for those ballers or wanna-be coaches out there How valuable is it to be able to face up when you are posting up? I have a pretty good back-to-the-basket game(hooks, good pump fakes, and decent footwork) , and i was wondering how beneficial it would be to adding the ability to face up. Does it help when you are facing taller opponents? Also, does anyone have any good sites to give tips and drills to improve dribbling? Since I finally learned how to shoot after years of bad form, I want to be able to drive a little better. One more thing, I used to be a monster on the boards, but now that I have a better post game and a jumper, I don't have the aggressiveness that i used to. I'm trying to drill that mindset back into my game, cuz that used to be my specialty. I'm just wondering if this its common to lose rebounding desire once you've had a taste of scoring a lot. ------------------ snap crackle pop
Regarding the dribbling, I attended a Calvin Murphy basketball camp one time, and a drill he had us do was to sit down (Indian errrr Native American style) and slowly dribble the ball back and forth between hands, getting lower and lower as you go, until you are just typewriting with your fingers on the ball... he could do it for a long time. I never could get it down very far, because basically, I have terrible handles... Anyway, it is a good drill to emphasize the use of fingertips at all times when dribbling. ------------------ "Any event, once it has occurred, can be made to appear inevitable by a competent historian." Lee Simonson
CK, Post Moves - Facing the basket moves, personally i think they are harder to stop especially if you can work on some sort on turn a round J from the post to get the defender up in you face and then use your face the basket moves. Dribbling - Practice and Repitition is the key. Some good sites include Stephs dribbling skills http://members.nbci.com/bball_drills/home.htm Rebounding - Desire is a mental thing, one way to think about it, especially if you are hooked on scoring, is that Rebounding gives you more opportunites to score, at the offensive end directly and at the defensive end it means you get out of D and get to play O. ------------------ "Repression never did me any harm (I finally ceased to include "stop masturbating" as one of my guilt ridden New Year's resolutions, but that's a different topic)." Achebe - programmer by day, Mrs Palmers Husband by night
Facing the opponent makes you a better passer and allows you to shoot right over the man if he backs up. Turnaround jumpers are not as necessary as with the back to basket game. As far as better low post moves, I think everything that Kevin MacHale had facing his man, Barkley had with his back to him. You can still do up and unders, spin both ways, etc. Facing your man really starts having more advantages when you move further away from the basket against a slow man who you can beat off the dribble. As you've discovered, thsi requires an midrange quick release and dribbling. Dribbling skills....first strenghten your left arm. Stand under the basket and dribble the ball against the backboard one handed. Don't tap it. Catch it with your palm and throw it back up with a wrist follow through. When one hand gets tired, do it with the other. This strengthens your arms and teaches you to follow through properly. When you dribble for real, you must follow-through with each dribble ... there is a tendency to pat the ball. Don't pat the ball. Control it with your palm. Once you get comfortable with that, my favorite move facing my man is the Drexler drop step. This requires only one left-handed dribble and the ability to finish going left. 1. Do a hard dribble right into your man barely going right, 2. collect your feet underneath you to prepare to spin clockwise 3. your second right-handed dribble on this move will be transfered to your left hand, as you begin your spin be shielding the ball with your body. 4. with the dribble coming off the court into your left hand, complete your spin by rotating your right foot around your man...this is the same as the Barkly low post spin that you are probably already good at. 5. The farther you drop you right foot into the lane the better. 6. Now you left hand completes the spin with one last dribble going towards the basket. Collect the ball, do a hop step or whatever and you should have a left handed lay-in like Drexler if help doesn't arrive. This move begins around the free throw line (again, just envision Drexler). It is also quite effect means to complete a fast break, ala Gary Payton. This is the move I would like to see Francis add as his goto move this summer. [This message has been edited by heypartner (edited April 12, 2001).]
rimbaud, you use your fingertips most??? dribbling is like shooting the ball at the ground. Do not dribble the ball at the court like Shaq shoots freethrows at the basket...with his fingertips. I agree that following through with the fingertips is key, but you can't do it with just the fingertips anymore than you can shoot with just the fingertips...that's what I mean by "patting" the ball. "Palming" is not entirely the right word, but better than "fingertips". So, what is that area of the hand where my calouses used to be, the underside of the knuckles. "The Pad"? [This message has been edited by heypartner (edited April 12, 2001).]
