Everyone from presidents to working class people have played the game of basketball. Whether you play it in school, in your spare time or even professionally, it will bring you a joy like few other sports can. To make the game even more enjoyable, check out all of the tips below.
Make your passes quick and precise. This takes practice, but you can improve your passing skills over time. Find someone else who wants to improve their passing and run drills with them. Running up and down the court passing and dribbling will eventually become second nature and help you with your game.
Practice makes perfect. This is especially true in basketball. Learning how to shoot a basket, how to dribble and how to pass a ball is important to playing good basketball. Spending as little as 30 minutes practicing a day can really help develop your game and make you a better player.
Never pass the ball and stand still. This is a mistake most often made by those new to the game of basketball. Once you’ve passed the ball, you need to work to get into the best position possible to be passed to again or to grab a rebound from a shot.
Practice as many different shots as you can. You never know when you will need one during a game. If you only practice bank shots, then you will feel less comfortable making a 3-point shot or a lay-up. Practice them all and you will see improvements in all of your shots.
You may have better luck honing your passing skills if you forgo dribbling during practice. While this may be difficult, it gets you used to finding teammates and thinking on the run. Don’t be frustrated by how hard it is at first; you will get used to it.
Interested in tricking your opponents? The back pass is just the thing! Hold the basketball with your writing hand. The next step is to draw the ball behind you. Lastly, flick your wrist in the direction that you want the ball to land. This is a good way to trick your opponents.
Prior to basketball season, and even during it, you can play solo games. Basketball is a multiple player sport, but other people won’t always be around. Don’t worry! There’s still a lot that you can do playing on your own. You can work on pivots and free throws. You can always hone your skills when practicing alone.
To become a better dribbler, work on becoming more flexible. The looser and more flexible you are, the better you will be able to elude defenders. Stiffer players are easier to defend. The more flexible you are, the harder it is to defend you. So to improve your dribbling, you need to improve your flexibility.
To play solid defense, if you are guarding the person with the ball, keep your eyes on the basketball. If you look at his eyes instead, he will fake a pass one way, just by looking in that direction, and then dribble around you the other way. The ball can’t lie about where it’s going.
To become a better free throw shooter, use the same routine prior to every shot. This could mean dribbling twice, shaking out your head to loosen your neck or whatever else makes you comfortable. As long as you make it quick, if you have a consistent routine, your body will remember how to make those free throws after you go through your ritual.
When you love something, you need to work hard to become better at it. This is true of all sports, even basketball. While the game itself may seem simple, it takes practice and education to master it. This article is a great first step, so use the tips read here and improve your play.