3 Simple Steps to Improve Your Rebounding

By Jeff Haefner

Rebounding is one of the most important, yet underrated skills in basketball. Of all the uncertainties that exist in basketball, the one constant is there will be missed shots. Whether a team shoots well or shoots poorly, often the winning or losing team is determined by what happens to the shots that are missed. The team that gets most of the rebounds gets additional offensive opportunities and that often translates into more points on the scoreboard, which usually means wins.

Becoming a better rebounder is simple and you can get there in 3 simple steps.

1) Conditioning

Basketball is a physical game. Running up and down the court over the course of a game will wear you out. In addition, there is a lot of physical contact. The closer you get to the basket, the more physical it gets. Remember, close to the basket is where most of the rebounds are. The combination of the running that you do during the game and the body blows you take while going after the glass is enough to wear anyone down. Often, rebounding comes down to a war of attrition, whoever is left standing at the end wins. The better condition you are in, the longer you can last on the glass. You will find that being in great condition will allow you to get rebounds at the end of the game that you might not be able to get early in the game.

Conditioning is a great equalizer. A player that is bigger and stronger than you are in the beginning of the game might not be so effective at the end of the game if you are in better condition than he is.

2) Knowledge

Just knowing a couple of things will drastically improve your chance of getting a rebound.

First, know personnel, especially your teammates. If you know other players tendencies, when they shoot and from where, you will greatly enhance your chances of grabbing misses. Knowing when shots will be taken will give you a quicker start to the glass and allow you to get better position than your opponent.

Second, knowing where the ball is going to go will also give you a great advantage over your opponent. The simple fact that 80% of all missed shot rebound at the same or opposite angle should give you a head start on the rebound. What that means is, if a shot is taken from the corner, 80% of the misses will rebound back toward the same corner or over the rim to the opposite corner. Shots taken from the wing will rebound either back toward the wing or toward the opposite wing 80% of the time.

Knowing these two things will put you in great position to collect any missed shots

3) Technique

You don’t have to jump over tall buildings or be stronger than a locomotive to be a good rebounder. You need good technique.

You don’t have to know a lot of things, only how to swim. What does that mean? A swim move is simple, quick and effective.

This is how to execute a swim move. The objective is to get your inside hip and inside shoulder past your opponent. As your defender either steps to box you out, don’t fight his pressure, use it against him. As he steps out, step inside of him with your inside leg (the leg closest to your defender on the side you want to beat him on). At the same time, use your inside arm (the arm on the same side as your inside foot) and “swim” over the top of his shoulder. It is called a “swim” because it is essentially the same stroke you use when you are swimming in a pool. The “swim” will allow you to get your inside shoulder past your defender. When timed properly, you will find yourself between the basket and your defender and in excellent position for the rebound.

Rebounding is an important part of the game of basketball and it is vital to the success of your team. With these 3 simple concepts you can improve your rebounding and become a significant factor in the success of your team and make you an invaluable asset to any team you are a member of.

Basketball Tips: How to Get a Basketball Scholarship

By Jeff Haefner

Every year, thousands of high school and junior college basketball players compete to get one of the few basketball scholarships that are awarded each year. Here are some basketball tips on how to increase your chances of being selected to receive one of those coveted positions.

Talent and Ability

First and foremost, you have to maximize your basketball skill. Every day you are not getting better, someone else is getting better than you. You have to work and work to become the best player you can be. Work on your skills, be in condition and get stronger.

The jump from high school to college is a big jump. Players are bigger, stronger and more experienced. The game is longer, faster and more physical than anything you have experienced so far in your career. Don’t fall into the trap that you are doing enough to get yourself ready. Without exception, when new college players report for their first workouts they are surprised at how different it is compared to high school. Work to be ready.

The Value of Summer Basketball

Basketball recruiting has changed drastically over the last 15 years. Rules that colleges have to abide by have become more restrictive. The pressure to get commitments from players has resulted in players deciding earlier and earlier on what schools they are going to attend. It is no longer sufficient to be a good player with your high school team. Your senior year in college has almost become irrelevant! Colleges need to identify prospects earlier and earlier in their career. Coaches now go to places where they can identify and evaluate multiple prospects at one time. The places for that have become AAU tournaments and high profile “recruiting summer camps.”