heyp, From mrbasketball.net, Sidney Goldstein, writer of many books, including Basketball Coach's(and Player's) Bilble: 2. You Can't Shoot Properly Unless You Hold The Ball Correctly The most difficult skills, including shooting, passing, catching, dribbling, and rebounding, involve holding the ball. There are many signs of faulty ball handling: dropping passes; spraining and jamming fingers; palming the ball; rebounding poorly, shooting poorly. I can't overemphasize the importance of working on this skill daily. Here is how to practice holding the ball: 1. Make both hands into claws. 2. Make sure your fingers are far apart. 3. Put the ball between the claws and hold the ball securely. Your only contact with the ball should be your finger ends, not the pads. The palm and other parts of the hand do not touch the ball. Overdoing the hold this way is most beneficial. I, myself, learned it a long time ago from some coaches. Sure, "palming" it is unavoiable at times, but for maximum control this is the best way. The difference with this and shooting (when the ball will touch the back of the knuckles-type area) is that you have much more power because of downward momentum. ------------------ Whitey will pay.
thx for the input all. Smeg- u are right about rebounding giving you more opportunities. Past few days I've been rebounding like i used to and I've scored more on putbacks than the people taking a majority of the shots. heypee- I definitely have a quick release now, and facing up mid-range is something i believe i need to learn to do. My dribbling is decent, but i have bad habbits like dribbling too high, patting it occasionally and looking at the ball. My crossover is decent, but I'm often afraid to try it unless i don't respect the defense. Oh, and on my shot and dribble, i use mostly my fingertips, but i do use a little of the callouses. that move sounds nice, ill try practicing it. rimmy, I'll destroy you when we meet. I am pretty good at defending "slashers" like you And you are probably right about the stamina thing, i used to put all my energy into rebounding, d, and setting screens. Now i concentrate on playing d and staying fresh. Gah! I need to shed some weight. ------------------ snap crackle pop
Man, I wish I could worry about dribbling skills. I still have no idea how to properly shoot. My form is different with every shot. I have learned how NOT to shoot. My advice is to just forget about getting low post and ball handling skills. Just become a pure shooter, BULLARD STYLE! I would love to join a rec league and be like Bull. That shooter no one wants to leave. Sigh... ------------------ Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon is the greatest player in the history of basketball. If you disagree, you are not a Rocket fan.
rimmy, notice he says "overdoing the hold this way is most beneficial"!!!! I'm simply saying how to overdo palming the ball to prevent patting it. yeah...yeah...yeah...the finger ends control the ball, but only at the end of the follow through. So, describe to me Shaq's free throws. personally, I caress the ball with my palm and pads, most certainly, but largely shoot and dribble with my fingers only. I think he is just trying the make a point about what controls the ball, similar to the reverse point I'm trying to emphasize about not patting the ball.
ZRB, try the arm and wrist strengthening tip I gave about dribbling off the backboard. That is what Larry Bird did. Sounds boring, but it is hard to do. You can't do it well until you learn how to follow through. When you get good at it, you should be able to stand still with arm fully extended and dribble the basketball with a wrist snap only...and both left-handed and right-handed. this greatly improved my shot when i was growing up, and it had the added benefit of improving my left-handed dribbling.
Devilpartner, You hurt my feelings, now you must pay! Some random bball teaching site: Always dribble with your fingertips, never your palms, and try to keep it waist high. Keep your wrist relaxed, and push the ball with a pumping motion of your arm. Don't slap at the ball or tap it. Practice dribbling with either hand. A good dribbler should be able to switch hands and feel comfortable doing it. From the site of some Arizona Jr High State Champions: Your feet should be comfortably apart, knees and waist should be bent, spread your fingers and use your fingertips. Control the ball with your fingers and wrists. Keep the ball low to the floor for better control. * Handle the ball with your fingertips (you have more sensitivity in your fingertips). Keep your fingers spread and relaxed but firm. gymamerica.com Being a good ball handler takes lots of practice. Still, when you practice, you must use the proper technique. * Always dribble with your fingertips. This gives you more control over the ball. If you slap at the ball with the palm of your hand, you will have less ability to guide the ball — which leads to turnovers. plymouthbasketball.co.uk: Use your fingertips, not the palm of your hand. * Spread your hand, use your wrist. * Keep the ball low. * Keep your head up. Work on dribbling without looking at the ball. * Remember to practice all dribbling drills with both strong and weak hands. The Coaches Clipboard: How to Dribble Use your fingertips, not the palms of your hands.. Basketball is played on the tips of your fingers and the balls of your feet. Use your forearm and wrist to bounce the ball. Don't look at the ball... keep your head up and eyes forward. You must learn to use either hand. So when doing drills, always work both hands. Cramer's Coaching Corner: When you first teach dribbling, for example, explain why the girls need to remember to use their fingertips, dribble low and keep their heads up. Pittsburgh Post-Gazete "Ask The Expert" section: A lot of people start dribbling with the palm of their hand instead of using their fingertips and their wrists. Use more wrist than the whole hand or whole arm -- more wrist action with the fingertips. ------------------ Whitey will pay.
