Best Price Guarantee
(800) 689-0281
0 items
Slam dunks and the sound of swisssshhhh is great, but bank shots are money in the bank! John Wooden was a big fan of bank shots – he made it the focus of many practice sessions. UCLA’s undefeated 1972 – 73 team, including the legendary Bill Walton, racked up points using the bank shot. Richard “Digger” Phelps (before ESPN fame, he was the winningest Notre Dame basketball coach ever) suggests playing an entire game using nothing but bank shots. (Whew!) Bank shots aren’t glamorous, but do teach good form – and that’s what’s needed to excel at the game. See,… Read more »
Tag: basketball
One of the greatest basketball players who ever graced the courts was Jerry West. He played for 14 years – and he was consistently in the top for 12 of those 14 years – without the three-point line, the lack of All-Defense teams (that didn’t start until 1969) and the lack of recording steals (which started happening in the 1973 – 74 season). West finished in the top 10 in nine major categories (not even MJ did that!!). The Lakers knew they could count on West to deliver whatever the team needed at the time. Injuries didn’t even put him… Read more »
In basketball, a rim is a rim is a rim – right? No, big guy – that’s not right – in fact it is a serious wrong. Let’s get technical here for a minute and talk some physics. Let me set the stage for you – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar once said that if his team out rebounded the other team, his team would come out with a win. We’re talking rebounding here and rims are an integral part of that. Rims can be hard or soft. No, not the rims themselves; it has to do with how tightly the rim is… Read more »
Look at most every group – sports team, social organization even a political organization – and you’ll be able to sort out the Alpha Dog – the top dog that everyone follows. Sometimes in very talented groups the Alpha Dog isn’t evident right away, but then something happens and bingo – there he (or she) is! They seem to fall into two categories: Those who inspire others to follow and support them Those who are awed and feared by those around them For instance, Bill Russell inspired his teammates. Bills Simmons relates this story in The Book of Basketball, which… Read more »
Let’s talk about legs. Of course, with all the action on a basketball court, leg strength and endurance is important – but let’s focus on using legs for jumping. Do you get as amazed as me at the jumping – no, the springing, abilities that basketball athletes possess today? It is truly an awe-inspiring moment when you see Blake Griffin jump high enough that his KNEES are level with another player’s HEAD – I mean, it’s hard to believe – I suppose I’d say, “Yeah, right” if someone told me about it – but seein’ is believin’. In fact, there’s… Read more »
There’s nothing sweeter than the “swish” of nothing but net – Those shots are special for a reason – they’re tough to make. Players are more likely to make the basket when they concentrate on the sweet spot on the goal – the shooting square. The shooting square is, according to the official NBA Rules under Section II – Equipment: A transparent backboard shall be marked with a 2” white rectangle centered behind the ring. This rectangle shall have outside dimensions of 24” horizontally and 18” vertically. With good form and aiming for the shooting square, scoring becomes an expected… Read more »
Way, way back in December of 1891, physical education teacher James Naismith introduced his class to two peach baskets he had nailed to the lower rail of the balcony at both ends of the gym, 13 rules for a new game, and using a soccer ball, basketball was born. It’s said Naismith wrote those 13 rules in about an hour – which is pretty unbelievable considering how long it takes the committees to make changes to the rules these days. There have been changes; the original rules did not account for dribbling – can you imagine that? Another difference: his… Read more »
Growing up, there wasn’t a street in town that didn’t have some garages with basketball hoops. They were those white fan-shaped backboards attached with a web of 2×4 planks (which caught every wayward ball). Most had the shooting square outlined with bright orange tape – that is, if the elements hadn’t deteriorated the tape or faded it so badly you couldn’t really see it. Those basketball hoops were for the casual players – the groups of kids in pick-up games. The kids who were really serious about basketball were seldom seen playing – maybe practicing a few free throws. I… Read more »
