Player Positions for Basketball

Player Positions for Basketball: What they are and what they do

One of the most often asked questions we hear from people concerning basketball has to do with player positions. Some coaches debate the Pros and Cons of designating positions at the youth level, asking, "Is it more beneficial or harmful, to teach players below a certain level to play at predefined positions?" There are good arguments to support both sides of this debate. At Simply Youth Basketball we believe that positions are a simple and effective way to give young players a less stressful feel for the game as they learn, but that those positions, because of growth and other unknowns, could change over time. It is our opinion that given the proper foundation within the sport that a young person will have no problem adapting to the change from one position to another. The teaching of strong Fundamental skills from an early age is the best solution to this issue.

Another question and probably the most common, comes from players themselves. "What position would I be best at?"; "What position do you think I should play?"; or "I want to play basketball, but don't know what position I will be playing at?" We will give our answer on this as well. But first and foremost we want to go over the two main pints of emphasis relating to this topic. They are: "Player positions relative to Offensive set" which you can see on this page... and "Player specific positions for basketball".

We will begin with:

Player positions relative to Offensive set
If you are a coach, the role of positions in which your place your players will be greatly influenced by the offensive scheme you choose to have your team work out of.

As the coach the key thing you must consider before assigning player positions is:

What offensive set best suits my team?
If you are strong on perimeter players, but weak on size, then it might benefit you more to look into an offense where you can work from a 4-Out or 5-Out type set such as a "Princeton", "Motion", or "Read and React" style. If you notice that you strength lies with your size and inside presence then it may be better to look into something more subdued such as a 3-Out set like the"High-Low", "Wheel", or again, a "Motion" type offense. This would allow you to play to that strength. If you see that you are well balanced in allof these areas then the sky is the limit to what offensive set you can run.
If you are a player there are several factors that will determine where you will be playing at any giventime or place upon the court. These include:

The offensive set your team uses.
Guard oriented? Strong inside game?

Your size and ablity.
It is most likely(but not always) that if you are six foot or over in your early teens that you will probably be given the task of playing primarily as a Forward or Center. The exception to this rule would be that you are able to effectively handle the ball at your age for your size. If that is the case then you will probably be a multi-position player and will possibly be the key player on your team that the offense revolves around. On the flip side; If you are average height with good skills you are looking at more than likely the probability of playing as a 2-Guard(Shooting Gd.) or Small Forward. If you are have good driving skills, can handle the rock, you have a above average court awareness, and a decent shot, then you very well may be the Point Guard.

The final element in determining the position you will be playing is solely at the discretion of your coach.
You might have been used to playing at a certain position in the past, or you might feel that you are meant to play in another position than the one you are in. But at the day it is up to your coach to make the decision as to where you should play to see to the welfare and success of the whole team. Where ever you may play, simply work hard, hustle, and learn. You can always work toward, and be able to learn a different position if the need arises!

For a more detailed look into the breakdown of each of the individual player positions for basketball click here

SBI!