D*Star asked:


I am in 10th grade and basketball tryouts are comeing up in like 3 months and i want to know what sneakers are the best for small forwards or shooting guards and if you have any other tips that could help me make the team please tell me thank you.

There have been countless films on playing high school basketball and by doing this, the lead actor has landed a college scholarship. This isn’t just a Hollywood make-believe event. It can happen even to an unknown athlete in your school-or it could happen to you. 

When you believe that you were born to fulfill your destiny as a basketball star and that most of your time in high school was spent in trainings and basketball games, then you are on step one. As a high school basketball player, it is important for you to be noticed by, not only by the swooning girls but also, your basketball coach. He may be able to make the recommendations that you need to land a college basketball scholarship. Although this isn’t a guarantee, it pays to do well in every training or game and to stand out. 

Your high school basketball coach might not know coaches of different colleges so it is also highly advised that high school players make themselves known to them. Unless you play like Michael Jordan, then you have to be able to sell your skills to these coaches. Make them notice you. Don’t wait for any college basketball coach to recruit you. You must confidently submit a resume or profile of your personal basketball history and let your track record be tangible proof for them. 

The next rule is probably one of the most important things that any high school basketball player needs to know-and that is to achieve good grades. Although basketball may be unrelated to language proficiency or mathematics, the fact remains that most colleges that offer basketball scholarships will want their applicants to have outstanding grades. What do these grades prove? They only tend to prove that despite the rigors of trainings and games, the player remains disciplined to finish other tasks. The grades will also mirror how well you balance your time on different endeavors. So the next time you start thinking that your English grade means nothing to your college basketball scholarship, think again.

Generally in the United States, athletic scholarship applications are best done right after high school graduation. The standing rule for age is 18-24 years old. The great news in the U.S. is that, there are a booming number of colleges and universities that offer scholarships. You have a lot of choices so take a pick and start sending your resume to some of the colleges that you like. 

Participate in ranking tournaments and give each one of these games your best shot. When you are ranked high, of course, the chances of getting a good scholarship will be greater compared with mediocrity in regional or national ranking.

To be able to land an athletic scholarship, you should understand the sophisticated processes of recruitment. You just don’t go about telling every college basketball coach you meet that you can play the game. Know which colleges you want and be able to impress that you can play basketball on a non-neophyte level. Promote your skills and sell your talents.

Behave yourself. Basketball coaches want to work with an individual who has a clean track record and who they can mold into the athlete that they envision. If you have a smeared record, chances are, coaches might shun away from meeting you. 

When you have finally decided which college will be able to offer you the best scholarship, begin processing not just your resume but also other important credentials such as transcript, your ACT and SAT scores, samples of completed work (in short, your portfolio). These are just some of the necessities so it’s important for you to ask your chosen college’s specific requirements. There are, of course, different requirements for different colleges. 

There are many hurdles to acheiving an athletic scholarship. The requirements include a lot of physical and mental preparation. If you believe you have what it takes to succeed, then you have already succeeded.

Albert Hall asked:


When he retired at the age of 42, he took with him records for most points scored by an NBA player, most blocked shots, most MVP awards, most appearances in All-Star games, and most seasons played. To put it simply, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar composed the most impressive personal and team accomplishments in the history of the NBA! He was named Rookie of the Year, was a member of 6 NBA championship teams, was a six-time NBA MVP, was named NBA Finals MVP twice, was selected the All-Star team 19 times, league scoring champion twice, and selected as a member of the NBA 35th and 50th Anniversary All-Time Teams. And, no one was too amazed as Kareem had been a dominant force in basketball since his high school days.

Kareem’s first or original name was Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor (he would later change it to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). He went by Lew Alcindor. His basketball dominance began in high school, where he led Power Memorial High School to a 72 game winning streak and an overall record of 96 and 6. As a sophomore at Power Memorial, he averaged 19 points and 18 rebounds for an undefeated team. His high school team was unbeaten in Alcindor’s junior season as well. The next year, for the first time in 72 games, they lost a game to DeMatha Catholic High School (of Maryland), 46-43. It was the only loss for Power in 3 years. In 1965 Lew Alcindor finished his high school career with 2,067 points and 2,002 rebounds, both of which are New York City records. Kareem was the greatest high school basketball player of his time.

