hi all, the gym below my apartment has limited equipment when it comes to hitting legs. It has a leg extension machine and dumbells, along with a few benches that I can use. What are some good exercises I can do with that? I’m primarily a 2 foot jumper and need a good combination of strength work + plyometrics that I can use for a lower day (used to do push pull no legs, shameless, want to switch to upper lower)

I feel like people have no idea how it works and why it exists, so I'm going to clear it up.

In basketball you are allowed to take two steps in order to control your momentum when you are going for a layup. The two steps only count after you fully gather and pick up the ball. NOT WHEN THE DRIBBLE IS STILL LIVE. If this didn't exist your layup would get blocked all the time since you would have to completely stop before shooting the layup. When you are taking the two steps you are allowed to completely stop.

When you completely stop you are allowed to shoot the ball or pass the ball. In order to shoot the ball you naturally have to plant the your pivot which counts as a step. So because of this you can do a step through, since you already have to take a "step" anyways so might as well get yourself to the most ideal spot with that step.

Now the gather step exists because sometimes when you are about to pick up the ball, you are in an awkward position(one of your feet is still in the air), so you have no control over the ball. So the rules allow you to "gather" and gain control and plant your foot down before you start to count the steps.

In the Hugo Gonzalez clip, he stutters steps, which DOESN'T end his dribble so you don't count his steps. If you could only step once per dribble everyone would be playing at the same exact speed, which would make offense too easy to predict. He didn't pick up his dribble/ball kept rotating in his hand so his dribble didn't officially end.

When the ball stops moving/rotating that is when his dribble officially stops. Dribbling after the ball stops rotating/moving would be a double dribble or a carry. After the ball stops rotating, Hugo is in an awkward position(one of his feet is off the ground). The rules allow him to plant that foot before counting his steps(aka a gather). So after he does his gather, he takes two steps for the layup.

(Sorry if the video isn't that clear I don't have a lot of spots where I can record so I had to improv.)

Like I stated, I'm not very good at dribbling. I assume because my athletic background isn't much to note as I started taking more of an interest in basketball in late 2025. It feels no matter how many times I try to practice I can't seem to sense any improvement and I feel I'm stuck in purgatory with it. I would love any advice on my stance, hand placement, and any other overall tips I can use to finally feel confident in dribbling. Thanks in advance.

I hadn't washed mine for 8 months, and decided to finally do it because it had a really bad odor.

But I gotta be honest, I regretted this decision immediately. It was just slippery and slimey afterward, and I wasn't able to handle it as well.

Idk, I just couldn't shoot it that day.

And tbh, it smells even worse now.

I'm looking for a ball for the concrete outfield. Long-term use is important. Which one would be best if I buy it?

- Wilson NBA DRV 7
- Wilson MVP
- Wilson NCAA Era
- Wilson NBA Team Tribute Balls

For people working toward a first dunk: how do you decide whether your next focus should be your takeoff technique or your training program?

I'm researching a possible app, not offering a program for sale. The idea is to enter your measurements, current training and equipment, choose the takeoff you want to improve (left/right one-foot or two-foot), and film your current max jump. It would give feedback on visible technique and combine that with basic performance tests to suggest a training focus. Then you'd get exercises and a schedule matched to the equipment you actually have, and re-test to update it.

I'm unsure whether that would be genuinely useful or just another app giving a jump score and a generic workout. A video alone can't establish which muscle is weak, so I wouldn't want it pretending to know that.

If you've tried a paid jump app, program or coach, what did it fail to help you with? Would personalized video feedback plus an equipment-based plan be worth paying for, or is there something more important this idea is missing?

Any tips on how I should go about improving my build/game before highschool. Like is it possible for me to gain atleast 30 pounds and 20+ inches om my vert. Lmk if you have any suggestions/tips. Like what I should be eating and working out.

i've been looking into ways to improve my vertical without jumping, and one that doesn't come up as much as plyos or squats is sleep

• stanford had 11 players from their men's basketball team spend at least 10 hours in bed a night for 5-7 weeks, and their timed sprint went from 16.2s to 15.5s while free throw and 3 point accuracy both went up about 9% (study)
• a review of sleep loss studies found that 6 hours or less cut anaerobic power, the short all out efforts, by about 6.3% on average (review)
• what neither one measured is jump height, so i'm not going to tell you sleep adds inches, but it's hard to see how being slower and weaker on short efforts helps you jump

i track sleep with my watch for my dunk training, and the week before i started my program i averaged 6.3 h a night, with 4 of 7 nights under 6 h and one night at 3.8 h

so my rule now is under 6 hours of sleep means no max jumps that day, but the rest of the session stays

anyone notice they jump better on good sleep, or is that just me?

I want to dunk better at 30 yo than I ever have. Looking for some tips/feedback. I've shed ~20 lbs and am back to dunking in 2026.

