Joining your dream college basketball team, seeing your name on the back of your jersey, and hearing the crowd hail your name are some moments young and budding basketballers live for. The thrill of being a basketball player in college is a moment you cannot afford to miss out on, especially if you have excellent skills and talent.
Aside from becoming a pro basketball and a household name, basketball opens up many opportunities for students, from scholarships to diverse career opportunities. However, you will have to wow the talent scouts tasked with putting up a team. Talent scouts seek a combination of skill set, athleticism, and character to find recruits who will make a difference in the school basketball team. Let’s review some qualities they look for during the recruiting process.
Academic Eligibility
Academic eligibility is an essential factor in college basketball. Schools often look for athletes who can easily balance their academic and athletic duties. You may miss some classes during tournaments, but you would need to catch up fast. Balancing sports and academics is often a challenge that most student-athletes struggle to do. It’s one of the reasons a collegiate athlete would hire a professional essay writing service to offload some school work.
To play at the collegiate level, you will have to meet the standards set by the NCAA. Performing well is the first step towards joining your dream college; even better, you may land a full scholarship. Thus, you will need to be more academically inclined as much as you are in the sports department.
Skill Set
As a young basketball player, you must display a combination of skills to be considered for a college basketball team. Having the right skills will help you blend into any team without much struggle. Some of the skills you will be required to possess include:
- Ambidextrous ball handling: dribbling, shooting, and defending with both hands. Players who can block shots or score with either their left or right hand are usually given top consideration.
- Versatility: you should have the capability to multitask in all aspects of your school and court life. Being versatile on the court means playing in various positions, from shooting to point guard and defense.
- Jump shot: an essential skill that sets you apart from other players. Achieving it takes technique, balance, and practice.
- Court awareness: is usually intrinsic, but you can still work on it. Court awareness helps players move to the best spaces where they can receive the ball or defend even without having it in hand.
- Decision-making: particularly applicable in court since you will be required to make decisions on your feet several times, even on behalf of the team.
- Leadership: essential to basketball players since sometimes, you can be called to lead your team on and off the court. Also, you can rise to become the team captain, hence the need to perfect one’s leadership qualities.
Some skills may take time, but you should appreciate and practice the process more often. These skills make you an outstanding player and can help you quickly secure a spot in your dream team and college.
Athleticism
Athleticism is among the top qualities a basketballer must have since it becomes easier to learn other skills as one’s career advances. Talent scouts often look for students who exhibit speed, agility, vertical leap, and general athleticism that allows them to exert themselves on the court. A lot of pressure comes with being on the court, which requires players to condition themselves physically.
Having the muscle power and mental strength to stretch yourself even when your energy is running low is the athleticism scouts look for. Mental strength is also an essential element in athleticism since it allows you to maintain focus throughout the game as well as a soldier through intense moments. Athleticism also includes your physical appearance, which usually provides height, built body, and wingspan, especially for those who play at the center and power forward. However, bear in mind that even though the body is considered, players are sometimes picked based on other attributes.
Basketball IQ
One must display their knowledge of the basketball on and off the court. Being a basketball player means knowing at least a reasonable amount of information about the game, from the skills one can apply to basketball legends who make a difference. You must show the scout you have impactful court knowledge, such as making solid decisions when you have the ball, understanding positioning, and predicting defenses. Such knowledge makes you a great player since you will know what to anticipate when on the court and which decisions to make.
Professionalism
When you want to buy essays online, you have to purchase from writers who demonstrate professionalism to get top-notch papers. Similarly, in basketball, scouts look for players with professional attributes. Professionalism in basketball is an essential trait that contributes to a successful and fulfilling career for most players. You start mastering professionalism from a young age, and it becomes a factor that might get you into your dream college basketball team. Some of the professional elements scouts look for in a player include:
- Coachability: you should be able to take instructions and correct any highlighted mistakes
- Maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
- Attending games and practice sessions on time.
- Being transparent with your agent and sponsors.
- Respecting both colleagues and fans.
- Teamwork
Talent scouts often search for hardworking players who are ready to push themselves out of their comfort zone by exhibiting professionalism. Thus, the strides you take to hone your skills and professionalism will help open up more opportunities to become a basketballer.
Recapping
When evaluating students for the college basketball team, scouts often have an endless checklist that contains the specific attributes they are looking for. While your skills may take you to the top of the list, you will need other qualities, such as professionalism and basketball IQ, to remain at the top and stand out from the other players. While specific abilities may carry much weight compared to others, blending them with different traits is essential to becoming an all-around player. Limiting your abilities to a particular position or skill set may jeopardize your chances of joining your dream college basketball team.
