High School Basketball Tryouts Tips

High School Basketball Tryouts Tips
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High school basketball tryouts involve a variety of drills and tests that require a good amount of hand-eye coordination, speed and strength, which come into play during a basketball game. You can become better prepared for tryouts by devising a regular workout routine that will help to develop and improve the skills needed to play the game.

Shooting

The only way to improve your shooting skills is to practice them. Spending long periods of time working on the mechanics of shooting will increase your chances of making the team. Find a spot on the court from which you can regularly make a shot and then practice that shot repeatedly and for long periods of time. As you increase that shot’s accuracy, begin exploring with shots from different spots on the court and then practice those repeatedly. Free throws are an important part of any basketball game and can be the difference between a win and a loss. An accurate free-throw shooter is a valuable asset to any team and is developed through long periods of time spent shooting these types of shots. The amount of time you spend practicing these shots will ultimately determine how good you become at shooting them.

Ball Handling

Practice your ball-handling skills by becoming familiar with the feel of the ball as you dribble it up and down the court with your eyes looking up, not at the ball. Run the length of the court at a leisurely pace while dribbling the ball. As you become better at handling the ball at this pace, increase to a sprint while focusing on maintaining control of the ball.

Running

Basketball is a game that involves a lot of running, which makes a regular running routine an effective way to prepare for the demands of the game. A mixture of long- and short-distance running, such as sprints, will help to develop the cardiovascular and lower-body strength needed to propel you up and down the court. Because basketball involves sprinting over short distances; you should adopt a sprint routine that involves running distances between 10 to 30 yards. You can even perform your sprint routines on a basketball court by sprinting a variety of distances, including from the baseline to the free-throw line and back and from the baseline to the midcourt line and back. Your running regimen should be done on a daily basis.

Weightlifting

You can develop the muscular strength needed to be effective on the basketball court by adopting a full-body routine that develops each of the body’s major muscle groups. The upper-body muscles are vital in many aspects of basketball, including rebounding and shooting, and can be developed through an assortment of weightlifting activities, such as bench presses, curls and lat pulldowns. The core muscles, which include the abdominal and lower-back muscles, play an important role in helping you to maintain balance and can be improved by doing abdominal crunches and squats. The lower-body muscles, such as the quadriceps and calves, are used extensively while jumping and running on the hardwood and can be strengthened through leg presses and calf raises. With strong and well-developed muscles, you will be better prepared to impress the coaches at tryout time.

References

Article reviewed by DonaldM Last updated on: Sep 12, 2011

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