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Post by Mike Giggs' Munchies on Jul 20, 2013 11:42:13 GMT -5
I always liked basketball. Whenever I went to the USA on holiday I would always watch it on the TV in the hotel, and I found it to be a great sport. I've never liked the NFL and baseball really bores me. I've been trying to diversify my sporting habits past football, and have so far watched a good amount of tennis and F1. I like basketball but know very little about it; I'd appreciate someone here pointing me in the direction of some of the basics, and maybe a few classic games/highlights to watch on YouTube. Also looking for a team to semi-support if anyone has any good suggestions. Here's all I know about the sport so far:
1. Travelling is bad
2. MJ is the greatest
3. Larry Bird was good too
4. There are 4 quarters
5. LeBron is a d*ck (seriously, 'The Decision' sounds like the most egotistical piece of sh*t ever) but he's the best around today
6. Shots outside the semi-circle are worth 3 points instead of 2
7. Cheerleaders are hot
I know nothing of positions, tactics etc. so I would appreciate help from you American folk. If you ever wanna learn about football (socca to you yanks) then be my guest and come support MUFC with me.
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Post by T R W on Jul 23, 2013 7:38:42 GMT -5
I have been watching NBA basketball since 1980. I am not the best at remembering a lot of details, but I have seen a lot over the years. Here is a link to the rules of the game. www.nba.com/analysis/rules_index.htmlOne thing that might help you to learn the history of the game is to read up on the NBA 50 Greatest players list. www.nba.com/history/50greatest.htmlI also recommend watching the recent documentary about the 1992 Olympic Dream Team, which was composed of 11 all-time greats, and Christian Laettner. If there is a player you are interested in learning about, there are almost always highlight videos someone has put together on youtube. As far as who to root for today, well, that's a tough one. My best advice since you don't have anyone local would be to find the player that you enjoy watching the most, and go from there. Honestly, that is how a lot of people here do it anyway. www.nba.com/history has a lot of interesting stories and video. 1986 playoffs duel between Bird and Dominique Wilkins, one of the greatest games I have ever watched. |
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Post by Quanthor on Jul 24, 2013 2:23:10 GMT -5
So much has changed about the sport in the past 15 years it's crazy. Positions don't mean the same anymore, that along with NBA rule changes has completely changed strategies. You use to see the proper sized players for each position whether in the starting lineup or coming off the bench, but now there's so many hybrid players and skill specific guys that you can place at various positions. The league is a lot smaller now too. There's centers that are freaking 6'9" and some of those dudes can shoot 3's.
The traditional 5 is ..
The backcourt
1. The "point guard". He's kinda like the captain of the team. He's the guy that walks the ball up the court and sets up plays. We're in a revolutionary period for point guards right now. They've become the focal point for scoring. Average size about 6'3". Greatest player to ever play the position was Magic Johnson, he was somewhat of a hybrid himself. Best pure point guard is probably John Stockston or Bob Cousy.
2. "shooting guard". Michael Jordan completely changed this position. A lot of "2-guards" started becoming the main playmaker for teams, working a lot off the dribble, but now with the arrival of all the combo point guards it's mostly a perimeter position. Theses guys shoot a ton of 3's and are the marksman of a team. Average size 6'5".
The frontcourt
3. "small forward" somewhat of a perimeter position too. They shoot a lot of 3's, slash to the basket, usually very athletic with great length which enables their versatility. They need to do a little of everything. Score, rebound, pass and defend well. Average size 6'7". Greatest player to ever play the position is probably Larry Bird..for now. LeBron James will probably pass him eventually.
4."power forward" These are your work horses. There's a lot of "stretch 4's" now, which is a shooting power forward, but back in the day these guys would either be 1 of 2 things. Either a physical bruiser as a role player or a low post scorer. Meaning they work the block(the rectangular shape in front of the hoop) by posting up with their backs against the basket. Average size 6'8"-6'10". Greatest player is probably Tim Duncan.
