Ten Tips to Improve Your Pickup Game

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Let me start with some clarification: when I say “pickup,” I am referring to pickup basketball, not picking up chicks at the bar. I know, I know, I probably just lost the interest of half my male readers right there. Here’s the thing, though, while I feel confident in my knowledge of basketball, you don’t want my advice on how to work the bar dating scene. My wife and I have been together now for over 14 years, and I’m only 28. If you do the math on that…let’s see, carry the 1, square root of pie, e=mc²…yeah, I had already nailed down my future wife as a 14 year old freshman in high school. Thank you, thank you very much. Anyway, suffice it to say I never really had to play the dating game, which was cool, because that allowed me to spend my time playing another game.

1. Stop jacking up so many threes. If you’re not someone who has played a lot, and if when you do play you aren’t widely known as a great three point shooter, chances are your shooting percentage from downtown during pickup ball is close to, if not in, single digits. Trust me on this. My default mode of defense on most people I guard is to play ten feet off of them and comfortably watch them go 1 for 15 from behind the arc. Now, I’m not saying you can’t ever shoot a three pointer, but just know that working the ball inside more often will probably give your team a better chance of winning than just launching it from deep every time down the floor. Plus, missed threes lead to long rebounds, which lead to opposing fast breaks, which lead to your team losing.
2. Be a smarter dribbler. Here are three general rules about dribbling to remember. First, don’t automatically start dribbling when the ball is thrown to you unless you plan to purposefully go somewhere; second, if you do start dribbling, don’t pick it up until you are ready to give up the ball or shoot, and third, remember that when it comes to dribbling, less is more. Bouncing the ball seventeen times between your legs while standing in the same place is a completely worthless endeavor. Be decisive. If you are going to go to the basket, then go. If you need to dribble to create a better passing lane or an open shot for yourself, then do it. Otherwise, just pass the ball or take the shot; everything else is pointless and just kills all offensive cohesion.
3. Value substance over style. There are a large number of casual basketball players who will gladly miss countless wild shots in a row as long as they eventually make one that temporarily wows whatever onlookers there may be. These are also the guys that regularly screw up golden opportunities, like 3 on 1 fast breaks, by trying to throw a no look or a behind the back pass when a simple bounce pass would have done the trick. Those types of players occasionally get props from their buddies for doing the spectacular, but they rarely ever win, as they are, quite frankly, a liability to their team. Don’t be one of those guys.
4. Move without the ball. I can’t stress this enough. Most pickup players are horrific defenders (I’ll get to defense in a second), and a little movement like a basket cut will often times get you an easy shot. Moreover, if you move, it will force other players on your team to move, and everybody will benefit…including even the over dribbling, style over substance guy. Also, moving without the ball should definitely include setting screens for others. Remember, basketball is a team game, and the offensive goal of each player shouldn’t simply be to “get theirs.” Yet sadly, this is too often the case. However, the classic “your turn, my turn” offense of most pickup games isn’t always simply a result of the inherent selfishness of each player; a lot of the times, guys simply just don’t know what to do or where to go, and when that is the case, when there is confusion, they just stand around. So, why don’t you be the guy that stops the stagnation by initiating movement through screening.
5. Don’t be a ballhog. Pass the ball. Nuff said.
6. Box out your man. Look, let’s be clear; the vast majority of pickup players out there can’t shoot a lick from the outside, but most all of them can hit a wide open layup. You can eliminate many of those layups (via rebound stick backs) by simply finding and putting a body on the man you’re guarding when a shot goes up. Rebounding is not supposed to be a chance affair. It’s not supposed to be left up to the luck of where the ball bounces, and also, the ball doesn’t have to go to the guy who can jump the highest. You can honestly become a better rebounder than 99% of the pickup players out there by just being disciplined enough to box out your man every single time there’s a shot.
7. Get back on defense. The typical hodge podge, thrown together two minutes ago, pick up team doesn’t have some sophisticated half court offensive scheme drawn up. Therefore, allowing them to score basket after basket in the open court is foolish and a killer. Unless your team is actually running a premeditated, organized, full court press (which they’re not), you are accomplishing nothing by ball hawking whoever rebounded the ball for the other team or by gambling for steals on their end of the court…that is unless you define “accomplishing something” as giving your opponents numbers on possessions when they shouldn’t have them. Stop the one man press, people!
8. Play smart on defense. First off, know this: if you’ll just try hard on the defensive end of the court, you will already be one step ahead of half of the guys out there. Next, if you’ll learn to play your man according to his strengths and weaknesses, instead of just doing what you’re comfortable with, you’ll have much more success in shutting him down. For instance, if you are guarding a guy that can’t shoot from any distance, it doesn’t make any sense to get all up in his grill inviting him to drive around you. You want to contest shots, but you should entice him to shoot that long jumper. Chances are that after he misses a few of them in a row, he’ll be too psyched out to even try to score the rest of the game. I’ve seen it a thousand times. Another tip is to blatantly push people to their weak hand. Most guys can’t go left (if they’re right handed), so just don’t let them go right, and you’ll find that they really won’t be able to go anywhere or do anything. One more option is to simply deny your man the ball from the offset if you know that you may have trouble stopping him once he gets it. If you play strong ball denial on him, he may not even work hard to get the ball, and if he does, there’s no guarantee that his teammates will work equally hard to pass it to him. The long of the short of playing good defense is to just think. Analyze the situation, the guy you’re guarding, the team your playing, the level of help your teammates may need, and go from there.
9. Hustle. There is nothing that makes up for deficiencies in ability or skill like hustle. If you will just flat out get after it, you will find yourself not only winning games but also winning the respect of others. Do the little things. Be the guy who prides himself on covering all the bases. If you talk on defense, are unselfish on offense, dive for loose balls, set screens for others, take good shots, don’t ball hog, and even take time to compliment others and acknowledge their good plays, everything will all work out.
10. Know your role. If you’re a big guy, then don’t wander around the three point line. If you’re not a good shooter, then don’t shoot a lot. If you can’t handle the ball very well, don’t try to bring it up the court. Know your limitations. However, on the flip side, if you are a good scorer, then look for your shot. Your team will need you to score. If you are a good ball handler, don’t let the clumsy big guy on your team bust out of the pack dribbling all crazy with his head down. Demand the ball and set things up. If you’re a great defender, match yourself up against their best scorer. You get the point. Evaluate your skill set honestly, and do what’s best for your team.

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