Teammate

The best part about a good basketball team is always your teammates. Like I talked about earlier on in my blog, good team chemistry will help make a better basketball team. Being a good teammate means much more than just one thing. It means trying your hardest not only for yourself, but for all of the people on your team. When you care about the game, and your team, they'll care about you. And in the end, it will benefit you overall, as a player, and as a teammate.

Dunking

I'm not going to lie, dunking is badass. But to be completely honest, you either have to have a hell of a vertical, or you have to be tall. Nothing is more legit, yet completely embarrassing, than having someone on the opposing team dunk on you. And if you can dunk, I give props to you because that is something that most of the population cannot do. Beside watching the occasional dunks on SportsCenter Top 10 Plays, the must watch is the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest. Each player brings their own move and style to the court and it is something you won't want to miss. The 2014 winner was John Wall with an incredible dunk. If you are interested in watching the dunk contest this past February, I encourage you to search it on YouTube. It'll be worth it.

Being Coachable

Every player has something they need to work on. And the purpose of having a coach is for this reason exactly. Your coach is someone who can help improve your game, but they are not going to want to help you do anything if you aren't coachable. This is a term used to define someone who can listen and try and take what they have been learned and put it to use on the court. When a player is taught a new skill or technique, they can deal with it in two ways: they can either take it and use it to benefit them, or they can let it go in one year and out the other. When a coach has a player that isn't coachable, they don't focus on that player anymore because with experience in the past, it seems worthless. And when that happens, as a player, you won't become any better than you started, which is the complete opposite of what you want. So make sure when a coach or a professional tells you something to work on, do it. Be coachable.

Teamwork

The one word everyone needs to remember when thinking of basketball, or any team sport for that matter, is teamwork. A team is not going to get anywhere or do anything productive if only one or two people are doing all of the work. A perfect balance of effort and cooperation needs to be found within the team to improve and succeed. When you look at college or NBA teams playing on the court, one thing that's definitely evident is whether or not the team has good chemistry. Having chemistry between your teammates is important because it creates a calm, yet energized atmosphere to play in. Personally, playing on a team with good chemistry was better than any other team I had played on before. This is because I am comfortable with everyone on the court. I trusted each one of my teammates to go just as hard as me and to play the game the same way with a unified mindset. Teamwork is more than just a word. Teamwork is the basic foundation of a good basketball team. Teamwork is success.

Assists

An assist is my absolute favorite thing in the game of basketball. It's not about you making a shot and driving to the basket on your own. It's about creating the perfect shot that is available on the floor. It doesn't have to be all about one person, and when an assist is made, it's because the person with the ball saw that someone else had an open shot and had confidence in their teammate that they would make it. I have always felt more comfortable giving the ball off to one of my teammates than keep it for myself. One of the great things about an assist is that it doesn't only have to happen in basketball; it can happen in anyone's every day life. Chris Paul from the Clippers is known for his assists, having a number of 6,069 assists in his 9 years of basketball in the NBA. He is even in a commercial for State Farm because of his assists, and acts as a twin brother who assists people with their insurance. An assist is an assist, whether it is basketball, or just a simple act of kindness.

Jordan vs. James

1. Michael Jordan and Lebron James. Over the past couple of years, the debate of whether or not Lebron has surpassed the greatness of Michael Jordan has been a popular one. Of course, Jordan played for more years, and with completely different competition, but you can make your own opinions. Personally, I believe that only the people who watched both Michael Jordan and Lebron James can give a reliable argument as to who is better and I will listen. If you do not have an opinion on this debate, maybe looking at some stat comparisons may influence your idea of the subject.
   Click on the link below from Land Of Basketball to catch a quick comparison of Michael Jordan and Lebron James over their course of time in the NBA.

http://www.landofbasketball.com/player_comparison/lebron_james_vs_michael_jordan.htm

Halftime

*Halftime* Short, hard breaths. Yelling. Re-group. Gatorade. Speech. More Gatorade. Focus. Draw plays. Break down. Run Out. Game time.

Halftime is every player's getaway. Whether you're playing a hell of a game and you need time to regroup, or you're completely out of it and you need to start over. Either way, halftime is beneficial... if you use it right. Every good athlete knows that the start of the 3rd quarter is the start of a new game. The second half can be a completely different story than the first because each team gets another chance to start over with warm legs and a new attitude. Go into halftime with one question: How will we win this game? And every single person on the team must know to give their absolute best effort, not only as an individual, but as a teammate, to finish the game off strong. And that is using halftime to your advantage.

