By: Dick DeVenzio If you want to see the best basketball on TV in the next couple of weeks, watch the tournaments of conferences that traditionally never get any at-large selections. Those teams are under no illusions. They know they must win their tournament or they turn in their uniforms for the year. For those teams, the tournament games have the same importance as NCAA Tournament games. It's a single-elimination state of urgency from the opening tap; and the intensity level is usually … [Read more...]
The Art of Shooting
Remember the Four Basic Steps: Balance Eyes on Target Elbow Keeps the Basketball Straight Follow Through Easily remembered and taught as B-E-E-F "I leave you with these thoughts. With a little talent and a lot of hard work and hours of practice, I became an outstanding shooter and a professional player. How bad do your players want to play? How many hours will they practice? Are they determined to be a good player? Only they truly know the answers. But as coaches and … [Read more...]
How to Break Pressure Defenses
:: From the Hoops U. 'How-To' Series :: The purpose of this article is to help the basketball player by giving specific tips, techniques and an understanding of how to beat pressure defenses such as full court presses and half court traps. Basketball coaches will also benefit from this article by sharing these ideas with your players. For specific offensive sets to help beat pressure, check the 'Attacking the Zone Press' page. As an offensive player going against either a full court press or … [Read more...]
Free Throw Shooting Methods & Techniques
Free throw shooting is an all-too-often overlooked skill within the game of basketball. As players, we certainly 'play' and work on skills such as shooting and ball handling ... but how much do you really work on shooting free throws? As coaches, how much do you actually 'teach' free throw shooting and how much time do you spend working on it in practice? Free throw shooting can so often directly correlate between a win and a loss that it is imperative we do not neglect this facet of … [Read more...]
Principles of Basketball Strength Training
How to effectively utilize strength training to improve your basketball performance! What does your strength training program look like? Are your exercises mostly squats, presses, pulldowns, curls, and machine-based? If your weight training consists of the most basic exercises then you are not training to optimally boost your basketball performance levels. Sure, you may be improving your strength, but strength gains alone are not the best you can do in the weight room. The basic exercises … [Read more...]
You Don’t Have the Perfect Coach? … So What!?!
It doesn't matter who you are or where you are. No one has the "perfect" basketball coach. It doesn't even matter where you go. Basketball players have transferred from Duke and North Carolina. In my neck of the woods, a player transferred from Minnesota at mid-season. These players don't think Mike Krzyzewski or Dean Smith or Roy Williams are the best coaches in the world. Not every player at Connecticut thinks Geno Auriemma knows everything or does everything perfectly. The same goes for … [Read more...]
Offensive Rebounding Fundamentals
Offensive rebounding is often overlooked in today's game. Sure, we are all taught to 'follow your shot', but how often do you do that? Of all the shots taken in a game by your team, how many times do you go hard after the rebound? Rebounding is one simple fundamental that isn't drilled into our heads often enough -- and it should be. Think of all the easy baskets you can score to help your team do their best. Offensive rebounding is one of those 'little things' that good players do to … [Read more...]
Keys to a Successful Basketball Offense
It doesn't matter what basketball offense that you run, there are certain keys that I believe are essential if you want to have a smooth and effective offense. If you are a coach, these 19 keys should be taught with practice and drills. If you are a player, these 19 keys should be something that you continually work on to help you become the best offensive team player that you can become. The following are the 19 essential keys to developing, running, and leading a successful basketball … [Read more...]
The Role of the Substitute
By: Jan Lahodny, CWB 1990 A player who shows envy or jealousy toward the starting five or those in the limelight with long press clippings is often judged to have a poor attitude. In truth, however, envy and jealousy are feelings, and feelings are neither good nor bad. It is how a player handles her feelings that determines whether she is team-oriented. Not wanting to sit on the bench is perfectly acceptable. If a player has given everything she's got, and it's not good enough to be a … [Read more...]
Shooting Guard Tips
This is a basic outline that a shooting guard should know and understand if he or she wants to be a more successful shooter and scoring threat. This is similar to the 'Point Guard Tips Outline', however, the shooting guard is generally looked upon to be more of a scoring threat. You still want to involve teammates, but you need be able to create your own chances. A. Mental Attitude and Approach Be a leader. Be an intelligent player. Be a communicator with your teammates and your coaching … [Read more...]