He chose UCLA to continue with his basketball development, and once again, he was a dominant force in college. Back in those days, freshmen were not eligible to play varsity, but in a exhibition game, with 31 points, 21 rebounds and 7 blocked shots Alcindor led his freshman team to a victory over UCLA’s 2- time NCAA Championship varsity team, 75-60. During his first ever varsity game (66-67), Lew Alcindor set a UCLA scoring record with 56 points. He averaged 29 points and 15.5 rebounds with a .667 shooting percentage for the year as UCLA went 30-0. They would end the season with a victory in the NCAA Championships against University of Dayton, 79-64. Lew Alcindor would go on to lead UCLA to 2 more NCAA Championships; he won a national title every year in varsity basketball in college! Alcindor finished his UCLA career with 3 National Championships, Named 1st Team All-American 3 Times (67,68 & 69), selected as Player of the Year in 1967 and 1969 by The Sporting News, United Press International, the Associated Press and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association, and Named Most Outstanding Player in the NCAA Tournament in 1967, 1968 and 1969. Finished lording over the NCAA he then took his game to the NBA.

He was drafted as the first pick in the 1969 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks were a young team in only in it’s second season. In his first year Alcindor averaged 28.8 points (2nd in the NBA) and 14.5 rebounds (3rd) to lead the Bucks to an improved record of 56-26. They would reach the Eastern Division finals only to be beaten by the Knicks. Lew was awarded the League’s Rookie of the Year Award.

After acquiring the legendary Oscar Robertson, the Milwaukee Bucks went on to become a dominant team and recorded 66 victories in the 70-71 season. Alcindor was awarded the NBA Most Valuable Player Award and his first NBA Scoring Title. The Bucks went on to dominate in the playoffs, going 12 and 2. They swept the Baltimore Bullets in 4 games in the NBA finals. He had won his first NBA title and was named NBA Finals MVP. It was after this series that he announced that his legal name was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, which translates to “noble, servant of the powerful one”.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar went on to win the NBA Most Valuable Player award during the 71-72, and 72-73 seasons. In 1974 the Bucks were once again in the NBA Finals, but would lose to the Boston Celtics. Kareem asked for a trade during the 74-75 season. In 1975, the Lakers acquired Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and reserve center Walt Wesley from the Bucks for center Elmore Smith, guard Brian Winters, and rookies Dave Meyers and Junior Bridgeman.

Kareem won the MVP award in the 75-76 season, but the Lakers failed to reach the playoffs. He again was named MVP in 76-777 when the Lakers made the playoffs, only to be stopped by the eventual champion Portland Trail Blazers. In 1979 the Lakers drafter Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and this would begin a run of Championships. The Lakers would go on to win the 5 NBA titles in the next 10 years. All the while Kareem was putting up dominant performances game in ad game out.

When Kareem retired in 1989, it marked the end of a dominating era in the NBA. Kareem left the game as the NBA’s all-time scorer (38,387 points / 24.6 ppg), 17,440 rebounds (11.2 rpg), 3,189 blocks, and a .559 field-goal percentage in a career over 20 years and 1,560 games. He had scored in double figures in 787 straight games. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had cemented his name in history as the greatest center in the history of the NBA and more than likely, of all time!

ohioguy4jc asked:


When basketball season starts I want to go to a marshall university game and cheer on the thundering herd. how much are the tickets for the home games. anyone know?

Basketball does not just have to be strictly rule regulated play on an indoor wooden court. There are actually many different variations on the game that bring basketball to a whole new level.

Variety is one of the things that makes basketball such a popular sport. With all the ways to play the game it is no wonder that people all over the world are playing the game. That’s true no matter who they are, how old they are or what limitations they may physically have.

Game Variation 1: Wheelchair Basketball

Wheelchair basketball, as the name suggests, is played in wheelchairs. The chairs are specially designed so they move quickly and easily down the court. They also are made so players can be agile, much like players in traditional basketball.

Wheelchair basketball is a serious sport that is regulated by the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF).

Game Variation 2: Water Basketball

Water basketball, again as the name suggests, is played in water. It can be recreational or as a team regulated sport. In water basketball the rules are a little different. The rules for water basketball combine rules for traditional court basketball and water polo. There is, obviously, no dribbling involved in water basketball.

Game Variation 3: Beach Basketball

Beach basketball is played on the beach and is quite different than other types of basketball. It is not as strict and much more of a physical game than basketball.

Beach basketball is played on a circular court with no backboard on the hoop. There is no dribbling because it is too difficult on the sand. The ball is moved down the court instead by passing or 2 ½ steps. There is also no out of bounds in beach basketball.

Game Variation 4: Informal Basketball

Informal basketball really is not an actual name for a type of basketball, but it is used here to simply describe the type of basketball that most people play – basketball where you are just playing for the fun of the sport. The best kind!

