Basketball is a game played and loved by both genders. Anyone anywhere can enjoy basketball. Invite your friends over and dazzle them with your newly learned skills. What skills might those be? Read on to discover a variety of tips and tricks to improve your game.
Make it a point to concentrate on both your defensive and offensive skills. Focusing only on offense does not make you a well-rounded player. Basketball games are won more often by defense than offense. The offense gets lots of attention, but if the defense is lacking no basketball team will ever win a game.
Free throws are an excellent skill to practice in your spare time. As easy as these shots may seem, they are rather hard. Make sure that you’re applying the following technique when practicing. Start out by holding the basketball right in front of you. Concentrate on the basket and visualize the basketball going in. Then, shoot the ball using the trajectory you pictured.
When you dribble, look forward, keeping your head up. If you have to ever look at the ball while dribbling, then you haven’t practiced that enough. Take your basketball everywhere. Walking to your mailbox? Dribble the ball. Always look ahead when you are dribbling the ball.
Look forward and hold your head up while you dribble the ball. If you need to look at the ball while dribbling, you’ll need to practice more. Always have a basketball handy. If you are heading down to the market, dribble as you go. Maintaining unbroken visual contact with the ball makes it difficult to be aware of your surroundings.
Don’t pump a lot of iron if you wish to become a jump shooter. Though muscle strength is great to have with any sport, it is very possible to be too buff for serious game play. If your arms are too big, your field goal percentage will go down.
You may have better luck honing your passing skills if you forgo dribbling during practice. It is tough to play when not dribbling, but your accuracy is sure to inprove. This is very challenging at first, but eventually it will really improve your entire team’s passing game.
Never play through an injury on the court. Basketball is physically demanding, and it is easy to get hurt. Pushing through the pain often results in a more serious injury. Seek medical advice immediately if you have more than a minor muscle strain.
Play basketball against yourself even during the off-season. Though basketball is surely a team sport, there may be times when you have nobody to play against. There’s nothing wrong with that. There is much that can be accomplished when playing on your own. Work on free throws and pivot moves. There are always things that can be done.
If you experience a slump in your scoring and shooting, your shoulders may be the cause of the problem. When they are out of alignment, all shots will fail. Keep your shoulders square in line with the basket. Your dominant shoulder should also be lined up perfectly with the rim.
Have other players give you information about what they think are your strengths and weaknesses. Do you do something particularly well? Maybe you are quick like lightening or maybe you are a strong defender. Find out what others think your natural abilities are, and be certain to keep developing those skills.
Ask a friend to record your games so that you can see how yourself in action. On tape, you can see all the opportunities you passed and how things could have gone better. When looking at the tape, don’t be too critical, but be honest. Seeing yourself realistically can be a great way to make changes in a positive direction.
If you have someone who can tape your game, you can view the recording to see how well you performed on the court. Do you see how you could’ve handled a situation differently? Be honest with yourself but don’t be too harsh. Sometimes you have to face reality about your skills and just not dream about how you want to be.
If you wish to get a free throw rebound from a teammate, you have to stay on your toes properly. Try to anticipate the move of the defender between yourself and the basket so that you can maneuver around him and to the hoop. You are able to rebound the ball without fouling someone.
If you want to dribble the basketball better, you need to practice dribbling with your weaker hand. If both hands are useful for dribbling, your opponents will not stand much of a chance. Tie the main hand you use behind your back so that you have to use the weak hand. After a while, your weak hand will be able to dribble better.
You can prevent other players from stealing the ball from you by dribbling hard. This means you get the ball back from your opponent faster. If someone is close to you and is really good at guarding you, pass to another person that’s open.
Be sure your vision is unobstructed. You will need it for more than checking the scoreboard or passing and shooting. Working to improve you peripheral vision will help you become a more successful player. When you can see the big picture, you can react to anything.
A good drill to try is the five dribble drill. You try to get the ball the entire length of the court in only five dribbles. This may seem quite difficult at first, but once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you’ll have great speed and stride length. It will allow you to execute easy layups.
In order to ensure that you are always ready to defend, keep your stance at all times. To move, just slide from back and forth with your feet, or use a foot to push off, keeping your stance all the time. Always keep your feet from crossing, and you will make it hard for any opponent to get past.
Be certain that your vision is the best it can be. Not to just be able to see the scoreboard, but to actually make a shot and catch a pass. You want your peripheral vision to be as good as it can. If you look across the whole game and not just focus on the ball, you can see oncoming defensive pressure in advance, as well as open teammates.
Defensive players need to stay low. This helps you jump fast and react quickly. Always stay in the proper stance on defense. You may have to break your stance if you must block a shot, but return as fast as you can.
When the opportunity arises you always want to take a charge. This strategy can result in your opponent taking a foul and your team getting a defensive stop and taking possession of the ball. This is play that’s powerful.
To get better at three-point shots, work on shooting from the NBA three-point line. High school lines, international standard lines, and college lines are much closer. Hitting from the NBA range makes you get deeper-ranged looks than the defense will be guarding you at.
You should always bend your knees while dribbling. When you stand straight up, you’ll find that the ball is harder to control and the ball will be a lot easier for an opponent to steal. You will gain a lot of ball control by bending your knees just a bit.
Practice dribbling as you sway your body from side to side. You’re going to be dribbling in many different conditions during a game. You might be working with a court that’s open, but you may get swarmed by quite a few people. Going through the court will be easier if you can quickly adjust your direction without interrupting your dribbling. By nailing this skill, you have a better chance to avoid a turnover.
Use whatever hand you aren’t dribbling with as a shield between the ball and your opponent. This keeps your opponent from being able to steal the ball. Just keep it raised a little while you dribble with your dribbling hand.
You’ll want to use the hand that you aren’t dribbling with as a barrier to protect the ball. Don’t push your opponent because that is a foul; however, you may use your free arm to create a barrier that keeps your opponent away from the ball. Keep your other arm up slightly while you dribble.
Always practice from all spots on the court. Initially, you need to practice both your grip and your balance. Off-balance shooting can happen, but it’s not as accurate. Get a better grip on the ball by using the valve. Spread your fingers, and place your dominant hand over the area where the valve is located.
Make sure that you are exercising properly for basketball. Running sprints helps you get faster for individual plays, and long-distance running is better for improving your game stamina. Resistance training or lifting weights will increase muscle strength and shooting abilities. Building your muscles and your confidence will help you game in many ways.
Build a sense of teamwork both off and on the court. Basketball is something that can work in a team’s favor if they all work together well. When you trust your teammates, you’ll play a better game.
Now you can show your stuff off on the court. You can now impress your friends with the secrets that you’ve learned. Have fun and keep practicing. Either way, it’s exciting to win.
Be careful not to double-dribble. That happens when you stop one time, and start again in a few seconds. Remember that if you do stop dribbling, your options are limited to shooting or passing to a teammate. You cannot start dribbling again. Double dribbling will result in a turnover.
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