. Will the ball go through the hoop? Why or why not? If not, with what initial velocity must the ball be shot in order for the ball to go through the hoop?

Source: The Physics of Foul Shots, Discover, Vol. 21, No. 10, October 2000