Things you learned from experience during a game

[01amberfirewv]

how do i gain weight? seriously guys im 80+ pounds and frustrated that i can't gain weight. some people said *just wait for age
20+ and you gain weight* i don't like it i want to get the right weight for my age and don't want to wait.

There is a little truth to that but it has more to do with what you eat. It's always calories in V calories out. I eat like a pig and still don't gain much weight. Get on a dedicated weight training program and increase your calories. Make sure you get plenty of good carbs and fats and eat lots of meat, and dairy products.

This is a great program for athletes

http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do?id=459321&cr=

[bobbyflay]

@Koko I gained 20 pounds over the summer through weights. I was also 90 pounds before the summer, but I started lifting weights. I actually got taller from weights along with stretching.

I looked back at my updates and found that my walls of text were getting hard for me to even read, so I'm going to revert back haha.

Positive: Due to weight training, I'm better at getting bumped around and slashing through to score a bucket. I used to just get bumped and the ball would fly ou randomly. For some reason, I'm sort of like an ingame rebounder now. I can barely touch the backboard when I try to jump, but when I jump to get a rebound, my hands are over the rim level. I'm also recognizing things a lot better now. It's like a strategy game.

Negative: My shooting form is going on and off. I keep on procrasinating.. I have to stop this. It's making me take off basketball training time. I end up doing half of my training. I have to stay dedicated to become part of the 0.5% asian american ballers in D1.

Summary: Positive: ALOT better at slashing/rebounding/basketball iq Negative: have to add more repetitions in shooting form/have to organize everything in my schedule
I'm going to make it happen now.

Random Quote: You only got one life to live-Allen Iverson

[bobbyflay]

Mini Update: I got a nasty cough. It might be a special strain of flu or something because it lasted for a week and a half. I hope it's not bronchitis..
I trained for a week with it and the training has made it a lot worse, so I started resting and not training 2 days ago(includes stopping skill training because I go all out and get tired). For some reason, my shooting stayed the same as it was 3 days ago. 3 days ago, I did 100 perfect form shots. Now, I stopped practicing and my form remained the same. It's pretty strange. I think this might be how some players from parks just seem so good; they are consistent in everything(and that's why their game doesn't evolve, they just rely on athletic ability). It's just something strange I noticed on my quest to become a D1 player.

[bobbyflay]

Mini Update: I'm going to do a real update after this week, because I started real training. I thought of it now and realized that why most of the basketball players don't make it to D1/overseas/NBA. They just don't work.. I'm practically the only guy working at least 1-2 hours on my game everyday in my school. Now I see why the basketball program is terrible. It's not also because of the staff; it's because of the players also..

I also found out that Rake's statement of being cocky and stupid is also true for life and basketball. I just acted cocky and thought I was right in everything and protruded confidence. Also ingame, I just made every shot and did whatever I want. However, it was a pick up game so I don't know.

My journals are about learning about life through basketball too

[carpevicis]

Most players don't make it to a high level for numerous reasons: often it's how hard they want to work, the body they were given or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. All I have to tell you is that don't focus on the world around you, think about the big picture. Just because you're the hardest working in your town doesn't mean anything. You have to remember that there are other people out there that you'll never meet. Never get complacent when you train because every opportunity you have you'll need.

Some notes that you might want to observe, given that you're a freshman and you decided you want to play in college.

-Try and make a list of colleges you're interested in attending both athletically and academically
-Get great grades. Not passing grades, but great grades. Take AP/Honors classes. The work load might be extra, but trust me, this is how you stand out.
-Play AAU basketball. If the school team isn't cutting it, play AAU and make sure you film every game so you can make a highlight reel when the time comes
-Eat healthy. You might be young but if you learn to eat healthy now, it'll be habit when you need it.
-Weight train/run. The earlier you start the better. Don't fall for the old saying that it'll stunt your growth. It might if you do it wrong. But if you do it right, the gains are invaluable. Also, most average players can't afford to not weight train. Some of the top elite players can get away with it because of their skill and natural athleticism, but most kids HAVE TO TRAIN.

[bobbyflay]

Yes, I got too cocky in my ways. I was too happy winning against my school peers and not vsing real players. I shall train my hardest for this summer.

I guess you're right about seeing what colleges I should attend. I'm hoping for UCLA, but I'll need a 4.2. I messed up my semester this time due to trying to want free time. I got a 3.5 but that's .7 away from my goal.
Ah, I see a highlight reel. I found out my school tapes games of varsity, so I might just use that.
You're right. I should eat healthy. I swear it's pretty hard when most of the food I get is junk food.
Yeah, weight training has made me grow taller actually. I'm sort of afraid it might have caused me injuries on my bones(joins/nerves hurt from it). It also seems that I'm the only 14-16 year old training in the gym also.
Also, I have to cut my free time I suppose. I planned to do my shooting workout at 4 am, but due to essays in honors and etc I could only get 5 hours of sleep daily. I thought about the price of my sleep and I had to do it. Then I realized that I wouldn't gain anything from my workouts and would be tired academicly and physically. I try my best though to go at 4 30-6:15 Am(I have class starting at 7).

