For many young athletes, they believe that the secret to success lies within being bigger, faster, and stronger than their opponents. While this is just simply not true, there are plenty of talented athletes that adopt this mantra, opting to use brute strength and dunking as much as possible. While this may work at the lowest levels of basketball, players without delicate skill in the post will quickly find themselves outmatched against talented defenders. Thus, it’s never too late to add some spice + variety to your post game and this edition of our Drill of the Week will look to put an absolute classic move into your repertoire. The Up and Under is a basic move and generally easy to implement, so watch CoachUp’s instructional video with Coach Mark Phillips as he teaches the fundamentals of the move. For our Up and Under Drill, you’ll just need:
- a partner
- a ball
- a hoop.
The best thing you can do for yourself while practicing the move is to go at a rapid-fire pace. Set up in the same scenario that the video suggests and go through the move repeatedly, making sure to nail your footwork and step-through. Once the ball is in the net, don’t rest; get back in the post and go again. Run the move ten times in a row from the left side of the paint and then switch with your partner. Once he or she has done their turn on the left block, it’s time for you to hop back on the right side of the paint and start again. Success in basketball so often depends on muscle memory, so while these repetitions may not be as fun as other potential drills, it will really nail it down in your mind. Then, in the fourth quarter, when you and your opponent are exhausted, you’ll be able to hit them with a picture-perfect post move. On one hand, the more tired you become during a game, the more likely you are to get sloppy with your footwork, then travel, and turn the ball over. Practicing at full speed during this drill will help you avoid those pitfalls when it matters most. In that same respect, however, the more exhausted your opposition becomes, the more likely they are to bite on your pump fake and allow you a clear lane to the hoop. Adding post moves to your game is a great way to become unpredictable and unguardable, so don’t just try to muscle your way through the paint. If you’re looking for more tips, check out our guide to Nerlens Noel’s Post Moves — these fakes, fades, and shimmy moves in the post will help elevate your game to another level.
