How to deal w/ nervousness/embarrassment and play better basketball?

Question

it was the first time i ever played organized basketball, but this was just a scrimmage with random people i didnt know and i got really nervous and there were some people in the stands and yea. first time i got the ball, i airballed a LAYUP! im really not that bad like at the park w/ my friends and stuff but i was just AWFUL. i was so nervous and i airballed the shot after that. my teammates were like telling me c'mon and just were doubting me everytime i got the ball. i only made 2 shots the WHOLE GAME and then my teammates were just looking at me like i sucked which i did and i was like 1 for 11 on my shots and it was just really embarrassing and i know it was because i was so nervous and scared that people would be so much better than me and that i would do really bad and it all happened. please, any tips on how to get better in basketball and deal with nervousness/embarrassment and maybe help on my self confidence?

Answer 1

PRACTICE.  Playing in the park is one thing and will help you do things at game speed but you need to work on a basis for the things you are going to do.  I played ball in college and by the time I got there prob took hundreds of thousands of shots.  The nervousness will go away once you get better and more confident.  Even if you look at the top NBA players their shooting percentage is less than 60% on average, so that means they miss 40% of the time.  Top baseball players average about .300 so just know what good numbers are and aim for that.  If you make half your three pointers that's excellent so don't get discouraged by missed shots.  You have to keep shooting them to make them.

Answer 2

Say this to yourself after a bad game...

"Man I really sucked. But I'm going to put in some work (practice) and I'm going to come back and be better next game".  

A couple things you have to realize...

1. Accept the fact that you had a bad game, and realize it's not the end of the world.

2. Think about what you did, and why it affected you so much, and try to work on your mistakes. Your friends will look at you like you sucked, because you did. But if you work on your game, you will get better, and you'll either be a hero or at very least have their respect when you play better after all your hard work.

For instance, if you're having trouble playing in a gym, start practicing in a gym, and stop playing on the park.

If your shooting airballs all the time, pick a spot on the floor where your most comfortable shooting from and really work on knocking down that shot. When you play again, make that your go to shot, or your shot when you think you're getting cold.

Do this after every bad game and you will get better.

Answer 3

two words:

PREPARE HARDER!!!

if you are 100% confident about your game, it doesn't matter if you are playing 2-on-2 on a playground OR in a packed to violating fire code gymnasium...

Answer 4

My daughter was a very nervous player at first.  But visualization, you think of yourself making all the baskets.  See your self making the game shot. Outside of normal practice with team; Practice at least 1 hour on your own.  Then do some one on one with another player.

She became very good and Won MVP in her senior high school team and was team captain.

Answer 5

Get Nike Hyperdunks. Or Jordans.

Answer 6

Realize that no one can enter into your head unless you let them.  => TIP: Remove self-consciousness from your emotions and have the confidence to concentrate on your game. => TIP: Don't let the need for recognition ruin your game. Understand that all trash talking and psychological tactics are based on this principle. Here are some additional tips that willreally help boost your confidence and mental toughness: 1) Always believe in yourself. If you think you can`t do it, youaren`t going to . When shooting, believe its going in and it willhave a better a chance.  2) A shooter needs to have confidence. One good way to giveyourself confidence is to remember that two balls will fit throughthe hoop at a time. This gives you a large margin of error to workwith.  3) Strive to improve everyday... both physically and mentally. Playagainst players that are better than you... that´s how you getbetter. Get your hands of whatever learning material you can. Never stop learning!  4) When playing against teams or players who are not quite astalented, it is important to play at YOUR best. Do not drop yourlevel of play simply to defeat the opponent. Compete against yourown personal best every time out, and try to achieve that.  5) Mental Rehearsal: This is almost as important as practicing theaction itself. The brain patterns during mental rehearsal of anaction are the same as those when preparing for the action before the motor skill is selected, so the more you mentally rehearse a shot, the quicker and easier it will be to prepare to carry out the shot.

Answer 7

Dude... All you gotta do is have the mind set that ur the best player on the court... Just get mad and mean... Pretend those guys just hurt your girl or sumthin... Get mad and play hard... If you play hard, you'll play better...

Answer 8

I completely know how you feel

and it is very hard to use that nervousness for you to play better

my advice is that if you practice a lot or even just feel like your not bad and your pretty good just go in knowing that you can beat them. When you airball a shot you really need to just shake it of and say "i need to do this next time... i'll prectice that shot later" and keep playing.

The biggest self confidence booster in basketball is to practice a lot.

Answer 9

if you tell the people first that you're not very good... than the only thing you can do is impress them, not disappoint them.

Answer 10

Been there done that my friend.  I would do fairly well in my high school practices, and would do terrible during games, sometimes even worse during warm-ups before the game and half-time when more people were around.  I would get so technical, and start missing shots badly.  Then I would try to just get the ball somewhere close to the hoop and my form got even worse.   You could be short-arming your shots which explains the layup airballs.  Focus on the rim/backboard when you shot.  Don't watch the defender, or the ball leaving your hands.  If anything go long with your shots, and make sure you use the glass on your layups whenever possible.

Answer 11

play like you know you can and ignore the crowd. when i play in front of ppl i don't hear them really. I'm focused on whats going on in front of me. i need 2 worry about the game, not what ppl are saying n doing in the stands. even if they was 2 boo. most of them would be horrible if the came from the stands and suited up! if you play scared your opponent will notice this and eat you ALIVE!!!! you give gotta man up, ball like you know you can't and don't give a f*** what others thinks. only your team and coach matters!