How to Play Basketball Blog – You Are Not Dwight Howard
You are not Dwight Howard. You are not Serge Ibaka. You are not a shot blocker! At least not yet. If you are currently averaging 3 or 4 blocks per game then you can stop reading this. I am talking to everybody who is not averaging more than 3 blocks a contest.
Remember we are working on your fundamentals. Shot blocking is a skill not a fundamental. You can develop shot blocking skills but there is something that anyone can do no matter their skill level. It is called challenging shots. So maybe you have worked like crazy to guard your player but they just made a great move. They created enough space for them to get their shot off and there is nothing you can do about it besides foul them. Or is there? Yes there is! You can put your hand up and challenge the shot. No matter how great of a scorer you are guarding you will make their shot harder if you contest it with a hand.
The key to challenging shots is not to foul them. Usually this means staying on the ground and not trying to block the shot. This might sound crazy to some of you because you probably try to block every shot that is in your face. You are not Dwight Howard. You are not elevating over everybody on the court to go block the shot at it’s highest point.
When you leave your feet to block a shot you do 2 things that are not good. You lose your position to box out the shooter. You also increase your chance of fouling them. We already talked about rebounding here so you know that it is very important to be a good rebounder. You cannot be a good rebounder and be out of position. In regards to the second point, if you are always fouling then are you playing good defense? No! You will be spending a lot of time on the bench in foul trouble if you foul every time somebody shoots. Pick-up is practice so let’s not practice fouling.
Stay down, challenge the shot and then go get the rebound!
Learn about the other 4 areas of defense you can improve by ordering a copy of the book here How to Play Basketball: A Guide to Getting Better By Playing Pick-up Games
You are your only opponent
Coach Wilkins
Coach/Owner of Hoops Education
Former D1 Player/Former AAU Coach/Former HS Coach
Author of How to Play Basketball: A Guide to Getting Better By Playing Pick-up Games
P.S. Make sure you follow us on twitter @HoopsEducation
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