Fakes

I am a very good dribbler but I can't fake anyone out to get to the hoop any tips on how to fake someone out?

Improving your shooting? If you are a great shooter, defenders will be flying at you to take away your shot. Then all you have to do is get in shooting position. If you are open, shoot. If they close out fast at you, blow by them to the basket.

If the guy is already taking me what should I do?

Also sometimes when i shoot my guide hand pushes the ball in the other direction and my shot goes off what should I do?

I wouldn't worry so much about "faking out" the defender. I would worry about using your footwork to get your lead foot and shoulder at the same level as the defender.

If you are making a series of dribble moves and fakes trying to get the defender to buy a fake, you will be stagnating the ball movement and your teams offense. My whole thought on beating your defender is if you are moving without the ball, using screens well, and catching ready to shoot, an opportunity to take advantage of the defender and the defense should happen naturally and be there on the catch.

I also liked Don Kelbick's attack and counter system for getting scoring opportunities. Have a really good move (singular as in 1). Be so good at it that you can perform it in any situation against anyone. Then have a really good counter move off of your main move.

Approach it with this philosophy: I'm going to perform THIS move every time until they stop me. If they take THIS move away, then I will counter it with this move. Often times the trick to getting open and better offense is not to add more, it is to do less.

Many players don't want to hear this, because they love the dribble moves, and the feeling that they get when they cross up a defender. They like that "And1 moment". But the better your competition gets, the fewer players you'll be able to do that to. That is where you will need to be concise in your movements. Don't do anything not necessary. Keep your movement to a minimum, efficient, and use good footwork and fundamentals to get an edge on the defender.

Just my thoughts. Doesn't make me right.

Brian Sass

I have a mini hoop that goes over a door could I practice with that or will it mess up my shot?

These kind of things need to be practiced on a real hoop, close to real height, real asphalt, and live defense.

Want to get better at beatung a defender?

Start from these spots:
Left Block
Right Block
Left Elbow
Right Elbow
Left wing (FT line extended)
Right Wing (FT line extended)
Top of Key
Right Corner baseline
Left Corner baseline

Now go one on one vs defender.

But you only get one dribble.

This is the litmus test for how effective any move you have is....

What do u mean by start at these points?

Those locations are the starting spots for you to play one on one against a live defender. Starting from each of those spots on the floor will give you different angles, situations, distances.

Limiting yourself to one dribble simulates the help defense. In 5 on 5 you normally won't get more than one to get from one place to another.

This is how you work on your one on one moves.

ok ill try it and tell u how it goes thanks for all the advice

briansass wrote:If you are making a series of dribble moves and fakes trying to get the defender to buy a fake, you will be stagnating the ball movement and your teams offense. My whole thought on beating your defender is if you are moving without the ball, using screens well, and catching ready to shoot, an opportunity to take advantage of the defender and the defense should happen naturally and be there on the catch.

That's some solid advice right there. ^

You're basically asking how to create separation from your defender. Look up: basketball creating separation videos, Ganon Baker has some great concepts. Brain is correct though, you don't want to get too caught up in ankle breaker moves, it's more about good fundamental basketball when creating separation.

On the guide hand, trying just using your shooting hand when you're practicing. A good drill to see if your shot is straight is using your shooting hand and hitting the side of the basket in a gym. If you're doing it correctly, the ball should come straight back at you. Also practicing your shot from short distances with just your shooting hand.

It could be your thumb on the guide hand, hard to say without seeing the shot. Here's a link to some common shooting errors and how to fix them: http://www.breakthroughbasketball.com/fundamentals/shooting/5-shooting-mistakes.html

Lots of great advise to pass on to my team here.