AAU (or Amateur Athletic Union) is an organization that sponsors amateur sporting events. In basketball, they sponsor spring, summer and fall tournaments in multiple age groups. The age brackets are usually 19 & under, 17 & under, 15 & under, etc. The advantage of that system is that you can play up a bracket to get in better competition (a 15 year old can play in a 17 & U tournament but a 17 year cannot play in a 15 & U tournament). The tournaments are usually played during “live” college recruiting periods so college recruiters heavily attend them. If you can find an AAU basketball team in your area and it is an appropriate age bracket it would be well worth your effort to join the program.

High profile “recruiting camps” are camps that are held during the summer that attract high-level players, which in turn, attract college recruiters. Most of these are private camps, not camps owned by universities, colleges or high schools. They usually offer excellent instruction and very competitive games. Call a couple of colleges and find out what camps they attend to evaluate prospects and make plans to attend.

Summer basketball has become the most significant aspect of recruiting. At no other time can a college coach go to one spot and evaluate 300-400 players at one time. If you want to get one of those scholarships, you have to be where the coaches are.

Be Pro-Active

Don’t wait for a college to find you, go find them. If there are schools that you are interested in, contact them early, and let them know of your interest. Visit the campus, invite the coach to come and see you play. Have your high school coach contact the schools you are interested in. Be sure they have the information they need to evaluate you. Things like game schedules, summer schedules, etc. should be sent to all schools you are interested in. Return all questionnaires and comply with all the requirements that they have for acceptance to school.

Take Care of Your Schoolwork

Believe it or not, college coaches want athletes with good grades! Players in college are “student-athletes.” They attend class, write papers, and do research. Coaches really don’t like to take chances on academic risks. Get good grades; take your standardized tests (SATs, ACTs) as early and as often as possible. Unless you are truly a great player, coaches will not wait for you.

To get a scholarship, you have to register for the NCAA Initial Eligibility Clearinghouse. This is the organization that will evaluate your grades to determine whether or not you are eligible to play. Even if you are in junior college, they will go back to your high school grades to determine your eligibility (there are different rules for “qualifiers” and “non-qualifiers” coming out of high school and junior college). Take care of your registration as early as possible.

There used to be a saying, “if you can play, they will find you.” That is NOT true any more!! Being able to play is not enough, now. You have to be out where the coaches can find you.

For more basketball players tips, check out our free ebooks and resources on this site…

http://www.breakthroughbasketball.com/toptips.html
http://www.breakthroughbasketball.com/fundamentals/basketballfundamentals.html

A Secret to Chris Paul’s Success - Change of Pace

By Joe Haefner

How does Chris Paul blow by defenders so easily?

I feel sorry for all of the defenders trying to guard Chris Paul of the New Orleans Hornets as he blows by them for a jump shot or dunk.  I am amazed at the way he finds that 3rd and 4th gear and CHANGES PACE so quickly and effortlessly.

Chris Paul goes from really fast to super fast and he’ll stop at the drop of a dime which is nearly impossible to adjust to as a defender.   That’s why he has asserted himself as one of the top NBA MVP candidates along with Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett.  

Do you have Chris’s amazing speed and quickness? 

Most likely, you do not.  Don’t worry.  You can still be extremely effective by CHANGING SPEEDS.  Change of speed or pace can make a slow player very difficult to guard.  You think Larry Bird was quick?  If so, think again. 

Larry Bird might be one of the slowest players to play the game, but he still utilized the change of pace and was voted as one of the top 50 NBA players of all-time! Have you ever tried guarding somebody who changes speeds all of the time?  I have and it sucks!  You never know when he’s going to explode by you or slow down and pull up for a jump shot.  You can never relax as a defender!  

How You Can Practice Change of Pace and Become Harder to Guard

With that being said, you do need practice more than two speeds (Fast & Slow).   Good defenders can adjust to this after just a few possessions. Many of the great players have 4 to 5 different speeds to throw the defender off.  I remember watching Mike Conley of Ohio State in the NCCA Tourney in 2007.  I thought he had 6 different speeds and he was never out of control.

In order to practice this you can simply dribble the ball up and down the court.  Do your change of speeds at two to three times up the court.  For example, change speeds at the free throw line, half court, and the opposite free throw line. You can practice different speeds…. 3/4 speed to full speed, 1/2 speed to full speed, 1/4 speed to full speed, and stop to full speed.  Try to minimize the time it takes you to reach that top gear.  This basketball move is also known as the “hesitation dribble”. You can even practice using multiple speeds.  For example, going from 1/2 speed to 3/4 speed to full speed.  Mix it up to portray game-like situations. When you get the hang of this, you can practice at a hoop going in for lay ups and pull up jump shots.  Once, you perfect this, this change of pace will have defenders’ heads spinning.