i'm 19 with a little weight how long will it take me to be a true athletic baller?
965200
3 years if you practice like hell starting now
648823
First of all hi you sound awesome I'm about to be a senior and had similar dreams and everybody told me I couldn't do it because i was only 6'2 and white well just last summer I was the first Highschool kid from my school to enter in a dunk contest at a college that we were at camp for and I won the second round now I can dunk it easy with two hands.\nI can even three sixty but heres the kicker jump soles won't do squat maybe two inches at most!!!!! Trust me I have two pairs!!! They do nothing simply because contrary to popular belief jumping doesn't come from the calves it comes from your upper thighs don't believe me try this stand with your feet together and try jumping straight up but you can't bend your legs at all. Then bend your knees and allow your thights to pitch in how high did you get then you see what I mean so anyways the big secret to getting good hops is sqats and just plain old jumping try squatting and then jumping straight up about fifty sixty times a night every other day and then slowly begin to add more jumps each week stand under the net it will help motivate you to keep going cause youll want to get to yhe rim.. By the way smart move to stay away from ankle waits there extremely bad for you knee tendons and ligaments they'll stretch them Any ways you can do it I mean your already half way there so good luck!!!!! If you ever need advice or questions or encouragement just email me at bubbachillinintheeclipse@yahoo.com otherwise good luck you can do it.
796426
It all depends on your height. Throughout my middle school and high school years I played basketball, volleyball, ran track, and did rodeo. I was five four and I weighed 120-125 lbs. I went to state track and got many awards for my other athletic achievements - - so I was in pretty good shape.\n\nHow much do you weigh?\nHow tall are you?
603491
You should definitely hit the weights and try to gain some strength, but I wouldn't worry about trying to bulk up too much. You don't have to be massive to play ball, especially if you've got any speed. Since you're pretty thin and you play tennis, I assume you're at least somewhat fast/quick. While you work on gaining muscle, also focus on increasing your speed, your quickness/reactions, and your agility/leaping ability. Defensive Back, Wide Receiver, and even Half Back are positions you don't have to be real big to play, but you have to be quick. \n   If you check with the team, I'd almost guarantee there's an off-season conditioning program. I would highly suggest going so you can learn what kind of lifts you need to be working on, plus so the coaches will start seeing you around and working hard (assuming you're not a slacker). In addition to weights/calisthenics and distance running, I would suggest you get on a sprint regiment. Run regular forward sprints, but also start running some backwards sprints, focusing on not only speed, but on keeping your balance and not leaning back (If you're leaning back while running backwards, and a receiver curls around quickly, youll either be out of position or you'll fall over and look like a donk.) Working on your lateral movements is a good idea also, similar to what I would expect you would work on in tennis. Overall, just get in the weight room, get on the field and give it everything you've got. Oh, and a positive note for you- coaches love seeing smallish guys lay someone out; it shows that you're willing to go all out, and it's an embarrassing way of motivating someone who might be dogging it or just going through the motions. Good luck and have fun.
510388
well, james, how old are you? is there a chance you haven't fully developed?  also, there are lots of sports that don't require size, but are based more on speed and agility.  if you don't like those sports, even lacrosse can be a sport for you.  i once knew a kid who was your size but a bit taller and he was extremely good at faceoffs and earned a college scholarship based on the fact that he was so useful for that one skill.  just practice, practice, practice!
495469
well there is this organization called AAU (Armature Athletic Union) it will only be helpful to you if you are between the ages of 10 and 18 you can go to the website and find teams in your area and try out for them. they compete nationally across the u.s \nwww.aausports.org then you click on basketball
970679
It's tough to tell you specifically what you need to do other than play as much as possible. To help your physical shape and jumping ability, you should try plyometric exercises. You can look them up online for specific exercises. They are excellent for explosive power which you need for basketball. As far as shooting better, the key is repitition. You don't necessarily need picture-perfect form, but you do need to perfect your form. Not every good shooter in the NBA has textbook form. In your spare time, shoot about 100 jumpshots a day. Also work on ballhandling and layups with BOTH hands. The more you do it, the more comfortable it will become to you. And a small, but important tip - watch plenty of COLLEGE basketball. They are more fundamental than the pros. Pay attention to how they dribble, pass, and defend. And I know you don't want to hear practice, but that really is the key. The more you play, the faster you will improve. Repitition is the key to success in basketball.
49199
Hey man, we like brothers. I am not exactly skinny, I'm about 170-180lbs. I was on my school's rec. basketball team. I didn't miss one practice. It was fun. I would join and see how it's like. It doesn't matter how much you weigh. Look at Robert Traylor. He was a big man and he played in the NBA for the Cavs. He's a free agent now, but it doesn't matter. He still played the game, and he was successful. If you love the game, then have fun playing it. I'm 13 and in middle school and next year, I'll be going to my high school, and I plan on joining the Fottball team, the basketball team, and the baseball team. I even plan on joining the track team for shotput and discus. All because I love playing sports. I'm a very competitive person. So, join you're basketball team, and DON'T QUIT IT IF YOU JOIN. If you quit, you'll be picked on for quitting and wasting the team's time. So if you feel that you can do it, than join and do it. Best wishes man! PEACE!
