Typically, a basketball game consists of five players on both teams on the basketball court. Every player on each team has their position and handles responsibilities. The traditional way of this game is to solely fill the position and stick to it. In addition, the players have to concentrate on their assigned tasks. In this article, we will unravel the most important position in basketball played by the players.
However, basketball has evolved with time, and each game player is now allotted to perform more than two roles at once. It’s basically because of the sport’s nature, where the players must change positions and play the game with great flexibility. As a result, this required doing what was right in all possible circumstances. Like how long is halftime in college basketball, the need to know the important positions of the game is also important to know? If you are a basketball enthusiast or wish to know the game deeply, you are in the right place. Of course, you can find a hire a nerd to be more free while studying and spend more time on basketball tricks.
Roles and Positions In Basketball
There are precisely five positions and roles played by the players of the game of basketball. Among these, three are considered to be the basic positions. These positions are guard, forward, and center.
Guard Position
The shortest players of a basketball team generally take the guard positions. As they are mainly positioned at the backcourt, these players are called backcourt players. This is the half-court side away from the basket.
There are typically two groups of guards. They are the point guard and the shooting guard.
Shooting Guard
The name of the position is quite self-explanatory. He is mostly the main scoring choice. His designation is primarily to shoot the basketball and score points for his team.
The shooting guard position in the basketball game is the best outside shooter on the team. He is perhaps the player with the shortest height on the team. Besides being able to shoot nicely, the Shooting Guard must be promising to dribble faster, pass and possess a good vision of looking at the court. He should also be responsible for moving the ball away from the basketball court and initiating an offensive play.
A shooting guard is considered good when he can pose a danger to the opponent as he is proficient at scoring from any spot on the court. The shooting guard must score points from the back of the three-point line, floaters, layups, dunks, the midrange, or close to the court basket.
Here are a few habits of a successful shooting guard:
- Fast diet theory
- Learn the ways of reading space
- Know to make score without any dropping
- Get better at the opposite
- Command over the mid-range
- Make your shot simpler
- Understand your best spot
Point Guard
Though the point guard position is given to the shortest player, he is the best at handling the ball on the team. Most importantly, he is liable for leading the game. His main responsibility is to bring the ball to the team’s offensive end and initiate the offense.
Point Guards must have a promising conception of the basketball court to make unbolt shots for their team’s receiving players. Along with this, they have to perform the task of moving the ball towards the bottom of the basketball court to direct the offensive play.
The point guard should be excellent at shooting from a good distance. Although it is not very important, like the positions of the shooting guards; still a few of them take equivalent shots as the shooting guards.
Being a point guard in the team, the player must be unselfish as he has the task of prepping his teammates and involving them in the offensive play. Consequently, the point guard must have an excellent basketball IQ level mainly because he has to look over the defense and modify the play accordingly. For this reason, they are called ‘floor general’ or the ‘coach on the floor. He is perhaps the extension of the coach when on the court.
Forward Position
Unlike the guards, forward positions are played by the taller players on the court. They are known as the front-court positions due to the lineup of the players in front of the prime basket. Similarly, there are again two forward positions. These are the power forward and the small forward.
Power Forward
Power Forward positions are typically the second tallest players on the team. As they are close to the center, the players are similar in terms of physical features and style of playing. The only thing that differs is the speed at which the power forwards have more.
Power forward players are mostly versatile enough to score the paint and shooting potential from the midrange. It would be beneficial for the team if they could obtain a three-point. In addition, they have to keep their defensive mode on point to guard bigger players against coming close under the basket.
Small Forward
The small forward position is commonly shorter than the power forwards in the team. Nonetheless, these players also play the most efficient and versatile role compared to the five main positions.
Besides, they are perhaps the team’s second or third efficient shooters. They have the ability to play a little bit of every role on the court. Moreover, small forwards must have a good height in terms of physical attributes. Not only that, but he must have the skill to play on the inside and outside like a shooting guard.
Small Forward’s Skill Development
- Ball Handling
- Passing
- Shooting
- Creating Space
- Defense
- Pick and Roll Defense
- Dribble moves
- Post Up game
- Finishing
- Setting screens
Center Position
Unlike the guards and forward positions, the center position is one of a kind. There is no division in this position. Like the forward positions, the center takes the tallest and strongest player on the court. This is also called the front-court position because the player lines up under the basket to dominate the game.
The player in the center also needs to be more domineering with good physical vitality and athleticism.
Most Important Position in Basketball
Though a big man does not exclusively determine the result of the game, still the presence of one proves to be most advantageous. He can dominate the center position and rebound and block. Naturally, this will favor the team to take possession of more points and determine the result of the play.
Indeed, scorers make points in the hoop, but a scoring basket is impossible without getting possessions.
Besides the center, the most important position in basketball is the point guard. This is because every play starts with him. As said before, his task is to put the ball in the shooter’s hand.
A team can have the best shooter in the game, but without the ball, he won’t get a chance to score points. The point guard performs the task directly and indirectly as well.
Conclusion
Overall, the center and the point guard are the most important positions in basketball. The center is the tallest player on the team who positions close to the basket to protect the rim or score points for the team. The point guard assists the pass and hands the ball to the shooter.
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