NBA-level Playing Tip:
Use Your Body to Protect the Ball

As you progress through your playing career, you'll find that the levels of talent (basketball skill) and athleticism (speed, quickness, jumping ability) improve dramatically from one level to the next.

This also applies to the level of defense that is played. Defenders get smarter, and are more athletic as you move to higher levels of play. Therefore, as an offensive player, you'll have to step up your game accordingly. One of the main things you'll have to improve upon is using your body to protect the basketball.

NBA players become expert at using their bodies to protect the ball and to create space for their shot out of necessity. If a player isn't good at protecting the ball with his bodies, he won't last very long in the league. It's as simple as that.

So what exactly is "using your body to protect the ball"?

It simply means keeping the basketball away from the defender by positioning the ball, and your body in certain ways. Or put another way, it means keeping your body between the ball and the defender.

Let's give some examples.

• If you are dribbling the basketball, you should always keep the ball on the opposite side of your body, away from the defender. So if you're dribbling the ball to the right side of the floor, you should dribble with your right hand, so your body is between your defender and the ball. If they defender tries for a steal, they'll have to go across or through your body to get at the ball.

  In this example (dribbling to the right, with your right hand), you'd also have your left arm extended, with your elbow bent in an "arm bar" position, adding an additional part of your body that they defender would have to go through to get to the basketabll.

• If you are driving to the basket, the same concept applies: keep the ball to the right side of your body on the right side of the floor, and to the left side of your body on the left side of the floor. You should also try to keep your body perpendicular to the defender so that they have to go across the width of your body to get at the ball. If you face the defender and show them the basketball, you're not protecting the ball very well.

  On a dribble-drive, you'll also use your off-arm, the arm closest to the defender, to provide additional protection for the basketball. You can't fully extend your off-arm, or push off with it, but having it out, in an arm-bar position is perfectly legal and affords additional protection against the defender having access to the basketball.

• If you're in the paint, shooting a close-in shot, use your outside hand, the one furthest away from the defender, to shoot the basketball. Again, you should position your body so it's perpendicular to the defender so they'll have to go through or across the entire width of you body to get at the ball. If you position yourself correctly, they won't be able to reach the ball without fouling you.

Now, the concept of keeping the ball in your right hand on the right side of the floor and in your left on the left side is a general rule that applies most of the time. But what's most important is which direction you're making your move, and where your defender is located. That will dictate where you position the ball, and your body.

For example, if you're out on the right wing and decide to drive to your left, obviously you'll have the ball in your left hand as you make your move. Position your so that the defender would have to come across your body to get to the basketball.

To put it another way: don't show the defense the basketball. Protect the ball with your body and keep it as far away from the D as possible.

This may seem like a simple concept, and in many ways it is. But it's a very, very important one. The game of basketball is all about the fundamentals, and this is one of those simple, but key things you need to know about, work on, and continue to improve upon as you progress throgh your playing career.

Need proof about how important a concept this is? Watch an NBA game, and pay attention to where the players position themselves and the ball in relation to the defense. They have to use their body to protect the basketball. If they don't, the ball will be stolen and headed the other way in a heartbeat.

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