587363
well you have do develop speed and quickness. try running sprints often. also ball control is very much needed. this can be achieved by dribbling 2 balls at once this will give you great ball control. then of course your shooting. just shoot 100 shots per area on the court. If you use to be a 4-5 and can achieve this you will be a good 1-2
360008
everything matters, I am short and I am a good player.  All depends on skill and ups.  Also, if you are young, you will grow.
957222
I have a lot of experience with this. You do want to lift weights but i would recommend only one body part at a time when you lift and nothing too heavy. You want to maintain muscle you have without sacrificing your basketball game recovering from a hard workout. Make sure when you lift it is a couple days before a game so you have time to recover. Nothing is the worst than having your jumpshot fall a foot short evertime because your arms or back is tired from overtraining!
668247
once u can do 100 keep ups, then ur ready to learn the trick.it takes a while of gettin used to. first get used to holdin ur knee up and rollin ur leg around. then practice with the ball.
602767
my girlfriend has played ball almost all of her life. she said that the biggest thing you should work on is running. you run springts like crazy. and you are timed. most coaches give 10-20 seconds to run full court twice. even if you suck at shooting or anything else, if your fast, coach will at least use you to get the ball down the court. after that comes shooting and layups. you dont have to have perfect handling on the ball because they will prolly keep whateva pt guard they have. just make sure you are a good runner, and can shoot jump shots and layups
891862
If you're on the basketball team, you're in great shape...first and foremost, do everything your coach tells you to do (and share with him your desire to play college ball), secondly, work your butt off in practice, and the weightroom, thirdly, treat every game like you are auditioning for scouts...what I mean here is you want to be showing your best stuff every time you have a game, and lastly, you need to develop a killer instinct in yourself, where you look at anyone else on the court and have a knowledge within yourself that you are better than that person.  Once you have achieved that kind of confidence in your game, you can be sure that you have the desire, attitude and skill to play at the college level or beyond...\n\nIn response to your email question to me (which I couldn't reply to because your profile doesn't allow email contact with you) here's my answer about how many hours you should spend:  \n\nWhen I was on the High School team (in the '80's...jeez I feel old), I would wake up an hour early every day before school and jog to the basketball court and do layup drills for an hour, left handed on one side and right handed on the other.  At lunch at my school there was open gym and there would be a lot of pickup games, so I would pack a sandwich for lunch and play pickup games.  Then after school there was an hour before practice, so I would spend that hour shooting free throws, and then our practices used to last for four hours...after practice I went to the library and did homework.  So all told, I was playing ball for about 7 hours a day, 5 days a week.  It all depends on how bad you want it...remember, every time you have a chance to work on your game and you don't do it...that's the time that your competition is practicing on their game and getting better.  Remember the 7 "P"'s, "Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance"....Good Luck!!
815987
How old are u? College or High School? The average height and weight for a Division 1 College center is 6'9 and 255pounds. I am 6'8 and 225pounds and I am still a little under sized to play center.\nAt 6'0 and 170 pounds, you better not only know how to shoot, but be fast, and a good passer cos a point guard will probably be the position most suited for you.\nI wouldn't hurt to get into the gym and put a couple more pounds of muscle on though. It will help you not get pushed around or posted up by taller guards.
932919
In basketball you need explosiveness on demand.  Try squatting like 135 lbs, put a milk crate, or a chair on the ground behind you so that when you drop your bottom down your thighs are perpendicular to the ground and your knees form a perfect 90 degree angle.  At this point your rear end should be just barely touching the chair.  In other words the chair should be placed almost just out of reach, it is to let you know when you have gone down far enough.  Once you have come in contact with the chair explode up as fast as possible.  Go slow on the way down then repeat.  Do 3 sets of 15 at the end of a moderate leg work out, or even after some time on the court.  The goal is not to lift a lot of weight using this technique, but to force your leg muscles to react quicker.  It will be a little uncomfortable the first few times you do it, but once you get the hang of it you will notice you are able to respond on the court better.  Do not do this more then 2 times per week, and put several day in between.  Another good work out is deep squats, which are self explanatory.  Just remember don't go crazy heavy, this technique should be used to develop muscular range of motion.
617533
Stand under a basket jump straight up, about 25 times at a time... do as many reps as you can...see how high you can get on the net... then do some other stuff, like practicing your shooting or dribbling... then do it again, jump as high as you can with both hands up, do it 25 times... as you do this, your legs will get stronger, and your stamina will improve as well...(doing it under a basket will allow you to guage your progress as you get closer and closer to your goal).\n\nJump rope a lot too... this helps build your legs, and your stamina as well...\n\nDon't mess with ankle weights UNLESS A DOCTOR TELLS YOU IT'S OK...your joints aren't used to that, so even if you use them, you'll have to build up gradually.  Don't listen to anyone who tells you how much ankle weights did for them, or for their cousin, or for their next door neighbor... every body is different, you should check with a doctor or trainer to see how ankle weights might be used as some point.\n\nWith three years left to achieve your goal, you should be able to do it... don't let anyone tell you that you can't... well, I guess you can't stop them from telling you that, but just don't listen to them... it's easy to sit on the sidelines and criticize, and tell everyone that what they're trying to do is impossible, but people who do that end up never amounting to anything...\n\nGood luck to you!\n\nbtw, talk to you coach about this goal of yours as well... he/she should be glad to help... tell them about the ideas from the answers on this page (don't need to tell where you got the ideas) and see what he/she says...