Basketball Positions

Center

The center is essentially the person who is everywhere. They play generally closest to the basket on both offense and defense, getting up as high as possible for rebounds for offense. For defense, they need to block shots, thus again getting as high as possible.

Having physical strength and core holds a key role in the center's influence of the game, as getting up to the net is not an easy feat for a lanky, skinny person in a crowd of other players.

Power Forward

The power forward is similar to the center in regards to physical attributes, however they are usually somewhat faster and fitter. They must be accustomed to physical play as most of their work takes place inside, meaning a lot of banging and shoving in their gameplay. Additionally, the power forward is expected to have a higher capability of hitting shots than the center.

Small Forward

Usually shorter than the power forward, a small forward possesses similar skills of physical and speed capabilities as the power forward, they are however more capable of playing inside to do center type things, as well as guard type things. Usually the 2nd best outside shooter of the 5 players, the small forward also needs to be an all purpose defender.

Shooting Guard

The shooting guard is, obviously, the player that takes the most shots. He needs to be a dangerous outside shooter, including from three point range.

It is necessary for the shooting guard to have top ball coordination and passing skills, as well as moving without the ball and getting out in the open away from defense.

Point Guard

The point guard handles the ball the most of any player on the team, generally bringing the ball down the court and initiating the offensive plays. As such, he needs to be the best in most qualities of the team.

Height is not an important factor in the role of point guard, as much as intelligence and court vision is. This is because they are constantly coordinating all 5 players on offense to make plays.

Some point guards are offensive weapons comparable to shooting guards and take plenty of shots themselves. Others see their main role as passing to set up shots.

Source: http://bit.ly/1nQ8zeB

Miami Fourth Straight NBA Finals?

Will Miami be the second team in NBA history to enter four NBA finals in a row? Only the LA Lakers led by Kobe Bryant has been able to do it so far. Miami have their star line up consisting of:

#34 Ray Allen

#11 Chris Anderson

#31 Shane Battier

#8 Michael Beasley

#1 Chris Bosh

# 15 Mario Chalmers

#30 Norris Cole

#40 Udonis Haslem

#6 Lebron James

#22 James Jones

#9 Rashard Lewis

#20 Greg Oden

#3 Dwyane Wade

and Coach Erik Spoelstra.

Some of NBA's biggest names are on this team, but the one that stands out the most at the moment is Lebron James having made it to the NBA finals 6 out of a possible 8 in recent times. So, will this be the 9th? With Lebron and Wade leading the team in terms of stats for the year closely followed by Allen and Bosh, this team's All Stars are looking strong and in great form with some strong individual performances week in week out. Miami is looking like a very strong team and already leading the Brooklyn Nets in a 4-1 series, so this teams hopes of making it through to yet another NBA finals is looking high. 

Best of Slam Dunks 2012-13

There were some amazing games through the 2012-2013 season of NBA, with amazing steals, shots and of course dunks. Today we are here to have a look at the top 10 dunks of the season and just some overall great plays from some extraordinary individuals. 

#10 Terrence Ross

Toronto Raptors vs Orlando Magic

Terrence Ross takes the #10 spot of the best of slam dunks 2013 in the Toronto vs Orlando game with a windmill dunk following an amazing steal.

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdJ8bQYkNc8

#9 Blake Griffin

LA Clippers vs Detroit Pistons

Blake Griffin the giant has once again shown us his size and power with an amazing alley-oop in the Detriot Vs LA game. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IZ43hxIc8s

#8 Kobe Byrant 

LA Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets

Once again one of the NBA's best has shown off his atheism after many years in the game with one of the strongest dunks throughout the season.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQOGbAVMeB4

#7 Gerald Henderson

Charlotte Bobcats vs LA Lakers

Through the crowd Gerald Henderson has blown away the team reaching over the top of multiple players to slam it right over their heads.