Some questions: How should I train for rejoining the basketball program at my school this summer again? Please be more specific as in the type of weight training, endurance, explosiveness, agility, muscle mass, and etc. Also, am I doing something wrong in the gym? I'm lifting more than guys who have twice as much muscle mass than me. Ex: I'm doing 50 pounds on each side from a barbell 3x8(I swear my max is around 60 pounds. I don't want to strain myself to heavily lol.) Then I see guys that are freaking ripped doing 40 pounds and sweating and yelling across the gym. I'm thinking what? I just check my muscles and see like one muscle while I look at the other guy who is doing less than me and is about 4-6 years older and I see around 5-8 sections on his arm.

Edit: Another Question. What do you think is worth it more? 1 hour and 30 minutes of shooting practice at a park that's freezing and might be windy or might rain randomly and has a concrete ground or an hour of shooting practice at the gym. I have these 2 options in the morning at 4 30 am. It's just that I heard some people say that a day on concrete is around 3-5 days at the gym. When I think about it more and more. I'm starting to lean toward the gym.

[623baller]

Edit: Another Question. What do you think is worth it more? 1 hour and 30 minutes of shooting practice at a park that's freezing and might be windy or might rain randomly and has a concrete ground or an hour of shooting practice at the gym. I have these 2 options in the morning at 4 30 am. It's just that I heard some people say that a day on concrete is around 3-5 days at the gym. When I think about it more and more. I'm starting to lean toward the gym.

you are better off doing ur shooting drills wherever it is tougher to make a shot. make practice hard, it will come easy during game time.

i used to practiced on double rims, slippery floor , sometimes windy courts. it became a luxury whenever i get to play on decent court/gym.

focus on shots made rather than time spent on the court.

[carpevicis]

I agree with what 623baller said, but to an extent. Training on double rims and slippery floors will help your shot, but training when it's windy won't. You'll start to form a habit to compensate for the wind, which means your accuracy on a normal day will be off. You'll get used to adjusting for the wind which won't translate to a normal situation.

If I were you, I'd hit up the gym. It's easier to shoot there, but it's also more realistic. If the outdoor courts weren't windy, that's one thing but it is and therefore you won't play like you would in a game. If you work hard, you'll only have 1 hour in you. And more than that and you're probably not going 100%.

I'm not sure I understand your question about lifting. What lift are you doing? And what is the total poundage? I don't know what you mean by 50 lbs on each side, you mean 50lbs on each side of a 45lb barbell for 145lb total? And you'll need a goal for what you want done. Training isn't universal, so if you want to get bigger than that's one thing, as is getting faster and having better agility, etc.

And make sure you get enough sleep. Your body needs time to recover from the workouts. If you keep cutting sleep you'll feel more and more exhausted and you won't maximize gains.

[bobbyflay]

I agree with what 623baller said, but to an extent. Training on double rims and slippery floors will help your shot, but training when it's windy won't. You'll start to form a habit to compensate for the wind, which means your accuracy on a normal day will be off. You'll get used to adjusting for the wind which won't translate to a normal situation.

If I were you, I'd hit up the gym. It's easier to shoot there, but it's also more realistic. If the outdoor courts weren't windy, that's one thing but it is and therefore you won't play like you would in a game. If you work hard, you'll only have 1 hour in you. And more than that and you're probably not going 100%.

I'm not sure I understand your question about lifting. What lift are you doing? And what is the total poundage? I don't know what you mean by 50 lbs on each side, you mean 50lbs on each side of a 45lb barbell for 145lb total? And you'll need a goal for what you want done. Training isn't universal, so if you want to get bigger than that's one thing, as is getting faster and having better agility, etc.

And make sure you get enough sleep. Your body needs time to recover from the workouts. If you keep cutting sleep you'll feel more and more exhausted and you won't maximize gains.

For my example, I was talking about those ez curl barbells I think. Like those ones with just 50 pounds on each side and the barbell is straight. My goal is to get more explosive, have better agility, have more endurance, get faster, and be stronger. Bad thing is the endurance factor won't match with my training.

Yeah it's hard to sleep early though. I have to sleep at 8 pm to get a full 8 hours. I'm mostly getting 5-6 hours of sleep and around 8-10 hours on weekends.

Yeah, I made up my mind to go to the gym in the morning. Riding my bike there might be hell(3 miles isn't that much but with stoplights and the weather it is to me), but spending an hour and 30 minutes in the weather is even more. I imagined myself getting rebounds and wasting time and freezing to death instead of spending it on quality shooting time.

