Are you a believer in face guarding?

[Kblaze8855]

You know…the way Battier would put his hand 2 inches from Kobe’s face to block his vision. Or Tony Allen sometimes:


https://thumbs.gfycat.com/GrizzledOrderlyIrishdraughthorse-size_restricted.gif



As someone who couldn’t shoot even by the standards of the time when I did play I don’t know how annoying such things are. I feel like if they worked well more people would do it but maybe they don’t because of the danger of things like this:


https://thumbs.gfycat.com/AccomplishedGlassGrouper-size_restricted.gif



And the fact it’s a tech in college(which was called there).



You think it’s effective on the nba level or just a gimmick?

[eliteballer]

Guys were doing this way before Battier.

Jordan does it here to Kobe in 97 (check the replay):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xdKCGay_9Q

[FultzNationRISE]

I dont see why it’s not worth a shot if youre the defender. I got no problem with it.

[Kblaze8855]

Or course guys were doing it before. I’ve seen clips of Mikan doing the one foot fadeaway but we still call it the Dirk fade so people know what we mean right away.

[HylianNightmare]

Of course. It can't hurt

[FKAri]

Never worked on me and I never felt it did anything when I tried it on others. I did less of it over time until at some point it was no longer a thing. Once you're already at the apex of your jumpshot you don't really need to see the rim any more. You already have the mental image necessary. Either put your hand in the path of the shot or body them up even slightly to affect their balance.

[BarberSchool]

It’s only effective the first few times it’s done to an unsuspecting player who isn’t already used to it. Overrated. Just try to get a finger or two on the damn ball if you’re that close already

[Soundwave]

At high level basketball (as in college or pro level) ... probably not. If you're some kid in high school or playing weekend ball at the park ... sure.

In the NBA your best defence is to simply get into someone's space and try to disrupt their natural shooting motion as much as possible, a hand in the face isn't going to do much. If you're that close to the ball you're better off just trying to get a piece of the ball better yet.

[FilmyCogTurner]

As a shooter myself I was thought it was super annoying. The key to combating the hand in the face was not to react to it and eventually you splash one blind and the defender will give up without realizing it was actually quite effective, in my experience at least.

[Jasper]

these are just distractions ... that is it.

When I was golfing , I was getting a lesson from a pro, and said I have to maintain visual contact with the golf ball. Pro says ' no you don't'
Took me a couple years to realize he was 100% correct. your swing becomes so programmed that you don't even have to look at the ball.
Same for a bball pro- they have shot thousands of shots from each spot , and don't even need to look at the basket.

[Overdrive]

these are just distractions ... that is it.

When I was golfing , I was getting a lesson from a pro, and said I have to maintain visual contact with the golf ball. Pro says ' no you don't'
Took me a couple years to realize he was 100% correct. your swing becomes so programmed that you don't even have to look at the ball.
Same for a bball pro- they have shot thousands of shots from each spot , and don't even need to look at the basket.

From anything I read by shooters(Dirk, Ray Allen, Nash,...) they need to take a look at a certain point, front rim, back rim, etc. Dirk said he aimed at the apex of his shot. I have a friend who shoots the same way.

The just don't need to aim anymore when they started the motion. They aim't when they set their feet.

That's why it works if the guys hesitates and fakes like Curry here. You basically reset your shot after this. If he simply followed through he would've most likely just sunk it.

Also wouldn't this upon a contact automatically be a flagrant aince it's above neck level or did that rule change? It would basically be a deliberate hit to the head.

[hateraid]

It's not that effective. The scope of vision is very wide and reaction can easily adjust. It never bothered me when people did it. The only issue I have is if it poked me in the eye.