Informal play can have any rules you like, as long as everyone playing agrees to them. There may not even be any organized play, but rather people simply making baskets and having fun.

Basketball is a very flexible sport. It can be played almost anywhere and in anyway you can imagine. In fact, it probably has been played almost everyway imaginable because it is such a popular sport. The thing about basketball that remains the same is making the basket. Every variation of the sport involves a ball and basket with the ultimate goal being to get the ball through the basket to score.

So, no matter how you play basketball it is the right way as long as you have the ball and hoop. You can play whatever way feels best for you with whatever rules you want. You can play with as many players as you want on whatever type of court you want. The bottom line is that you just have fun while you are doing it.

2K gave up the college basketball license and now it’s only EA Sports who’s left playing in this field. Now let’s see what EA Sports has to offer with its NCAA Basketball 09 game. Check out the features of this popular sports game:

Execute your Gameplan

Decide what strategies to execute. You can choose from a list of pre-game strategies. Another tool can help you improve your game – the Game Tempo Meter, which lets you adjust your settings in a jiffy.

Game Engine

You can now use styles of play that authentically college in nature. These include trapping defenses, up-tempo transition game, structured half-court sets – all to make sure that your make the most out of your team’s abilities.

Next-Level Authenticity

NCAA Basketball 2009 for every Division I team, offers styles of play that gives true-to-life experience. Scouting reports (courtesy of the Blue Ribbon™ College Basketball Yearbook creators) and authentic team ratings and other features that make gamers feel realistic team tendencies can be expected.

Set the Tempo

According to aficionados of the game, Set the Tempo is the most important gameplay addition to NCAA Basketball 2009. You can choose from these three tempos – Up Tempo, Half Court and Balanced. Either you speed the game up by applying full court pressure, initiate a half-court set through walking the ball up to the floor, or make the most of what your rival gives you with a balanced attack.

Coaching Feedback (Real-Time)

You can also expect more guidance with the help of your school’s coach. There will be real NCAA coaches giving you feedback in real time while on the sidelines. 

Rosters Sharing

If you have been playing NCAA Football for quite some time and you have been having the time of your life with names of real NCAA Football teams and players, now you can also have that with your NCAA Basketball 2009. EA offers an online roster sharing feature using its Online Locker, which will let you create a dynasty with a custom roster. However, individuals and companies also offer roster upload services. It’s either you update your game console yourself or pay for these service providers to upload the roster names.

Aside from those abovementioned features, there are still so many features that will make the die-hard fans of NCAA basketball shout for joy. These other features include Rival Challenge, and the ability to upload and save videos to EA Sports World.

Variety J (LA,Magic, and Hawks) asked:


I know some centers can shoot good but I am tlaking bout average ones. If you grew up playing basketball you should be able to atleast shoe midrange every now and then.

Eddie Delgado asked:


Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, (born April 16, 1947 Fredrick Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr.) An

American NBA All-Star basketball player considered one of the best players of all time.

His career spanned over 20 years from 1969-1989. His incredible 7 ft 2 in height made

him a force to deal with. His record breaking 38,387 points made him the highest total

scorer of any player in the league. Kareem was known for his famous skyhook shot and

was awarded six Most Valuable Player Awards.

Kareem was picked for the 1969 NBA draft by the Milwaukee Bucks. Kareem remained a

dominant force for the Bucks scoring 38 points per game and helping the Bucks to

division leaders for four straight years. By 1973, Kareem had won three MVP Awards and

one of the top NBA players in scoring.

In 1975 Abdul-Jabbar was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, where he had a dominant

season averaging 27 points per game and leading the league in blocked shots and

rebounds. He still holds the NBA single season record for 1,111 defensive rebounds.

Kareem continued to play strong during his next two seasons and named to the All-NBA

Second Team twice and the All-Defensive Team once. The Lakers went on to become the

most dominant team in the 1980′s with the winning combination of Abdul-Jabbar and Magic

Johnson to win five NBA Championships.

Kareem announced his retirement in 1989 after 20 years of professional seasons. The

Lakers made the NBA Finals in each of Abdul-Jabbar’s final three seasons, defeating

Boston in 1987 and Detroit in 1988. His athletic honors include; Naismith Memorial

Basketball Hall Of Fame in 1995, Rookie of the Year in 1970, six time NBA champion

(1971, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988), MVP (1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1980), Final

MVP (1971, 1985), One of the fifty greatest players in NBA history, and first player in

NBA history to play a total of 20 seasons.