Basketball is a fun sport to play when you are really good at the skills necessary to help your team. Perhaps you would like to better your skills and that is why you’re here? If so, the following article offers excellent tips that the pros use to help them better their game and you can use them, too.
For lightening fast dribbling, just like the pros, only use your finger tips on the ball. When you use all of your fingers, your dribbling will be much slower. Make this a part of your daily practice sessions until it becomes second nature to dribble with only the tips of your fingers.
Improving your flexibility will greatly help you during a game. If you’re flexible, you’ll be able to move around defenders better. Flexibility will help you to move better when you’re being blocked. You’ll be able to do more moves than others which will result in you getting the change to score or pass freely without being blocked.
When playing basketball, remember that you are playing on a team. Don’t be a “ball hog.” A team is like a support system and your teammates are there to help you and you should be there to help them. The objective of the game is to work together to beat the opponent.
Work on flexibility. Flexibility is very important during basketball. This is because you may have to stretch to grab a ball that is in the air. Additionally, increased flexibility helps protect your tendons and joints from the damage caused during this fast playing sport. Do flexibility exercises often and always stretch before beginning any game.
Beware of picking up bad habits from street basketball games. Street games are often rougher and flashier than team basketball. It’s a game to impress through individual showmanship, not from your work as part of a bigger group. Therefore, you can bring the wrong skills to the table if you base your team play on what you’ve learned from street games. Remember, you are part of something bigger than just you.
To develop an accurate shooting stroke, put your dominant hand under the ball and use your other hand on the side of the ball, as a guide. If you develop this consistency, you will be able to follow through with your shooting hand and get a high, looping arc that is more likely to go through the hoop.
If you want to stay in a good defensive position, simply avoid breaking out of your defensive stance. Shuffle your feet in a side to side motion, then use your opposite foot to push off and give you good leverage. Stay low and make it hard for opponents to get around you.
If your defender is playing you low, pass the ball to teammates using the overhead pass. Be aware of where your teammate will catch the ball. If you throw it too low, the ball will be uncontrollable. If you throw it too high, your teammate may not catch the ball at all.
To make your weaker hand stronger, play non-competitive basketball games with only your weak hand. The more you practice with it, especially in a real game, the better your skills will become. This is a great way to become more ambidextrous than you are without risking a loss in a competitive game.
Until the moment you are prepared to shoot or pass, you must dribble constantly. If you stop, you limit your options. Basically the only move you have at this point is to pivot while finding an opening to move the ball. That leaves you wide open to double teaming by your opponents and the potential of a stolen ball goes way up.
If you have a defender right in front of you, consider using an overhead pass. You can throw the ball so high that the defender can’t reach it, protecting it from their grasp. Aim high on the person intended to receive it so they can catch it near their chin.
Don’t read what anyone in the press says about your team. This applies to every level from high school newspapers to the professional leagues. The only opinion about how your team is playing that matters is the one in the locker room. Don’t let anyone contaminate your team’s chemistry and confidence with the doubts of some critic.
Make sure your off-court exercise is appropriate to help your on-court game. For example, you can improve individual plays with sprinting. You can improve overall game performance and endurance with long distance running. Additionally, weightlifting and resistance training will help you develop the muscles needed for those long distance shots. The confidence and adrenaline that builds don’t hurt either.
After reading the above article you now know the strategies that the pros use to help improve their basketball playing skills. It’s a simple game but in order to help your team win you need to get better. The tips and great advice here will go a long way to helping you improve your game.