[bobbyflay]

Well I screwed myself.. There is a 95% chance I have a disease such as carpal tunnel syndrome or tenditis. I have the symptoms of loss of grip strength(no wonder I couldn't open bottles randomly or for some reason my hand just couldn't bounce the ball), cold hands due to poor circulation(I found myself putting my hands in my pockets subconsciously and people saying that my hands are cold), inflammation of the nerves(literally feels like its burning when I do strenuous stuff), the need to shake out my wrists, and pain/soreness on my wrists, forearms, shoulders, and somewhat top of my spine and neck. I think I received this disease or something from a combination of computer(I go on the computer maybe once a week for 8 hours straight if I can't play basketball) and weight lifting(maybe I was lifting with poor form. maybe that's why I could lift so much). Basketball, tennis, and school might have made it so that I couldn't recover. I have been having these syndromes for the past 3 years, but they didn't really pop up until 2 weeks ago. Damit, I can't do anything for the next 2 weeks-4 weeks.

Lesson Learned: Do everything correct and there will be no side effects. Cheating or doing something incorrectly will mask the real problem at the cost of many more problems.

[bobbyflay]

Update on recovering: Honestly I have been doing everything I have been doing before except without the basketball training and tennis. I'll start doing some stretches every hour when I'm on the computer. Life seems so boring without basketball. Nothing to look forward to after finishing my classes. Nothing to look forward to after I finish my hw. It's like I'm wasting away.

Also, the basketball instructional videos you see selling for like $40 don't really help you. Just find some websites or videos on youtube, and I'll swear you'll get just as much info and you won't waste your time.

[Scholar]

So I learned a difficult lesson in teamwork yesterday through 2-on-2 basketball.
Went to the gym, met 3 guys who wanted to run a quick game so I joined them. We decided that the first 2 guys to make a 3-pter would be on the same team. I ended up playing with a dude who seemed to have decent ball handling skills, much better than mine actually.
The opposition? Two 40+ year old men. I thought, "This is going to be easy. We're definitely much quicker than them."
Boy, was I wrong. I mean, we were quicker than them but that's where it stops.
The old guys were setting up screens, pick and rolls, pass-and-go, etc. My teammate? Every time I passed him the damn ball, he'd chuck a shot. He didn't make a single point! We got killed, 3-15. I made all 3 shots, after pretty much refusing to pass this idiot the ball. I asked him to start setting picks but he just stuck around the 3-pt line to chuck as many pointless 3's as possible.
His defense was terrible as well. The guys took turns shredding his D apart. I might as well have been playing one-vs-two.

Anyway, my point is that you shouldn't judge a player by the first shot made. I assumed that because he and I both made our first attempts to become teammates for the game, it must mean we could take the older guys on without a problem. Next time, I'll be sure to try to aim being a teammate with someone older who has experience in playing basketball, instead of teaming up with some idiot who would rather chuck from out of his range than set up plays.

[sundizz]

I realized...that a lot of basketball 'knowledge' is wrong. That look at the hips stuff is garbage, does anyone truly do this? You can't pay attention at all to what is going on in the game if you are focusing on the O players hips. Coaches when you are young always say don't focus on their eyes, or don't focus on the ball you can get tricked by them. I realized in so many years of playing that there are very very very very few players talented enough to trick me with their eyes or their ball handling. I get 2-3 steals a game person on person because I watch where they are dribbling the ball and when they do a slow dribble down I time it to reach in and take it away. Same with the eyes...I watch their eyes to see where and when they will pass it and can jump the passing lane easily.

Another one, don't make crosscourt passes. That only applies when you are too young to actually MAKE a crosscourt pass at full speed. As a grown adult I can zip that pass crosscourt one handed with a lot of speed. It's the best way to open up against a team when they are overplaying too much since they can't recover to that player that fast.

Another one: Focusing on the front/back rim (based on what your coach said). Every time I try thinking about WHERE on the rim I want to shoot it messes up my shot. I find it a lot more important to make sure I have my hands on the ball properly and everything after that is just body memory. Thinking about an individual thing like aiming for the back of the rim is ridiculous...shooting it the right distance comes from practice not from individually thinking about it every time.

I understand these things where all important to be taught as a youngsta so you start with good habits and then you can expand your game based on experience. I teach the same things when I coach also. It's just interesting seeing how many of the common 'tenets' really aren't true when you get to a certain level.

[KokoWarzone]

i learn that i dribble like an 80's player when dribbling and running

and i feel comfortable in my dribbling. and i learn i have inconsistent shooting form.

[Scholar]

i learn that i dribble like an 80's player when dribbling and running

and i feel comfortable in my dribbling. and i learn i have inconsistent shooting form.

Same here.
I always dribble toward a defender with my back to him. I don't mind doing it so much, but it makes it seem like I lack handles. I don't have great ball handling skills but I'm decent, if I'd say so myself.
As for my shot, whenever I'm going for a J, I jump forward. I've stepped on a few people's feet or kicked a couple guys in the shin before because of this. My form is always inconsistent and no matter how hard I try to work at improving it, I always lose the perfect form whenever I play 21 or a pickup game.