TIP! Proper balance is essential when shooting. You have seen how pros shoot a basket from thirty feet away and fall out of bounds, which is not the right technique.

Have you ever watched professional basketball players and envied their skills? It takes years to be world-class players like they are, but you can improve your skills with hard work and dedication. You’ll find a lot of useful advice in this article.

TIP! Practice using different types of defenses. Your opponent may change their game up to keep you on your toes.

Make sure you are dribbling the right way. Avoid using your palm while dribbling. Instead, use your fingertips. When you do this you will have more control over the ball. Also, dribble off to the side instead of in front. The ball should bounce no higher than your waist. Keep your eyes up.

TIP! To learn how to pass well, drill without dribbling. This helps to develop passing skills with your teammates, making it much more difficult if you’re standing in one spot and not dribbling.

Always keep your head up when dribbling instead of focusing on the ball. If you must look at the ball while dribbling, you haven’t practiced enough. If you are just getting started, bring your ball with you everywhere. Dribble the ball when you’re walking to the shops. Get used to looking up as you go so that you can focus your attention on the court and not on your hands and the ball.

TIP! Need to dupe the opposition? Consider the back pass. Hold the ball in your strong hand to start the pass.

If you want to excel, you have to play to your strengths. Your talent might not make you a star; however, learning your strengths will help you become a better team player. You can also focus on your weaknesses if you know what they are.

Free Throw

TIP! If you’re on the offense, you footwork needs to be excellent to stay open for passes and shots. There are two important points you must remember.

Making a free throw takes mental concentration as well as physical prowess. You must be mentally strong to be a consistent free throw shooter. Relax your mind and keep your concentration centered on the basket to make more of these freebies.

TIP! Basketball players must be fast. If you want the advantage, you’ve got more quickly.

Quality footwork will help you get better shots. Being physical under the rim is crucial, but having good positioning on the court is even better. Having found a good spot, you must secure it. The key to this relies on having good footwork.

TIP! Be aware of your own actions and the position of your feet. Stepping your toe in a baseline with a ball in your grip will mean that you’re out of bounds.

You need to be quick to be good at basketball. Make an effort to do all things on the court more speedily than the opposing team. To speed up the pace of your play, you need to keep practicing. Don’t play too fast and risk your chances. Playing beyond your own capabilities sends the game spinning past your ability to control it, and turnovers are bound to occur.

TIP! Videotape your games to see what you do right and wrong. Did you spot something that could be improved? Be honest in your assessment but not overly critical.

Build a routine to improve your free throw game. Failure to use consistency may make your shots less accurate. The easiest way to make sure you’re doing great at free throws is to do repetitions of the same routines time and again. If you are off your game, you will not make the shot.

TIP! To become a great free thrower, practice and develop a routine you will use during each shot. Always dribble the same way, or with the same movements.

You must be able to box out other players when attempting to rebound free throws. The defender in your path will be moving at you, so be sure you’re thinking of how to get past that defender. This gets you the rebound without you committing a foul.

TIP! Can you see well? This means more than just being able to see well enough to play, but “seeing” the court deeply. You want your peripheral vision to be as good as it can.

Practice noticing what is in your peripheral vision. You don’t just want to be able to pass and shoot well. You want to make sure that you see what is going on to the sides of you. If you’re looking around the whole court and not only at the ball, you’ll be able to look to the defense to see if pressure is coming and you can see who’s open.

TIP! A great way to make sure you’re in a good position defensively is to keep yourself in the defensive stance. Keep your feet moving to each side or push your opposing foot off so you can keep yourself in position.

Whenever possible, take advantage of an attack. Turnovers are an important part of the game that can end up giving your team the upper hand. This can make for good psychological warfare.

TIP! Alternating your pace is critical to keeping the defense guessing. Sprint towards the hoop then quickly plant your foot, then straighten up.

Change your pace up to throw the offense off. Sprint towards the hoop then quickly plant your foot, then straighten up. Your defender will likely think you are taking a shot or passing, and straighten up as well. When they do, try pushing forward hard and running right past them.

Strength Training

TIP! Keep your dribbling in a rhythm until you want to throw your opponent off guard. Changing your pace quickly can take the other player by surprise and give you an advantage.

Improve your basketball skills by incorporating strength training into your fitness regimen. In addition to strength, stamina is key in basketball. Even young kids can improve if they exercise the right way and strengthen their core. When they become teenagers, they will be able to step up to weight work to become even stronger. During the adult years, strength training is vital to keeping on-court performance at a high level.

TIP! Your diet is key to being a better player. You need to eat carbs, fats and protein on game days.

You can improve a weak hand by using it in daily life. By improving your weaker hand’s dexterity, your control over the hand will significantly improve. This will start to appear in the game of basketball, too.

TIP! Do not double dribble. That happens when you stop one time, and start again in a few seconds.

To become a great player talk with your teammates and learn what they have planned. The sport of basketball is truly a team game. This means that defense and offense are not one-on-one. Everyone has each others’ backs. Be vocal on the court to form better communication with your teammates for play.

TIP! As you come down from catching a rebound, land with your legs spread wider than the span of your shoulders to increase your balance. Hold the ball next to your chest with your hand on either side.

Now that you have had a chance to read up on some great pointers, it’s time to get out and practice. You must practice every day and be confident that you can win. Keep this excellent advice in mind as you show off your new skills on the court.