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3izkFFfkNZc

#6 Jeff Green

Utah Jazz vs Boston Celtics

Some times it just seems like Jeef Green is jumping off trampolines to get these dunks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94EqxSBDHdI

#5 DeMar DeRozan

Toronto Raptors vs Denver Nuggets

Powering right down the middle to slam it.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQJjaalhcwY

#4 Blake Griffin

LA Clippers vs Milwaukee Bucks

Jamal Crawford with some sick skills and tricks passing through to Blake Griffin to once again be featured in this top 10.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cylFQ7-K2IE

                  

#3 LeBron James

Miami Heat vs Boston Celtics

Miami Heat have once again shown off their amazing roster with James finishing off the amazing passing and plays with a great drunk.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fm_t6OfBF7Y

#2 Harrison Barnes

Golden State Warriors vs Minnesota Timberwolves

Slamming into #2 is Harrison Barnes with the "One Handed Hammer".

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vm4UQPTORfE

#1 DeAndre Jordan

LA Clippers vs Detroit Pistons

To finish things off who better than DeAndre "Giant" Jordan with one of the most powerful showings in the NBA.

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTkN2q6sUUk

A great season with some great games and great dunks. 

NBA 2k15 Announced Featuring All-Star Kevin Durant

In a relevant topic to the 2014 NBA MVP, the announcement of the next NBA 2k series has started to gear up anticipation for the next in line to the popular NBA 2k series developed by 2k Sports, a cover photo revealing NBA 2k15 has been released as we are given our current MVP Kevin Durant as the all star cover athlete for the next release coming in October 7 in North America and October 10th internationally.

The OKC star revealed "I begged them to put me on the cover because i really think nobody plays the game [NBA 2k] as much as I do"

2 life goals in the same day! So grateful. #YourTimeHasCome #MVP #NBA2K15 @NBA2K http://t.co/Jm8NKTy7Il
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) May 6, 2014

With this series we hope to see the utilization of the powerful current "next gen" consoles as we wished we would see with NBA 2k14, however in terms of graphical performance it was a slight but underwhelming improvement to what we had seen in 2k12/2k13. However this time around with the release of the XBOX One and PS4 we should see improvements to overall game play and also major updates/changes to the online system. Furthermore for PC gamers can hope to see a dedicated PC release as the previous versions had been console ported games which do not utilize a PC's performance efficiently.

RELEASE DATE: OCT 7 (NA) OCT 10 (International)

check out the NBA 2k15 cover featuring Kevin Durant below

2014 NBA Most Valuable Player award goes to Kevin Durant!

http://p3.img.cctvpic.com/photoworkspace/contentimg/2014/05/07/2014050717050878097.jpg

As the 2014 NBA season comes to a near close, we have many big players in the mix for the league's most prestigious award. the most valuable player (MVP) award, with this year showing great consistency from Miami's Lebron James who has set his sights on for a "three-peat" MVP title, earning the last two in a row, and three out of the last four awards. Furthermore, LA Clippers star Blake Griffin was in the running among st other notable players in the league such as Tim Duncan and James Harden. However all efforts by league's star players were overshadowed by the OKC all-star small forward, Kevin Durant, this season in the National Basketball Association we had seen a whole new ball game to Kevin Durant, and as a result he has been awarded with the NBA 2014 MvP award for the regular season.

•  Scored at least 25 points in 41 consecutive games (3rd longest streak in NBA history)
•  Scored over 40 in 14 different matches
• Average of 32 points per game
• Average of 7.4 rebounds, 5.5 assists per game
• 50% shooting from the field

OKC Thunder point guard Russel Westbrook shared a few words about his team mate, "He's been the most constent guy all season long......he's done a great job of leading us to where we are now. He's basically put himself in front of everybody else in the league and shown that he's the best player in the world", Westbrook said at the end of the season.

Catch Kevin Durant's emotional acceptance speech below!

LeBron At It Again

LeBron James, Miami Heat All Star, has once again done his part in the 4^th game against the Brooklyn Nets to secure his team a 3-1 lead in the series. LeBron has matched his career high score of 49 points in a single match last night, displaying a dominating performance and carrying his team to possibly another NBA playoff. Specifically, he had hit a great percentage of his shots, 16 of 24 from the field and 14 of 19 from the free throw line.

