Defensive Rebounding

9 Steps To Improving Defensive Rebounding

THE BEST defense is to be on offense. Your opponent cannot score when your team has the ball, unless your team is called for a technical foul. Therefore a team that goes after every rebound is a better defensive team because they have the best denial defense of all-they get the ball.

Here are 9 steps you should follow to become a better defensive rebounder.

1. To be an effective rebounder, you must make it a top priority. Remember that you must be a defender and a rebounder. They go hand in hand and the same determination is required to become successful at each. Success with both begins in your mind, not in the size of your body.
2. Make first contact when the shot is taken. You should begin establishing position when a player is about to shoot. You must immediately think "body-ball." Look to hit a body, then look for and move toward the ball. The best method of blocking out is to step toward the nearest opponent and reverse pivot into the player with a low, wide base. The object is to tie up the opponent's lower legs with the tail end. Spread your upper arms wide with elbows bent and hands pointing upward.
3. Keep your hands up for better defensive rebounding. You cannot leave your hands down and you must not reach back to hold your opponent as many players do. That action is a foul and you will not be able to get as many rebounds when your hands aren't held high.
4. Go after every ball! You must aggressively pursue a ball after blocking out, not being content to get only balls that come in your direction. The automatic block out, even if it's just a touch and go, that precedes an aggressive pursuit of the ball is sound basketball.
5. Have good spacing when the shot goes up. You should step forward into the opposing player and use a reverse pivot to gain more space between yourself and the goal. It's easy to rebound the ball in front of the body, but very difficult to jump backward to get one.
6. Be relentless. Good rebounders do not give up on a ball because they get blocked out or seem to be out of position. They work to get into the action by spinning around people, going to the baseline under the block out and knifing back up into the lane to battle for the ball.
7. Get the logical rebounding angles. You should go to the weakside for rebounds when possible. Seal off rebounders who have deep inside position.
8. Guards should consider rebounding a challenge. On the defensive end of the court, there are more rebounds because of the proliferation of the three-point shot. Guards who are alert and tough will claim a lot of balls.
9. Study the opposition's shooting habits. You'll know whose shot rebounds softly and whose shot comes off the board hard.