Mistakes

"If you're not making mistakes, then you're not doing anything. I'm positive that a doer makes mistakes." - John Wooden

The only way you can ever improve is by learning from your mistakes. There will always be some aspect of your game that you will need to fix, or revamp, and making mistakes is one way to notice those aspects. Every player needs to remember that to be great, they need to accept their successes and failures. Mistakes may start out as your failure, but eventually those same exact mistakes are what leads you to your success.

Injuries-Derrick Rose

This video is of Chicago Bulls' point guard Derrick Rose, who is currently out for the season due to another knee injury. It was believed that he would be out for the entire season, but with the work he is putting in with his injury, it's looking good. It is now possible that he may play later on in the 2014 season. According to his teammates, Rose's efforts push them even harder. Not only does he want to get back out on the floor, but he wants his team to be the best they can be. Even though he is sitting on the end of the bench, he still yells at his teammates to keep working hard or to keep shooting the ball, wishing he could be doing it too. This video is truly inspiring and shows that with hard work, anything is possible. And Derrick Rose knows that now. And no matter how hard he has to work to get back on that court, he'll do it. Because that's where he belongs. So if you are suffering from an injury, big or small, a little hard work will go a long way. Just ask Derrick Rose.

http://www.sportsworldnews.com/articles/10032/20140303/derrick-rose-injury-update-surging-bulls-finding-strength-from-injured-rehabbing-star-video.htm 

Game Day Playlist

Let's face it, thinking about the upcoming game is not going to get enough of your blood pumping, and it may even make you more nervous than you were to start. Drowning out all of these nerves and thoughts is the perfect solution, and is actually the most sought-after response to the pre-game nerves. I would definitely recommend that to calm down, but get excited and ready about your game, you play your favorite playlist or cd and focus on how you're going to play. It will not only build up your intensity, but also build your confidence after visualizing. These playlists may vary between athletes because different things push different people. Here is a list of songs that are popular pump up songs for before a game. If it's not your style, go out and search on your computer, iPod, or phone for your kind of game day playlist!
http://www.alexmarokobasketball.com/the-50-best-pre-game-songs-to-turn-you-into-an-animal/

Conditioning ~ It's All Worth It

"Get on the line." Those four words you hate hearing coming out of your coach's mouth. Dreading the hundreds of sprints and suicides you will be running throughout the next couple of months. Dreading those moments you're bent over on your knees gasping for the air that seems to have vanished. You continuously strive to do all of these things for some reason. There is something in your head, your heart, that keeps pushing you to touch that line over, and over again. There is a voice yelling at you to go even harder; maybe that voice is coming from your coaches, or maybe it's coming from your teammates going through the same thing you are. When it comes down to it, running up and down that court more times than you can count is what gets you to where you want to go. All of these practices are what leads you and your team to become the greatest. Whether you have the talent, or not, it all comes down to one thing: how hard you and your team worked. And after all of that conditioning in practice, there is no doubt, your team will outwork any other team you are put up against. Face it, losing is a hell of a lot easier when everyone around you tried their hardest, and the same goes for winning.

Motivation

     Whether you are a new or veteran basketball player, every single athlete needs to start the new season off with a goal: one primary goal. Maybe it's to make the team, or maybe it's making it to the state championship. But no matter what that goal is, it all starts with motivation and determination. In other words if we constantly think about being a great shooter, or rebounder, or defender then we will eventually find or make a way to become one. http://blog.hoopskills.com/motivation/ This is not only saying that an athlete must think about how good they want to be, but that they must make things happen to become the better player. If you want to make your season a memorable one, you must motivate yourself to put the effort into being a player that your teammates will want to play beside on the court. Motivation does not only apply to yourself, but every single player on your team. To be successful, you have to start somewhere. And to start anything, you need motivation.

About Me

I am a high school student who's life doesn't solely revolve around academics, like most kids. A couple of major factors in my high school experience are the friendships I have made and participating in sports; participating in basketball primarily. Basketball is my one true passion, and with playing the sport, I have created so many special relationships with my teammates. Basketball has taught me so many things, like being determined and dedicated, and it has also given me another family, which is something I never would have imagined possible. This sport could change your life just like it has mine, which is why I decided to share my love of the game through The Fast Break.