Basketball Tips: Secrets of Dominating the Basketball Game As An Undersized Post Player

Post players come in all shapes and sizes, but mostly there are taller than 6 foot (obviously). Good news is, you don’t have to be taller than that to dominate opponents in the post. The main thing is undersized post players must take advantage of their strengths. Players should take a step back and self-evaluate their game and determine where and how they can be most effective on the basketball court.

Well, these are some of the secret that I believe made the great post-players despite their lack of size, that you can implement into your own games. Shared from basketballforcoaches.com

Be Willing to Go to Battle

There’s no better secret to start us off than ‘be willing to go to battle’. It’s a war zone in the paint when you’re an undersized post player. There will be elbows thrown, knees colliding, pushing and shoving; it’s going to get physical.

You’re going to have to fight on every play with everything you’ve got! There’s no other way! Playing in the paint while undersized is just as much mental as it is physical. You have to come prepared physically and mentally every time you step onto the court.

Use Your Body to Create Space

One of the few benefits of being an undersized post player is that you have a lower center of gravity. You win the battle of getting your hips lower than your opponents hips.

After reading the flight path of the basketball, you must use your body and strength as leverage against your opponent to keep them away from where you think the ball is going to land to give yourself the best chance at it. It’s all about increasing your chances at securing the rebound. Keep in mind that the earlier you get a body on your opponent, the more space you’ll create to get yourself a rebound. So box out early!

Out-think your Opponent

You must play smarter than your opponent and think your way through the game. If you have the luck of having seen your opponent play before or, if you play against them on a regular basis, think about what advantages you have over your opponent. Can you step outside and knock down the jump shot? Do they have a tendency to foul? Are they slow on their feet?

Determine in what areas of the game you have the advantage and strive to put yourself in that position as much as possible throughout the game.

Master the Jump Shot

If you’re too small to beat them inside then it’s time to step outside for a few easy points (as long as your team offense allows it). When you’re playing on a big man that loves to clog up the paint, step outside and stretch the floor as long as you have a reliable jump shot.

This is a huge benefit for your team. If you make a couple of easy jump shots your opponent has to start respecting your jump shot and come out and play you. Now the paint is opened up for your teammates to get to the ring for a few easy scores.