Basketball is an amazing sport that requires skill, coordination, dexterity, and aim. The name of the game is scoring baskets, and becoming consistent on the court requires repeated practice with some of the best portable basketball hoops in the market.
Even though every player needs extra practice shooting, it is important to be well-rounded and bring unique skills to your team. Here are a few extra skills to master so you can better your game!
3-Point Shots
Every player wants to make a basket from outside the 3-point line because it will win your team extra points, but it takes lots of practice. With your home hoop set up, measure twenty feet out from the hoop in all directions, so you have a rough half-circle marked out with chalk or tape.
When shooting, stand outside your half circle and make sure to keep the ball away from your body as it comes up, so your forearms stay perpendicular to the court. This will keep your shot straighter.
Keeping your toes pointed towards the basket when you shoot and keeping your shoulders square will also help you make these shots!
Dribbling and Ball Control
One of the unique elements of basketball is the fast-paced movement. When guarding another player, passing the ball, or running down the court, any good player needs to practice handling the ball!
Your skills will improve by practicing drills where you use one hand to dribble as close to the ground as possible and control two basketballs simultaneously in a windshield wiper motion.
If you would like to make these drills more difficult, try dribbling the basketball with one hand and tossing a tennis ball up in the air with the other. The goal is to toss the tennis ball and catch it without stopping your dribbling.
Footwork and Agility
Getting yourself close to the hoop can be the most difficult part of the game because of the defenders. The game is ultimately decided by which team has agile players who have talented players enough to dodge past the defense.
A good way to practice and improve this skill is using a tool called a ladder, which has a series of squares tied together that lie flat on your carpet, field, or cement. You can do ladder drills involving stepping in and out of the squares as you move from one end to the other.
Speed On The Court
Getting the ball across the court to score points will require a great deal of speed in addition to agility. There are some great drills to increase your speed and endurance, like line drills and other sprinting exercises.
A very beneficial drill to do every day is sometimes referred to as “suicides,” where the player stands at one side of the court and sprints a quarter of the way across and back. Half of the way across and back, and eventually all the way down the court and back.
Suicides train you to pick up speed fast and sustain your high speed all the way across the court.
The More Practice, the More Consistency
Practice is the key to success, especially in a sport like basketball. Being agile and scoring points for your team requires hours of repetition and drills.
Practicing 3-point shots and dribbling skills a hundred times will create muscle memory, and you will be consistent on the court. Improving speed and agility is only done through hard work and lots of conditioning drills, so be sure to put in the time and work every day!
