Basketball Tips You Could Benefit From Knowing

Men and women, young and old alike, enjoy basketball as a sport. Regardless of background, few people can resist the allure of basketball. The next time you're playing a game, show your friends your new moves. What moves you say? You should keep reading to learn more about basketball.

Always protect the ball when you are in possession of it. Keep your dribble off to the side of your body to make it more difficult for another player to steal the ball. While you generally want to avoid dribbling in front of you, you can do so if there are no other players in your immediate vicinity.

When you think you have a good shot, take it. This can be difficult to learn. There is a balance between not shooting enough and shooting too often. You never want to miss out on taking a great shot because you are looking to pass, but you do not want to miss on a couple of points because you do not make the pass.

When you dribble, make sure that you use fingertips instead of palms. This gives you much more control over the ball. Using your palms can cause the ball to go all over the place on the court, whereas using your fingertips keeps it under your control when you have to run.

Do not restrict your practices to zone defenses alone. Zone play will be important, but man-to-man will pop up from time to time, too. You may lose control of the game if you aren't prepared.

In order to get a good shot, you must use good footwork. Securing a good location is critical when playing basketball. You need to be sure your spot is secure. Footwork is the key to either of these.

Learn the positions on a basketball court. Each position has different roles to fill on both offense and defense. There are guards, point guards, forwards, power forwards, and centers. If you want to really enjoy basketball, learn the needs of all of the positions, not just the one you are most interested in.

When injuries occur on the court, it is unwise to keep on playing. The sport of basketball is very physical, which makes one susceptible to injury. By "playing through the pain" you take a huge risk that the injury will become much worse. See a physician if you think your injury is serious.

Good shooters rely on the perimeter shot, so practice getting open to get these key shots. A good play to run is having a post player work the ball down low and then pass it back out once the defense collapses. Run a drill during practice where the only shots you take are those from passes coming from inside the paint.

You'll now be able to feel confident the next time that you step onto a basketball court. You may now even know a few secrets that your friends are unaware exist. Enjoy the game every time you play. No matter what, though, winning is always a great feeling.