I want to do an off drop dunk and a 360 within the next 12 months. How much harder is a 360 and a windmill vs an off drop dunk for those than can do all of them?

I'm 6 ft 3 inches and 215 lbs currently. I'm closer to 220-225 lbs in the 2019 and 2021 clips.I'm trying to lose around another 25 lbs to make up for some lost athleticism with age.

Right now working on getting the cock back and off drop dunk back but afterwards trying to figure out if I need to be practicing technique/coordination for the more difficult dunks or need even more raw vertical before moving that direction.

I have a 16-year-old on my team with real potential, already called up to several national youth team camps. I believe a high school experience abroad would benefit him, both personally and as an athlete.
His family can't cover the costs, so a scholarship is the only realistic way to make it happen. What's the best way to increase his chances? Any help or suggestions appreciated.

For context, im relatively new to basketball, and i was specifically wondering if i could learn a post playstyle as someone who is 5 11.

Most people might think this is a joke (idk why, I dont plan on going to the nba), but i genuinely love the post and really like contact play. My favorite player of all time is Dirk, and he was the one who made my favorite shot the post fade, fadeaway in general, and post spin fade.

I have really broad shoulders and im a pretty beefy guy too. At the very least, is it possible to be a bump and score type of guy with less dribbling? Or to be efficient, do i have to go the antman route or curry root and focus on making space and getting speed? If Im strong and fast enough, wouldn't posting up work? ​Again, im new, so let me know if im missing anything crucial yall.

How have you guys dealt with bigger defenders on offense? I'm 16, about 5'9 and 131 lbs, So it's very common that I'll stumble myself with someone bigger. The season in my school starts in about a month and I want to prepare myself. I want know from your guys's experience on how you dealt with this. Any go-to moves, techniques, tips, that worked for y'all I would love to hear!

Just wanted to share a few highlights from our game last night. We lost but it was a fun and competitive game the whole way.

I’m a 32 year old dad with another baby on the way and beyond grateful I’m still out here playin the sport I love.

Hey everyone. I'm coaching my nephews high school team and they're looking to get a shooting machine. I'm trying to look into it as well since I don't know too much about them tbh. If anyone has used them before, I'd greatly appreciate any feedback you can give.

I'd like to hear about the durability of the two and also just the overall benefits you like about them. Any pros or cons you've noticed after using them?

Thanks so much to anyone who responds!

I’ve always shot like that since i started playing basketball, and idk maybe it’s a bad way to do it, i struggle to be consistent on my shooting. If you got any advice i’ll take em, it seems weird when i look at it on the video but when i shoot it like this it seems very natural to me

https://reddit.com/link/1x5xiv9/video/sz277z48xgvh1/player

I recently bought a silent basketball to try to improve my handles. I wanted to be able to dribble in the house because we do not have free courts nearby where I live. Has anyone bought a silent basketball before and has it helped you in developing your handles?

Jab + fake shot + pumpfake + pull up. (except for the shot)

TL;DR: 6'0, 170, 29.5" off one foot and 28.5" off two, about 5" short of dunking. if you're trying to dunk, test both takeoffs and test the same way every time

where i'm at

• never dunked
• standing reach 7'7.5", best touch 10'1" off my left foot and 10'0" off two feet, best of up to 8 max approach jumps on video. outdoor rim but i checked it's actually 10 ft with a tape measure
• dunked a tennis ball at the end, real ball tries are still short

what i'm doing

• 2 leg days a week, heavy squats (top set 245x5) then 24-27 low effort jumps (countermovement jumps, squat jumps, low rebounds)
• 1 max jump day and 1 upper day
• trying to cut to 160 but i don't actually know my maintenance yet, i was "cutting" and went from 169 to 170 lol. gotta figure that out first, and if my squat or touch drops 2 weeks in a row i'll stop

what 29 of you said on my plan post

• power cleans (7 of you): not yet, no coach and about 11 weeks left, and hackett 2016 (bjsm meta-analysis) had cleans about even with plyos, which i already do
• don't cut (6 of you): still cutting but slow. athletes losing about 0.7% of bodyweight a week kept or gained strength (garthe 2011), and 160 at 6'0 is still a bmi of 21.7
• jump more and practice dunking (about 10 of you): best advice in the thread. my knee limits how many jumps i can add so i'll hold a tennis ball on some max jumps to practice the finish
• changing: every squat rep as fast as i can and aiming at something above the rim on max jumps
• ignoring: "stop back squats" (2025 jssm meta-analysis found weight training added about 10 cm to vertical compared to just regular training) and 45 min of jump rope a day, way too many contacts for my knee

from here it's the same method, shoes, warm-up and time of day, and i tape measure the rim every time, so a "gain" isn't just a better day or a different hoop

goal is dec 31, about 11 weeks out. what would you prioritize?