Basketball ranks among one of peoples’ favorite sports to both watch and play. However, being the top player in the game is not the easiest path. Regardless of whether you are the best or not, you can still have fun playing basketball. The following article will give you some great basketball tips.
Make sure you are dribbling the right way. You want to dribble with the tips of your fingers, not your whole hand. This way you’ll have a lot more control over the ball. Always dribble to your side, not your front. You should always be looking up instead of at the ground.
Don’t just practice playing against a zone defense. While a great portion of a game will be concentrated in the zone, your rivals could opt to go to man-to-man covering to keep you guessing. If your practice hasn’t included this type of scenario, you might lose control rapidly.
Passing quickly without dribbling is a great way to practice. This is very hard to accomplish, but it forces you and your fellow players to work on accurate passing skills. Work through the initial frustration and see how the challenge will improve your game in the long run.
If you’re a jump shooter, don’t lift weights too often. Strong muscles are certainly useful for basketball, but you can overdo it if you plan to play on the perimeter. You will notice that most basketball players have well-defined muscles that are not overdeveloped.
Ask your teammates what they like about how you play. Are you really good at any one thing? It could be your speed, or it could be your back-up abilities. Develop your strengths even further and look for ways to improve your weaknesses.
Study you opponent well to give yourself an edge. Watch tapes of their games and see how others move on the court. Pay attention to dominant hands. This knowledge will help you play the best game possible. Smart defenders are good defenders.
Free Throw
In order to become a better free throw shooter you need to have a good practice routine. If you’re not consistent you’ll find yourself missing free throws. You should work on your free throw techniques as much as possible until they become a second nature. If you are off your game, you will not make the shot.
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 your strong hand to the rear of your back to ensure you only use your weaker hand. After a while, your weak hand will be able to dribble better.
Make it your goal to dribble the ball across the entire court in under 5 dribbles. You may find this very challenging, but once accomplished it will give you a real edge. You will have easy layups on fast breaks and you will be able to advance your team easily.
It is important that you can clearly see everything that is occurring during a game. You will need it for more than checking the scoreboard or passing and shooting. Peripheral vision is important during game play. Tunnel vision makes it difficult to play effectively, so try to view the entire court and all players.
Remain low when playing defense. Staying low will help you to be a more swift opponent when you mirror the man standing in your path. Keep yourself in proper defensive stance at all times. If you find you have to abandon your stance to do some blocking, get back into formation as fast as you can.
Practice shooting hundreds of shots during each training, and you quickly improve shooting skills. Taking quick shots during practice will help you during the game when the pressure is on. Avoid looking at the basketball goal while dribbling the ball. This will mimic game conditions and help improve your accuracy.
Do you want to show off your skills? Well, maybe you better practice what you’ve read first. Stay motivated and keep your energy up while you play. Soon you’ll start to see how much you’ve improved because you put the advice you were given here into practice.