10 Things to Look for When You Watch an NBA Game

Read this and you'll be a pro in no time.

People always ask me what I look for when watching an NBA game.

So today I put together a list.

Basketball is a game of ball movement and player movement that rewards unselfishness.

Here's what to pay attention to the next time you watch a game:

1. Warmups. Does a player’s concentration start before tipoff? Do players have a routine that they do before every game – four shots in a row from one spot, stretching under the basket, some superstitious habit – anything that gets them ready to play? Or are they just out there throwing the ball around? I always used to ask the ref for a chance to touch the game ball before the buzzer, to see how much air was in it.

2. Passing. Once the game starts, on each possession, count the number of passes that a team makes after crossing half court. If it only makes one or two passes, it’s not playing unselfish basketball. And an unselfish team will always win over a selfish one.

3. Structure. Is there structure to a team’s game, or is every player just freelancing? How many set plays can you spot? Is there movement, or does half the team just stand around and watch one or two people play?

4. Backdoor. When a player is overplayed by the defense and goes backdoor, does he get the pass? Teams that look for each other win.

5. Center. How often does the center feed a teammate for a basket? Is that person standing or moving? Spotting the open man is important, and hitting a moving player is a more difficult pass. The best centers can make both kinds of passes because they see the whole court.

6. Offensive Rebounds. Three-pointers (which didn’t exist when I played) draw players out around the perimeter – but offensive rebounds require positioning down around the basket. So who is hustling to the boards? Anyone? Consistent offensive rebounding gives teams the second and third shots they often need to win.

7. Boxing Out. How far from the basket do box outs occur? Is there strong body contact? The bigger the distance from the basket, the better – the box out will push your man farther away and create more space for you to get the rebound.

8. Timeouts. Do all 12 players huddle up to listen to the coach, or only the five guys in from the game? What are the other seven players doing? Looking at the crowd, waving at their girlfriends, talking about tomorrow night? Or are they listening to the coach, too?

9. Team Spirit. How often do you see teammates encouraging each other – whether with a comment, or a look, or a pat on the back? Teammates who encourage each other will beat teams that scowl at each other.

10. Motion. What does a player do away from the ball to help his team? Does he set a screen to get a teammate free? Move out of an area to clear space for a teammate with the ball to make a move? Look to move the ball to the open man every time he receives a pass?

Once you start looking for these things you’ll see them all the time and the game will come even more to life.

Let me know what you look for when you watch. I'm eager to hear from you.

Have a great weekend,

Bill

If you missed my first Substack post, you can read it here.

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