5. "Center" Easily the weakest position today. Most of the great dynasties of the past had a 7' big man they could dump the ball into, they were the main scoring focal point of a teams offense. They use to be a necessity, but now they're so rare that the game has adjusted. Whether he can score or not this guy also needs to be a very good defender. Protecting the rim and securing the ball is equally as important. Average size 6'10" today. Greatest ever...this one is the most contested of all. Some would say Bill Russell, others would say Kareem Abdul Jabbar, I tend to lean towards Wilt Chamberlain, but there's probably not a wrong answer between them. I think Shaquille O'Neal and Hakeem Olajuwon round out the 5.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2013 14:16:22 GMT -5
-There are 82 games in a season; and if your team is good enough you'll make it into the playoffs. There are 30 teams divided into two conferences, the east and west. each conference has a division of 5 teams each. the top team from each division and the next 5 teams from each conference regardless of division make the top 8 teams from each conference. they then get seeded much like most other sports, the top team gets the worst qualifying team (1st vs 8th) and the second best gets the second worst, etc. they play a round of best-of-seven, meaning technically they will play seven games against each other and whoever ends up with the most wins advances to the next round. of course, as a technicality, after one team wins 4 games, there's no use to play out the entire 7-game series so its the first team to win 4 games that get to move to the next round.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2013 14:42:14 GMT -5
If you are interested, here is a list of all the NBA teams sorted by conference and division:
Eastern Conference, Atlantic Division:
Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets
New York Knicks
Philadelphia 76ers
Toronto Raptors
Eastern Conference, Southeast Division:
Atlanta Hawks
Charlotte Bobcats (who will soon become the Charlotte Hornets)
Miami Heat (won the last two championships)
Orlando Magic
Washington Wizards
Eastern Conference, Central Division:
Chicago Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers
Detroit Pistons
Indiana Pacers
Milwaukee Bucks
Western Conference, Southwest Division:
Dallas Mavericks
Houston Rockets
Memphis Grizzlies
New Orleans Pelicans
San Antonio Spurs (last season's Western Conference Champions)
Western Conference, Pacific Division:
Golden State Warriors
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Phoenix Suns
Sacramento Kings
Western Conference, Northwest Division:
Denver Nuggets
Minnesota Timberwolves
Portland Trailblazers
Oklahoma City Thunder
Utah Jazz
As for rooting purposes, normally I'd say local teams are the way to go but since you don't have one, looking for a favorite player or looking through team history's on Wikipedia could work as well. Its also fine to cheer for a couple teams, for example, I am loyal to my hometown team, like most people on the forum, but since one of my favorite players will be on the Jazz, I root for them too. Hopefully I helped you out a bit.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2013 11:05:14 GMT -5
the most important thing to know about basketball is that anything you see on tv would get you laughed off the playground, or out of the gym if you tried to get away with it
traveling isn't called in the NBA or double dribbling, or keeping your pivot foot...or offensive fouling (pushing off) with your non-dribbling or non-dunking hand
it will be hard to follow at times because the rules are very subjective (which gets frustrating), but it is somehow still fun to watch and even more fun to play
strategy all depends on match-ups....if you have someone that cannot defend a player, you try to take advantage
one's strategy could even be to get a team's best players in "foul trouble" - so they aren't on the court much
there's a rule that it takes at least .04 seconds to shoot a basketball & .03 seconds for a tip-in...anything less on the clock & the team cannot
the clock doesn't start until someone touches the ball inbounds, so that's why you'll often see players waiting & letting the ball roll on its own
you can't back someone down dribbling for more than 5 seconds & you cannot stand underneath someone so that they will land on your feet and get hurt when shooting
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Post by johnnyb on Jul 31, 2013 12:00:20 GMT -5
the most important thing to know about basketball is that anything you see on tv would get you laughed off the playground, or out of the gym if you tried to get away with it Total myth. Except for the flopping. |
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Post by Mike Giggs' Munchies on Jul 31, 2013 12:51:03 GMT -5
Cheers guys  Really appreciate your help. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2013 17:53:49 GMT -5
the most important thing to know about basketball is that anything you see on tv would get you laughed off the playground, or out of the gym if you tried to get away with it Total myth. Except for the flopping. what's the myth? if you take four steps at the Y, you're getting called out (something that even my favorite team's players do in the nba) even in a small rec league, you'd be the laughing stock if you tried to do what isn't called in the pros |
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Post by The Champ is Here! on Jul 31, 2013 18:11:17 GMT -5
As for who to root for, you can pick a player, like some have said, or even a team that plays a certain style, for instance, the Knicks play a up tempo shoot a lot of three pointers style, the heat run though the big 3, the spurs play a more team oriented style, so if there is one that you really like, you could go that way
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Post by johnnyb on Jul 31, 2013 19:30:30 GMT -5
