How to Be a Complete Offensive Basketball Player

To enhance your value to your team it is important to focus on being a complete player on offense. A complete player will be able to utilize his/her skills to attack the opponent and create scoring opportunities for the entire team. In this article I will outline the aspects to focus on--to become a complete offensive player.

Things You'll Need

  • Commitment to improve
  • Time to practice

Instructions

    • 1

      Be a strong ball handler. Be able to dribble with both hands effectively and utilize the dribble to get past defenders and into open space. This is not only for the guards--if a big player can handle the ball well, it puts the defense in a tough predicament.

    • 2

      Catch the ball well. This may seem very basic, but it is critical to an offensive player. Your teammates should have 100 percent confidence that you will catch any pass thrown to you. You should be prepared to catch high, low and errant passes. When you catch the pass, be sure to secure it and protect it from the defense.

    • 3

      Develop court vision. This is a learned skill. Utilize your full range of vision to be able to see the whole court so you will know when there is an opening in the defense or when a teammate is open for a pass. A good tip is to look at the bottom of the net and you should be able to see the entire offensive set.

    • 4

      Become a good passer. Starting with the fundamentals of the basic chest bounce and overhead pass, you can build on your skills by learning to pass on the move and without looking directly at the target. Moving the ball by passing is the most effective offensive weapon to create scoring opportunities.

    • 5

      Be a shooter. There is no shortcut here--commit to taking hundreds of shots per day to gain the muscle, memory and confidence to consistently make outside shots. When practicing, be sure to do it at game speed so your body is used to shooting at that speed. A team of shooters is nearly impossible to stop.

    • 6

      Develop the mentality to attack the offensive rebounds and convert them into points. Being an offensive rebounder is about desire and hustle. These offensive put backs will put the opponents on their heels and give your team a great opportunity for victory.

    • 7

      Develop a post game. This is not reserved just for big players. If a guard or small player has a strong post game, the team can take advantage of any size difference on the court. Developing the basics of positioning, pivot/shoot, up/under and drop step will give you what you need to be effective in the post.

    • 8

      Be a perpetual motion machine. If you are always moving it is very difficult for your defender to guard you. To be in perpetual motion you must develop strong endurance. You can outlast your opponent and render him/her useless on their offensive end if you tire them out.

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