Triple doubles may sound like something decadent at the local ice cream store, but in basketball a triple double or a greater quadruple double signifies something much more lasting. A triple double is common in today’s basketball-speak, but if you can remember back to the late ‘70’s you know that wasn’t always the case. Whether you want to accept or not, the triple double was initially created by a PR man – the Los Angeles Lakers PR man, Bruce Joelsch. You see, Joelsch wanted a way to describe how point guard Ervin “Magic” Johnson contributed to the team other than… Read more »
Remember in the movie, Hoosiers, when the Coach (played by Gene Hackman) instilled courage and confidence in his fearful, small-town team? He measured the distance from the rim to the floor of the basketball goal in their home gym and showed them the distance was the same in Hinkle Fieldhouse where they would play for the championship. Their David-complex evaporated and Goliath wasn’t as much of a giant anymore. Change perceptions on your team’s basketball court Perceptions play a big part in confidence for players – especially kids, when they haven’t had the experiences winning, and losing, on the court.… Read more »
One of the questions we get a lot here at the Basketball Goal Store is about the adjustability feature on the Goalrilla Basketball Goals we offer. People ask why the Goalrilla Goal adjusts specifically from 7.5 to 10-feet. There are several products out there on the market that adjust downward to 6-feet – and even a few more that go to 5-feet. Safety is always first with Goalrilla Basketball Goals ASTM standards for adjustable basketball systems prohibit adjustments lower than 7.5-feet for customer safety. Serious injury to the mouth and teeth can happen if teeth or braces get caught in… Read more »
Sure wish I had known John Wooden.
He applied what he knew about life to basketball – and had it right because the “Wizard of Westwood” was the winning-est coach in NCAA history.
We all tell our kids that practice pays off and if you want to be really good at something – sports, academics, painting – whatever – you
Remember when CBSsports.com reported veteran guard Mike Bibby and Washington Wizards coach Flip Saunders were “sharing a laugh” in the locker room shortly after Bibby had been traded from the
Rumors are flying all around the NBA about players being traded and deals being just a handshake away as the deadline for trades approaches.
Even though fans get either elated or irritated with all the trades and deals, it’s a fact that basketball players change teams a lot. Careers and popularity rise and fall –
Not only does the NCAA basketball season for men culminate in the championship game in Houston in April, the Division I collegiate women’s season also comes to a close the same week in Indianapolis.
It’s interesting the scheduling – the men face off April 2 and 4, the women – April 3 and 5. Since 2003, the college basketball
UCLA coach John Wooden coached basketball stars such as Kareem Abdul Jabbar and Bill Walton. But it wasn’t just the SUPERSTARS that got his attention.
He gave every member of his teams the guidance and attention which pulled the Bruins together so they could achieve 665 victories and 10 championships!
Here it is, spring in Indiana (yes, one of the hotbeds of basketball fever) and that means wind. It blows across the fields like it has to be somewhere right now.
What it does, right now, is blow a lot of things around. And today I saw a great big ouch! Big enough to make me cringe.
Basketball is one of the few sports that wheelchair-bound persons can play. In fact, the National Wheelchair Basketball Association is older than the NBA! Believe it or not.
Disabled veterans returning from WWII started the sport with the Paralyzed Veterans of America. Players were exclusively paraplegic veterans or those with spinal cord injuries. Eventually it opened
This year’s NBA All-Star Weekend brought record prime time ratings for TNT. Nielson reports the league’s annual East vs. West game surpassed audience numbers in nearly a decade. Between 8:46 and 11:41 p.m., 9.09 million viewers turned on and tuned in to the All-Star Game. That was a 33% improvement over last year’s 6.85 million viewers.
Welcome to the Basketball Goal Store blog!
For hoop aficionados, every day is a great day to talk about basketball. And it’s always a great time to start a blog, but right now is an especially great time to start a blog about basketball!
Because it’s at this time of year, the talk moves into a more frenzied kind of conversation. We are, after all, gearing up for March