ZRB, Don't become too fascinated with the idea of shooting exactly the way every professional tells you. I can tell you my shot is not picture perfect, and while my form is not horrible at camps people always tried to finetune it. But the thing about my shot-- I've yet in my life to play against a person who was a better shooter than me. I've won so much in my life (money or prizes) in "shooting contest" type things, all the way from close friends to two of the main events (three point shootout and around the world) at the 98 Final Four in SA. (thousands and thousands of people were there competing as you can imagine from a Final Four event) Through high school I made every team based on one principle-- I can shoot the ball better than anyone out there. My rebounding is average to below average, I'm just 5'10, not a great defender, and my speed is average at best. My game is and always will be patterned after Glen Rice to give a comparison. But anyway, the point is my form has always been scrutinized, but just keep trying and find something you are comfortable with. The professionals are not always right. Go in a gym one day and shoot about 10 shots each with all of those different forms you use. Try and pick one that you are successful with and continually use that one form. While you don't have to have the textbook form to be a great shooter, you do need to have a consistent form so pick one and keep practicing. Repetition is the key. Also, make sure and practice just with you and a basket. If you are just trying to learn the fundamentals of your shot and shooting, its a good idea to get set with your feet, etc. Good luck. P.S.-- Be sure and keep practicing your midrange game. This may sound like a crazy statistic, but this is exactly the truth from when I went out and shot yesterday. From NBA 3 point range (23'9 at the top of the key): I made 17 of 20. From the free throw line: I made 13 of 20. When you shoot as many 3's as I do repeatedly, it feels strange shooting the FT's again! ------------------ President of the Mo Taylor, Jason Collier, and draft Richard Jefferson fan club! Draftsource.net ClutchTown.com
Nice dribbling 101 for kids age 6-11. CK is not a kid. CK, did you really misundertand me to say pat the ball with your palm...if so, you suck! Man...I forgot how kids do pat with their palm. My mistake was using stiff fingers when I was growing up (like the Claw in your first quote), not feeling the ball. In Illinois if you actually pat the ball with your palm the first time you dribble like you new quotes say...or like you are petting a dog, they throw you out into the cold to freeze to death so you never reproduce. Notice how that is for "beginners". Do they teach beginners cross-over moves or how to palm like Magic and Stockton. seriously though, I am in full agreement that the fingers and follow through are the key to everything. I think what they are trying to overly emphasize with the "fingertip" Tip is that you must follow through on dribbling just like shooting. You can still palm it if you follow through with the fingers...which comes back to my original drill of dribbling off the backboard. FEEL the BALL! Those tips above are classic (don't say what really happens, because it will confuse them).
