Pump Fakes

"Bad-Fake Fakes" In basketball when playing on offense the key is to throw the defense off so you are able to score. Pump fakes are one of the key components to throwing the defense off. Pump fakes or faking is when you act as if you are going to pass or cross over one way but you really end up going the other. Pump fakes can be used when shooting also. If you want the defense to think you are going to shoot, fake the  ball up in the air like you are shooting then come back down and attack the basket or dribble off to the side then pull up for the shot. Pump fakes, shot fakes, and cross over fakes are the best way to create space. Creating space gives you an option to get a shot off and possibly win a game. Only intelligent players use ball fakes because they know that the defense follows the ball at all times.

Below to the right is an example of one of the best players in the world "euro stepping". Which is when you pump fake right and or left while going up for a lay up to throw the defense of or create space for an easy shot.

A picture of me getting ready to ball fake the pass to make the defense move so it is easier for me to pass to one of my teammates.

In the book "Stuff Good Players Should Know" by Dick Devenzio it says, "The difference is that you are not going right. Your plan is to go left after getting the defender off-balance as he 'anticipates' your drive to the right" (pg.34) The whole purpose of faking the ball is to make the defense lose their position because as soon as they do it allows you to have an easy path to the basket and score. Which is the whole purpose of the game.

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This is what shot faking can do. If the fake is good enough the defender will jump as high as possible to block the shot and you could even possibly go under them instead of around. Although that sounds unrealistic it is possible.

All in all defense wins games but so does offense. "Play smarter then harder" is what my mom told me. Pump fakes are very helpful for me in my game because at this age no one knows that importance of them. The only way to get to the basket is if you have a clear path to it and people don't know that a simple pump fake can create that open lane. Intelligent basketball players play at their own speed and let everyone else catch up. If you play at your own speed and pay attention to the little basketball fundamentals at an early age you can become one of the best or smartest basketball players ever. The one thing that all of the best players have in common is not only athleticism but also a great amount of basketball IQ. A very athletic person with an extremely high basketball IQ can beat a very athletic person with a very low IQ.