LeBron showed us why he is considered one of the greatest players in NBA history, having played an extremely tight game against the Brooklyn Nets. Throughout the whole game neither team had led by double digits, swapping leads over and over. LeBron was the life behind Miami in this game, constantly trying to get the lead for his team, even at one point scoring 13 points in a row.

“He was what was needed on the road and that’s what makes him the best player in the game.” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. Time and time again, LeBron has shown us why he is one of the NBA’s greatest All Stars, performing some spectacular showings during crucial games and against the best teams in the league. Will LeBron be able to repeat his performance throughout the remainder of the series and carry his team through to the playoffs? We’ll have to wait until the next match to find out.

Paul George's Biggest Night in NBA

Paul George, player of the Indiana Pacers, has had his biggest night in the history of his career. George, 20 year old All Star, carried his team in the fourth game against Washington in a nail biting 95 - 92 victory. he scored a total of 39 points, 21 of which came from three-pointers with a 7 out of 10 hit percentage and an amazing 12 rebounds. This achievement had never been done before in NBA playoff history, being one of the largest single player showings to ever occur.

The most amazing part of the game was the fact that his team was down 55 - 38 by halftime and George himself by then only had 11 points to his name. He then brought up his game and smashed 28 points in the second half to demolish the 17 point deficit they had been trailing by. The coach himself, Frank Vogel, had tried taking him off the field for a rest, quote "I kept wanting to try and give him a rest, and he kept saying no. Usually I will override that, but he kept making big shots. When a guy is going like that, I leave him in ... it was a special performance."

In the end, it was an absolute spectacle to see this young All Star play an amazing game, giving an almost flawless performance. Well done to Paul George and best of luck to him and the Pacers for the rest of the Playoffs.

Benefits of Playing Basketball

The game of basketball offers many benefits to many kinds of people. A game known worldwide to take place between two nets and a ball, here is a list of the advantages basketball can have for anyone in this world.

Fitness and Strength

The obvious first choice is yes, by performing physical activity, you become more fit and stronger as you progress. You are constantly running back and forth up and down the court to maintain possession of the ball, score and defend until each time the buzzer goes off. At the same time, you are throwing and catching a ball constantly, building up your arm strength.

Teamwork

Unlike tennis for example, basketball is a team effort for a sport, thus having you co-ordinate with other people in aiming to work together smoothly to beat the opposing team. This offers the chance of improving communication skills, socialisation and being a part of something greater.

Source: http://bit.ly/1g7j8XY

Co-ordination

Passing or shooting the ball in basketball is not a simply toss or throw. It takes precision (especially with three-pointers) and a lot of practice. In the time you are shooting the ball over into the net again and again, co-ordination is enhanced as you slowly narrow down your aim to a consistent percentage of actually scoring.

And there you go. As you can see, there several reasons while basketball is plenty beneficial, physically and mentally. It is a game we highly recommend.

HOW TO: Crossover

The art of the crossover dribble is quite difficult to master, as it requires agility, to have hand eye coordination and the ability to accelerate once performed. The maneuver is performed by the ball handler in which while dribbling the play switches (crosses over) the ball to the other hand, while simultaneously changing directions. The crossover is often performed to allow the player to get a shot or bypass the defence, it is effective against high pressure defence.

There are many variations to the crossover to help you fool the defender, however three primary crossovers that every player should have in their arsenal include the following;

'Basic'

'In and Out' 

'Double'

Basic Crossover

1. Slowly dribble the ball forward with your dominant hand

2. Whilst keeping the ball bouncing below the waist, shoot your hips low and change directions by pivoting your feet

3. As soon as you begin to pivot your feet, bounce the ball in the same direction ahead and catch it with your other hand. (This should be performed in one explosive movement)

4. As you catch the ball in the other hand, the non-ball hand should be used as an arm bar to guard any steal attempts

Variation: Through the legs

Can also be performed by bringing the ball through the legs instead of in front of the player. This variation allows you to protect the ball if the guarding player is up close and placing pressure. This requires some experience and practice.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gh88Go6XN4

The In and Out Crossover

1. Dribble the ball with you dominant hand towards a defender (We will use the right hand as an example here.

2. As you approach the defender, whilst the ball is in your right hand begin by faking to your right side (or hesitate) and crossing the ball over to the other side quickly. As usual keep the ball below the waist and stay low.

