How do you play smart in basketball?

I want to make my high school basketball team this year but im not good enough. One of the guys that made it told me that i have to play smart. What should i do to make myself a smarter player?|||Be aware of what's going on around you. First off you need to make sure you are physically fit, and that you have some strength in you to take bumps when you drive or if you play down low. When playing smart, you have to know where everybody is, expect what players can do, and know when to be where. That would mean that if you have the ball and you drive in, and if you try to kick out, you need to make sure that the guy you're kicking out to is actually there and ain't jus' some puff of air. Think of it like Steve Nash, he plays smart offensively and gets everyone open. I ain't saying to be just like him, but that's playing smart. On defense, make sure you man up tightly, bump him, harass him, and know his moves. Expect the cross over, or know if he is pump faking or actually taking it. If he doesn't have the ball, make sure you chase him everywhere and see that he doesn't get open. While that may be smart defense, you also need smart team defense. If a guy is havin trouble guardin someone, lay off a bit to go help him if things get bad. If the dude kicks out, you can still go back to your man and cover him.|||pratice and pratice when you get better

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|||Practice. Try practicing with people who are good at it.|||to read the coaches mind or think you are in a happy place or act like Dwayne Wade|||go to more b-ball camps and practice|||Smart basketball is a lot of things.





Knowing when to pass v when to shoot





Positioning yourself for rebounds





Stay in front of your man at all times (and keep your hands up)





Keep moving, if you're not trying to get open, you should be setting picks





Understanding when to take your shots (don't force anything)





Keep the turnovers down to a minimum, pass the ball before you get into trouble (double teamed)





It's all about the fundamentals. If you can do that they'll at least keep you on the bench|||I never could. I was never on the first five in my team.





Years later I realized that I only liked shooting and scoring points. The lovely sound the net makes and the way I feel in control of my body. Not the game.





Accepting this wasn't easy because I loved the game. Wasn't that hard either because I had to quit playing after high school.





But I guess my mind doesn't work the way a good player's mind works.





I remember trying to play better but just couldn't grasp the strategic part of the game. I was performing well but when it comes to coordinating a game timing a pass etc. I wasn't very good.





Hope you improve yourself and be a good player





Cheers.|||Practice and knowing the fundamentals of basketball.|||I think one way to play smart in basketball is to make sure you know the game and be a team player. And be willing to learn something new from other people.|||You have to put time and dedication to it and most importantly you have to stay aware in the game and in practice. But to know how to play smart you will have to start early and practice during your time off, therefore you will be ahead of the game and you will be prepared for what is ahead. But like they say 'practice makes perfect'! And good luck on making the team!!!|||Smart basketball is a combination of a ton of small concepts all put together in a combination of physical and mental awareness. It takes more than just understanding concepts to play smart basketball because you not only have to understand what to do, but you have to train your body to quickly react intelligently. That means that in order to get to that level, you need to play a lot of basketball and have coaches who know the game helping you.





Getting better at basketball is not something you can do individually.