|
TIP TO POINT GUARDS: The best point guards are an extension of their coach
onto the playing court. You must be a COACH ON THE FLOOR. To do this, you must learn the game thoroughly, learn WHAT YOUR
COACH WANTS DONE with the offense and defense, learn what to do in special situations, and learn the strengths and weaknesses
of each of your teammates. Read books on basketball, watch as many games as possible, and meet with your coach regularly to
clearly understand exactly what he/she wants done on the court. You may not be the quickest point guard on your team, or the
best shooting point guard, but if you have learned to be a COACH ON THE FLOOR, you will be the one your coach calls on to
lead his/her team.
TIP NO. 2 TO POINT GUARDS: The number one mental aspect
of point guard play is UNSELFISHNESS. You must always put the good of the team above your own recognition. You can never worry
about the number of points you score, only about the number of points your TEAM scores. The ability to score can be a plus,
but it can never be a priority for a point guard.
TIP TO BIG/TALL PLAYERS: Your opponent can be a bigger and better player
than you are, but there is one trait you can develop that will let you beat him/her. That trait is THE ABILITY TO RUN THE
FLOOR! It is amazing the number of taller players who cannot really run the floor at full speed. Get yourself into PEAK PHYSICAL
CONDITION so that you can really run from basket to basket throughout a game and you will BEAT YOUR OPPONENT.
BIG MAN TIP #2: One of the important qualities of big man play is to WANT THE BALL! You run
the floor so that you can GET THE BALL! When you don't get it, you post up HARD calling for the ball! When a teammate takes
a shot, you go for the board in a tremendous effort to GET THE BALL! Remember, the big man is the HEART
OF THE OFFENSE and the more you GET THE BALL the more you will score and the more your TEAM
will score!
Tip #1 For Wing Players: The easiest way for a wing player like a Small
forward or shooting guard to get buckets is move without the ball. Just think Rip Hamilton or Reggie Miller. Most defenders
today dont feel like chasing people around and will leave you wide open if you make them run. Coming off screens and curling
for wide open shots is alot easier then trying to take top defenders right off the dribble.
Tip #2 for Wing Player: How does that cheer go? Be aggresive, be be agressive...Attack
the basket whenenver you can. A layup is alot more high percent then a fade away 3. The more you get to the line, to more
their players will drop off you to stay out of foul trouble. Plus its easy points. Ever notice how people like iverson and
paul pierce can have a 30 point game, and be 4-15 from the field? Its because they go to the line and are 20-20
Workout Tip:
The most important
muscles to work on for becoming faster more explosive athlete are: hamstrings, glutes, abs, and lower back, hip flexors and
oblique (side of the stomach). The only way to become faster and more explosive is to become stronger in the proper functional
muscle groups. Strengthening these muscle groups will make you stronger, faster, jump higher and give you more overall athletic
ability. More than anything else this will help prevents injury. Training these muscles should be a top priority.
|
| By: Gary (live4this13) |
A point guard is usually the leader of the team and generally has the role of setting up
the entire offense. A point guard should be able to handle the ball, see the entire floor, and be able to effectively talk
to the other teammates on the floor. Throughout this article I will give you all the information you need to be your team's
point guard.
 Handling The Ball: 
Handling the ball is easily the most important thing to being a point guard. In order to be the best ball handler possible,
you should have at least one "go to" move. This move would be the one that you feel the most confident performing, and should
be able to create space between you and your defender.
On top of a "go to" move, you should have 2 or 3 secondary moves that you can use to change up; you should feel comfortable
enough to perform these under moderate pressure.
You should practice performing these moves with your head up. This is very important, as you will be surveying the floor
when dribbling, and will not have time to look at the ball.
Seeing The Floor:
Another important aspect of being a point guard is being able to see the floor effectively. As a point guard one of your
jobs will be finding the open man for the open shot.
In order to better see the floor you will have to be able to dribble with your head up. Practice dribbling up and down
the floor scanning the floor side to side.
Passing:
Passing the ball is also extremely important. You should be able to comfortably whip the ball around the court. Passing
is important due to the fact that if your teammates are open, and you fail to get them the ball, your team will fail. As a
point guard you need to be able to find your teammates on the floor for easy looks.
You should incorporate pass fakes into your arsenal to keep the defender off balance. Try to avoid making to many careless
behind the back, or between the leg passes, they are successful sometimes, but are far less accurate than traditional passing
techniques.
Creating Your Shot:
 As a point guard shooting is not your main job. However, it will be very helpful to you and your team to be able to create
your own shot. In order to do this, you need to create a gap between you and your defender. The best way to do this is to
"show him your back."
To show your back to a defender means just that, face away from him, make contact between your back and his chest, then
explode off making a move, thus creating space for you to shoot.
This method is quite effective when getting into the lane, however it should not been done outside the three point line.
Leadership:
As a point guard, you should have confidence in yourself and your teammates. You should be able to recognize defense and
get your team in the practice.
Let your teammates know when they do something wrong, and congratulate them when they do good. Set the tempo at practices.
Make sure everyone knows that you can't slack off at practice.
Have A Relationship With Your Coach:
This is another important part of being a point guard. Your coach
has got to have confidence in you. In order for you to correctly perform your job, your coach must have enough faith
in you to be able to trust you to call a play with the game on the line.
When the stadium is packed and noisy, a coach will not always be able to call the play. This is where the point guard comes
in. He must be able to recognize defenses and set his team up.
|
