How to go Viral by Dominating the Competition

Basketball is something that I look forward to every year. That feeling of blowing past your defender then driving in for the “and one” reverse lay-up is matched by no other feeling. You feel almost unstoppable. Or maybe one poor soul tires to put a shot up past you, but you spring up and send it right back at him. Basketball is a game of finesse and dominance, and there’s no other game like it.

            This season I have many different goals that I want to accomplish. One of these is to get a in-game dunk. This would be a major milestone for me, and if you make the dunk good enough, there’s a good possibility that other people around the area and even the country will see it. This also isn’t something that comes easy. It takes basketball I.Q. and hard work. This is a few things that I believe will help any high school athlete accomplish this goal.

For example, if it’s a close game, and your team is down by two you don’t want to attempt a dunk. If you miss, then it could cost you the game, and you might find yourself on the bench for a while. If you make it, you might think that good, but you still might find yourself getting some bench time. It wouldn’t be a smart shot to take in that type of situation. The only situations where you should attempt a dunk in a game is when you’re up by a vast number of points and the opposing team has no hope in making a come back attempt. This is an example of when it would be appropriate to make a dunk attempt. NEVER ATTEPTA DUNK IF IT MIGHT SACRIFICE GETTING THE WIN FOR YOUR TEAM!

            Dunking may come easily to a few people, but the majority of high school basketball players must work and train themselves. In my experience the thing that helps the most is using proper jumping form and techniques. You must use your body in the most effective way to be able to squeeze out those last couple inches, because they will be the difference in succeeding or failing. One way that I like to make sure I’m using proper dunking form is simply by watching a YouTube video of a professional athlete jump. Or you could google “proper jumping form” both of these will expose you to videos that will show you how to get the most out of your body. Next try it yourself try to match exactly what the athletes in the video are doing. Take videos of yourself and pick apart your form and try to see what you’re doing correctly and what you need to improve on. LEARN THE PROPER JUMPING AND DUNKING FORM AND USE IT!

            Another thing that you absolutely need to do is getting into the weight room. This may seem obvious but to be able to jump higher you need to train your body to jump higher. You’re never going to improve if you don’t train your body. A common misconception about improving your vertical is that you need to gain muscle because that’s what makes you jump higher and is the only thing that can improve your vertical. Right? Wrong, yes, while gaining muscle will maybe help you get an inch or two out of your vertical you need to do several other things in the weight room that will have a greater affect on your body and greatly affect your results in the long run. Explosiveness, you must train your body to be more explosive. You need to get your muscles used to propelling you as high as they can. There is a right and a wrong way to improve your explosiveness.

First of all, pick out a workout that you like, you can do this by again simply googling “vertical workout” after you have found one that you, like begin the workout. Once you start this is where you could be doing more harm than good to your vertical. You must make sure when you’re working your vertical to jump as high as you can every time. If you only jump half as high as you can, you will teach your body that you only want to jump half as high as you can. Your body will then adapt and make its priority to get you only halfway there because it thinks that that’s all the higher that you want to get. ALWAYS PUSH YOURSELF TO JUMP AS HIGH AS YOU CAN WHILE TRAINING!

            Lastly, practice! Get into the gym and find out what works for you, how to cradle the ball in your hand. What kind of jump form works best for you. You may be able to get your head above the rim while not holding the ball, but now try to jump with the ball in your hands. You must put all your skills together. After you get your first dunk don’t settle for just that. Expand off it and start working on a new dunk. If you got a one hand dunk, try to get a two-hand dunk etc. Perfect practice makes perfect. As soon as you feel comfortable try it in a game but remember there is a time and place for one.  PUT ALL OF YOUR SKILLS TOGETHER, PRACTICE, AND ENJOY YOUR RESULTS!