If you have played Basketball before, you may have experienced times where you have troubleshooting the ball. Maybe you reacted wrongly or left the ball untreated. Either way, this breaks the tempo of your game and then begins a series of shooting slumps. No matter how good a player you are in Basketball, everyone experiences this kind of thing at times during the game. And this affects the confidence of players. Just because they cannot shoot properly, their confidence falls off, and they start underperforming in other aspects of the game as well. So what can you do in such situations? Here are a few tips that you can use to overcome or deal with shooting slumps.
How to Deal with Shooting Slumps during Games
There will be times where you suddenly get shooting slumps mid-game. A lot of players start panicking and this makes them lose the game. What you can do in this situation is simply listen to your coach and let him guide you on what to do. Do not just focus on your shooting problem for the moment. Know that you can do a lot more than shoot the ball. You can contribute to your team in a lot more ways. If you can be open and listening to your coach, this will benefit your team a lot. Take chances that you can, and don’t be afraid. Most people who miss 2 or 3 shots get demotivated and pass even the open chances they get to some other players. This messes up the play and leads to another missed chance.
How to Get rid of Slumps
Getting rid of slumps is just a mental game. As we know, people can play and take their shots really well when they are in great form, so slumps aren’t really something that is caused by physical difficulty. Instead, slumps are 99% of the time caused by one’s mental thinking. The 1% possibility is that you may be shooting with the wrong posture and so you can correct it with the help of a coach or teammate.
One of the biggest reasons why people can’t get out of slumps is because they keep hesitating. When their confidence falls off, they hesitate in whether to take a shot or pass the ball. This is why if you want to get rid of slumps, do not hesitate when you get the ball. Just catch the ball and shoot it. Make your mind before getting the ball. If you cannot make your mind, take a chance and shoot the ball.
Another way that you can get rid of slumps is to practice. Yes, this does sound very cliché, but it does work to a greater extent. The best way to get out of slumps is to practice on your own. Without any competitive environment, you will be able to focus on your shooting freely. Take your time and believe in yourself. Once you start regaining momentum, your confidence will build back up, and subsequently, you will be able to get out of the shooting slump.
Finally, maintain a positive mental attitude. Make sure you are not just negative to yourself. Yes, you can call yourself out for the mistakes, but then you should also appreciate yourself when you make a good shot or a good try making a comeback. Remember to stay relaxed. You can not get out of shooting slumps unless you relax first. Shooting while relaxed makes your accuracy better.
Follow all of these tips and you will see yourself getting rid of shooting slumps very soon.