As far as rebounding goes, it is my passion. If I play a 30 minn game(intramural in school) I will usually have 15-20 boards. I still just get my points off the offensive glass most of the time, so I still have the love for glass. What works for me to rebound more is anger. im not talkin mad at anything in particular, but if you think of the backboard as your girlfriend I bet you wont want anyone else playing off her... ok weirs annalogy. basicly push people around. that kindof includes your teamates. dont worry if you THINK those are your teamates hands outstreached for the ball. ITS YOUR FRIKKIN BALL. rarely will you actually take one from a teamate, but I mean dont go halfassed cuz you thinm your teamate has it. YOU must get every ball. thats how I play D-line in football, and play Flanker in rugby. THE BALL IS ALWAYS YOUR BALL. this is not a ball hog attitude. this is a defensive bal hog attitude. once ai get the ball I ALWAYS PASS IT AWAY. unless i got the easy layup, or putback. it is totally mental. push bodies, bang elbown, eat small children, but GET THE DAMN BALL. since you used to be a great reboundfer you probably know positioning, but it helps to be a good jumper. run stairs alot, and do it carying weights heavy weights. do it till you think you are gonna stumble on the way down, than keep going. for a fun way to make yo a better jumper/rebounder. get 3 of your friends (or more and play this game lover a rim to 9 feet(pretty easy to dunk on) and play a game to 50. dunks count as 1 pt. ally oops count for 2. this should get you jumping ALOT. scoring,rebounding,blocking. its like your tigger, bounce bounce bounce bounce 1 point/repeat after the game, play another. raise the rim if you can. makes it harder. 9.5 feet is SUCH a tireing game though. ------------------ Hanta-Force Paintball www.hanta-force.com
Hahahahahaha! Crisco, I feel sorry for you. Poor no talent soul. Ok, seriously... it is funny because we are opposite. I used to be a killer shooter...but, as Jeff can attest, I am no longer. This is because I have not played regularly in 3 or so years. Anyway, in a game-type situation I pretty much only rely on my driving ability, fakes, and circus stuff. i have a very effective baby hook that I can do while in motion, standing still, turnaround, etc. If I am successful at this stuff, then I go to outside shots -- when I am warm. I do a little posting up. Of course, all of this is harder (and more painful) now with my arthritic knees. heyp's ball to the backboard routine is a good one. howevere, you really use your fingertips most when controlling the ball, not the palm. Practice the "figure 8" type dribbling routines, with legs apart and dribbling around and between your legs. Work on crossovers and reverse (this is really effective for losing a man - has never failed). I have had to play against taller opponents alot. In additiona, they are usually bigger (I am a little over 6', but only weigh about 160-was even lighter when younger). Post up to a degree works, but I was always more successful facing up, using fakes, good dribbling, etc. You are probably just using more energy now for offense, so cannot maintain the same rebounding stamina. Damn, I really wish we could play. it sounds as if our playing styles are fairly different - would be interesting. ------------------ Whitey will pay.
I envy you Cat. All I have ever wanted to do with basketball is to shoot well. I've never cared about developing any other aspect of my game. All I've ever wanted to do is shoot well. My problem is, one day, I will think I've finally gotten a particular form down. The next day, I forget how to shoot in that particular form. It gets very frustrating at times. That aside, I would like to know one thing. Where should the ball be released? Above the head? In front? Watching the NBA doesn't help because like you Cat, I am only 5'10. I'm sure that 6'8ers shoot differently than midgets like us. ------------------ Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon is the greatest player in the history of basketball. If you disagree, you are not a Rocket fan.
Actually, most of those did go on to discuss various crossovers and other advanced moves. 1 was a little blurb about teaching little girls. One was from a WNBA player...the ask the expert was from a multiple Private HS Coach of the Year in Texas...another highschool basketball coach who has won state championships in 2 different states, etc. Just clarifying...not arguing. how much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood... ------------------ Whitey will pay.
If you're looking for post-up game help, just watch Timmy Duncan. And don't just watch the game, pay particular attention to him when he gets the ball on the block. Truly already a great post player. ------------------ Never Underestimate the Heart of a Champion
You know, it's funny-- I've never even thought about that. It's been so long since I've thought about stuff like that that I'm not an expert there. However, I'm practicing form right now in my chair to try and see, and I think right when I release it the bottom of the ball is about a half inch to an inch above the top of my head-- just barely. Also, ZRB-- do you shoot jump shots or set shots? Part of my success may be that I use a set shot a lot, and you might want to consider it. My legs don't come off the ground very far when I shoot, and I have good rotation. If any of you guys want a good book to read that explains everything very well, go down to your local bookstore and just read the "Basketball for Dummies" book by Digger Phelps. I ended up buying the book three years ago at the Final Four to get into an autograph session where you could talk with Digger, etc. Didn't think I'd ever use the book, but I started looking at it and it actually teaches a lot. You don't have to buy it, but you can pick up some pointers if you read it at Waldenbooks or something for 15 minutes or so. ------------------ President of the Mo Taylor, Jason Collier, and draft Richard Jefferson fan club! Draftsource.net ClutchTown.com
Jump? Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha haaaa! I can't jump. I shoot set shots. ------------------ Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon is the greatest player in the history of basketball. If you disagree, you are not a Rocket fan.