Total myth. Except for the flopping. what's the myth? if you take four steps at the Y, you're getting called out (something that even my favorite team's players do in the nba) even in a small rec league, you'd be the laughing stock if you tried to do what isn't called in the pros For one thing, it's a myth that NBA players travel often. They travel more than they are called for, but it's not on every play or even every other play. Check out the rulebook. Guys today are much savvier about taking steps as you gather and things like that. Guys play the same way today as they did 25 years ago except they're more talented today, as a whole. The guys at the YMCA just do what they see on TV except not as well. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2013 23:14:48 GMT -5
what's the myth? if you take four steps at the Y, you're getting called out (something that even my favorite team's players do in the nba) even in a small rec league, you'd be the laughing stock if you tried to do what isn't called in the pros For one thing, it's a myth that NBA players travel often. They travel more than they are called for, but it's not on every play or even every other play. Check out the rulebook. Guys today are much savvier about taking steps as you gather and things like that. Guys play the same way today as they did 25 years ago except they're more talented today, as a whole. The guys at the YMCA just do what they see on TV except not as well. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. Just my opinion, but it's based on watching basketball for 20 years & I've seen the rulebook (and the changes throughout the years). Again, my opinion, but the game may be played the same way...however, it isn't called the same way. They allow traveling & players take advantage of that. It doesn't matter if it's once a game or 100 times a game. In the playoffs, one bucket off of a three step travel is everything. How can someone play defense effectively if the offensive player can dribble and hold the ball before choosing which way to go, or taking that extra step before jumping? Everyone uses their free hand to push off far too often & it should be called. If the defender bounces back from a push, it's an easy bucket. Searching youtube, it's harder to find a play with a 'no call' than an actual clean play. More savvy? Or swallowing their whistles to allow a game to be offensive minded? If they're more talented today, why can't they do it following the rules? More physically gifted, yes. That's why there's no excuse for them to not do it right. |
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Post by johnnyb on Aug 1, 2013 9:54:06 GMT -5
Guys have been using those little tricks forever. It's not unique to today's players at all.
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Post by Matt on Aug 11, 2013 16:28:38 GMT -5
Shoot, Defend, don't walk with the ball.  Simple as that! |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 30, 2013 21:06:16 GMT -5
Cant stand the timeouts in basketball. The last stages of a close game would be so much more exciting if the last minute didnt take 6 minutes to complete
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Post by 3Lephant (Naptown Icon) on Aug 30, 2013 21:09:02 GMT -5
the 1992 Olympic Dream Team, which was composed of 11 all-time greats, and Christian Laettner.  |
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Post by ToastMaster General on Sept 2, 2013 11:03:24 GMT -5
Just look up Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Dr. J, MJ, and Larry Bird. The rest will come naturally to you. lol
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Post by @Sweetbob on Sept 5, 2013 4:36:59 GMT -5
My opinion is that if you don't quite understand the rules of basketball, just watch a lot of basketball and you'll pick it up fast. You'll know by the crowd's reaction and your eye if a great play just happened.
I suggest buying Bill Simmons book 'The Book of Basketball' if you want to learn about the history of the game. It's extremely detailed (700+ page), but it's thorough as heck.
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Post by Emerald Enthusiast on Sept 9, 2013 2:21:10 GMT -5
I always liked basketball. Whenever I went to the USA on holiday I would always watch it on the TV in the hotel, and I found it to be a great sport. Also looking for a team to semi-support if anyone has any good suggestions. Here's all I know about the sport so far: I know nothing of positions, tactics etc. so I would appreciate help from you American folk. If you ever wanna learn about football (socca to you yanks) then be my guest and come support MUFC with me. You might also consider the NCAA in addition to the NBA. Here is a few point-counterpoints to consider about the differences: NBA-- Often heard positives: *Some of the best athletes on the planet *Stars are larger than life *Personal rivalries like Magic-Bird can go on for years *Regular season is 82 games long and playoff series are best-of-7. From the end of October to June, there is pro basketball on almost nightly. Often-heard negatives: *Players (particularly stars) get away with traveling/walking all the time *Regular season games have no sense of rivalry or urgency because teams play each other 2-4 times per year. *The small market teams are essentially farm teams for the larger market franchises like LA, Boston, Chicago, San Antonio and Miami. NCAA-- Often Heard Positives: *Rivalries mirror the intensity of college football ala OSU-Michigan, Duke-UNC, Kentucky-Louisville. *There are around 30 games in a season, so they are meaningful and easier to track. *March Madness (The NCAA Tournament) is a do-or-die scenario that adds drama to the quest for the NCAA title. *Despite the powerhouse schools, cinderellas like Butler and Gonzaga can emerge from obscurity. Often Heard Negatives: *With the emergence of one-and-done players, the games can be sloppy at times *Defense is more prevalent, making the scores lower *Meaningful games take place during NFL playoffs/NCAA bowl games, which often leads coverage of college basketball lacking until February. *The West Coast is underrepresented with the notable exception of UCLA. |
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