The important skills for beginners

FRIDAY, MAY 28, 2010

Advice to parents of beginners, from bball's Rupert Sapwell.

Parents of young players often ask me what their children should be focusing on when it comes to learning the game of basketball.
Please forgive the brutality of the answers, but . . .

First things first: Basic ball skills like passing and catching, particularly catching, are essential. If your child can't catch, pretty soon the teammates stop passing them the ball. Sounds mean, but it's the law of the jungle with kids. So spend some time with your kids helping them gain confidence catching the ball. I did this with a soft 'wahoo'-type ball, gradually building up the height I threw the ball until they could catch anything. Admittedly this was when they were 3-4 years old, but if your child still backs away from the ball or fears being hit, then spend your time here first. I made little competitions with my kids - 'if you catch this, I do a push-up'. They took great delight in making me do push-ups, and they got better at catching. Initially they caught the ball on their chest, then I modified the rules so they had to catch the ball in their fingertips. Gradually I threw the ball higher until I got sick of doing push-ups and conceded defeat.

Next time: Dribbling