3. Instead of continuing in the direction you crossed to, use your left foot to transfer your energy back into the opposite direction in an explosive moment. (Note: Do not cross the ball over the the other side, instead fake like you are crossing over, then scoop it back the other way in conjunction with your footwoork)

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8ssC2ol2ao

Double Crossover

1. Dribble the ball with your dominant hand against a defender.

2. Maintain eye contact with the defenders hips and feet to judge the best time to crossover, when required perform a basic crossover by bouncing the ball to the other hand in a fairly slow manner.

3. As soon as the ball is about to the hit the ground and bounce to the other hand, get down low and use the receiving hand to QUICKLY bounce it back to it's starting point

4. Your defender should be caught off balance in order to provide you with an opening.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-hUtBYlA0s

Happy Ankle-Breaking!

Best of Basketball 2012-2013

Every athlete in the realm of basketball is considered to be peaking with raw talent and passion for the game. Every year, there are those that step up to the next level and take on the big challenges; making the plays you could not even think of as you sit at your television looking on amazed at how they do the things that they do. Below are a few videos that represent some of the finest acts of basketball in the season of 2012-2013 from the crushing slam dunks to the swift long-throw ‘hail mary’ shots. We have also included a video after those that show the impressive, that show the less impressive in a light but friendly humorous way. Enjoy!

source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSNapvrROo4

source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSPKFiaQ9no

source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yi3CrReo-S0

And one extra that's just for laughs:

source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCpA97CFiCQ

Also, quick update on the video In a few more weeks we will be posting a video demonstrating some plays of basketball. While they might not be as good as shown in the videos above, we guarantee that they’ll provide enough material for you to learn yourself and become the ultimate athlete.

HOW TO: Three-Pointer

A three-point shot could be the almighty offensive move that wins your team the game. In just seconds you’re able to turn it around and from the three-point line, you can get ahead and win. With a technique holding the possibility of having such an advantage over the opposing team, it obviously is quite difficult to perfect.

Below are the steps on how to shoot a three-pointer, starting off with:

Step 1: Position

The first thing you need to ensure is that you are in a safe position that is

• Behind the line
• Lacking in defense from opposing team
• Lined up to the net

If either of these 3 are not found, then that does not mean you cannot get the 3 points. What this means really is that the shot will be much more difficult to perform at 100% effectiveness. With raging defense close near you, you will be more shaky with your aim due to immediate anxiety of defense coming at you. If you are not lined up to the net, your aim again is affected and more precision is required. If you are in front of the line, taking steps back to be behind it will reduce your strength of throw as you shoot.

Step 2: Stance and Movement

When you are about to make the shot, bend your knees before you push the ball up and let go of it. This provides more strength and direction in the release of the ball, as your entire body is shifting in a movement that is up and towards the net. This relieves some precision and strength from the arms and hands so that it is easier for them to guide the ball.

Step 3: Hands

When shooting the ball, your stronger, favoured hand should be underneath the ball while your other hand is gently rested on the side of the ball. With your stronger hand underneath, maximum strength when pushing the ball towards the net is enabled. With your other hand resting on the side of the ball, this assists the direction and balance of the ball on the stronger hand.

Step 4: Letting Go

The last phase of the shot is letting go of the ball. As you push up with your stronger hand underneath the ball, you extend that hand and arm fully, meaning to follow through. This increases the flow and strength of the ball as it makes its way to the net.

Source: http://bit.ly/RA8r4T

And that is shooting a three-pointer. While that is all curcial to know and helpful, there is another factor, the most important factor to know, when shooting a three-pointer. And that is practice. The only way any person will perfect the three-point shot is if they are consistently practicing their technique and flow. This is so they can truly understand their own technique and what factors to work on, whether it is their positioning, stance and movement, hands or letting go.

In the coming weeks we will be posting a video demonstrating how to shoot a three-pointer, so stay tuned for that!