As fun as it is to watch the greats play, it is better when you go out and try to do the things you have seen the pros done.  Countless times I have counted down the clock as I took a fade away jumper for the win (ala Michael Jordan).  Now fans are emulating LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Kevin Durant, and others.

There are many ways you can play basketball.  You can play five on five, one on one, horse, speed, etc.  In my opinion playing 3 on 3 is the best ways to practice and use the moves you’ve seen on TV.  Like the Rajon Rondo fake layup turn around hook or the fake behind the back pass to layup.

You need to practice basketball drills to be like the NBA greatest players.

Dribbling Drills-To be a good basketball player you need to be able to dribble the ball.  Especially because so few of us are blessed with being 7 feet tall.  The shorter you are the more you have to be able to dribble.  Good drills are dribbling two balls at the same time.  This helps your weak hand to be as good with dribbling as your strong hand.  Other important things to practice are crossovers, between the legs, and behind the back dribbling.  These skills will help you get space from your defender which will allow you to drive or give you space for a jump shot.

Passing Drills-Passing is another very important part basketball.  Bounce passes, chest passes, cross court passes, and lob passes are fundamental abilities that you need to know.  As you master these passes you can also try more flashy passes such as behind the back, off the backboard, and no look passes.

Shooting Drills-Nothing else matters if you can’t score.  You need to be able to make shots to win any basketball game.  Free-throw shooting is one of the most important shots to master.  Nothing is more frustrating when you miss a free shot at the basket.  You should be able to make all shots such as mid range shots, three point shots, hook shots, and lay-ups.  But you should practice the most with where you will get the ball.  If you are a center practice hook shots more.  If you are a shooting guard practice mid range and three point shots.

Team Drills- It is necessary to work well with your team.  You need to know where someone will be on offense so you can pass to them.  You also need to trust your teammates to help you on defense.  Your team chemistry will come as you play more together and get to kn0w each others tendencies and how to best play with each other.

Basketball Conditioning- There is a lot of running in basketball.  You need to be in shape to stay on your man on defense and have enough energy on offense to blow by your defender as you drive to the hoop.  To improve your conditioning you should do wind sprints, run laps, push ups, and sit ups.  Also, if you want to play in the post, the more body building you do the stronger you will be to back people down and score easier in the post.

Basketball is a great way to get outdoors, get exercise, and have a lot of fun.  If you practice these drills you can be like the pros and dominate your competition.  You will be better as you practice more, and remember you are doing this because everyone wants to be like Mike.

Here is a great variant of basketball games that can be played with friends in casual settings, in case the normal game play isn’t as fun anymore.

Speed- This game involves a line of people that take turns shooting in order to get each other out. The game is a fairly simple one in nature. there are two basketballs that are used, and two people at a time take turns shooting in sequence. When a basket is made, the person throws it to the next person down the line, then runs to the back of the line immediately after. If someone behind another person makes it first, the person before them is eliminated.

The game continues on until every person but one is eliminated.

When a game is completed, people line up in reverse order of how they got out, pick a new spot to shoot from, and continue on with the game.

Playing this game variant will give people some much needed variety and will inject a bit of spice and fun into the equation. Plus, if you happen to be awesome it, then you can dominate in multiple settings.

The Aztecs seemed unstoppable, being undefeated, but the Cougars have only lost one game this season. Each team has a star player; namely Jimmer Fredette (BYU) and Kawhi Leonard (SDSU).

Both teams are good – great, in fact. Combine that with the fact that there are two Top 10 teams in the Mountain West Conference is simply amazing, but with all of the coverage that these two teams have been receiving made the match-up that much bigger.

More than 22,000 fans packed the Marriott Center at BYU to watch Jimmer Fredette lead his team to a 71-58 victory against SDSU. Jimmer scored 43 of those 71 points, playing his best home game yet. His timing was perfect; especially since there were a rumored 24 NBA scouts there to watch.

The Cougar nation can celebrate this huge victory, but the actual team must prepare to travel to new Mexico to go up against Lobos this Saturday.

This team sport is becoming more and more like the pros – in other words it’s a team sport that is more about the individual than the team. Players are singled out and the elite are put on pedestals and are deemed destined for greatness.

Though it is awesome that certain players have a great talent, let’s just remember that it is just high school. There is no need to compare them to the greats when they put up points, but shun them when they miss the game-winning shot.

This is not make or break – it’s high school – and it should be treated as such. They’re kids and when they shine they should be praised, but they should not be told that they are better than everyone else because that will only give them a big ego that is hard to get rid of.

The throwing of major sports games for personal gain troubles fans who, watching for entertainment, expect fair play. People don’t follow sports for the scandal, they watch for the talent. Donaghy violated the trust of NBA fans when, as an official, he bet on NBA games.

In his new book, “Personal Foul,” however, Donaghy claims the infamy for more than himself.

Donaghy claims that he didn’t fix any games because he didn’t have to. His argument is that he simply used his knowledge of NBA politics to guess at the outcomes of games. The insider knowledge of the relationships between and tendencies of the different coaches, players, and referees lead Donaghy to an unheard of 70-80 percent success rate.

Donaghy got in deep. He almost had his kneecaps broken at one point by a prisoner that may have been associated with the mob. By the time it was spiraling out of control, the mob, the FBI, the NBA, and federal prosecutors were involved.

The implications for the NBA are the biggest issue at hand though. If Donaghy’s claims are true, the NBA has a few problems to work out. This book reveals a serious fault in their credibility as a fair and straight forward organization. The assertion that NBA games do not unfold on a level playing field, is enough to make any fan indignant, if not angry.

Clearly, Donaghy shouldn’t have bet on anything associated with the NBA. But he did. The point he makes in his book is that the inner workings of the NBA made it easy. The assertion that NBA referees are not honest brokers has profound resonance and may lead to some changes in NBA policy and politics.

Slamball was invented in 2001by Mason Gordon, a sports enthusiast who wanted to turn real life into a video game. He started off with a few investors and a couple of guys that loved the game of basketball, and boom, they had themselves a couple of teams and a new league.

The rules of the game are similar to fight club. There basically are no rules. You can pretty much drill each other at any time, unless someone is in the air headed to a trampoline, otherwise, you can let loose and pretend you are Troy Polamalu of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The players that play this game are absolutely insane. However, they are very, very skilled at what they do. Some of the acrobatic moves that they pull off will leave all in the audience on their feet. This truly is a sport for our day.

I have added a clip of some of the best highlights of Slamball from a few years ago.