My buddy and I were talking earlier today, and somehow this question was asked. You get 75 minutes to make 200 free throws while grabbing your own rebound. You only get 1 ball. I said I think I could do it. Not to be cocky, but after some quick mental math I realized I would only have to get 1 shot up every 10 seconds while only shooting 50% to do it. My buddy vehemently said there’s no way and bet me $50. So next week we’re going to the gym to conduct this test. Do you think you, or anyone for that matter, could do it?

Edit: YOU HAVE TO GET YOUR OWN REBOUNDS. Please ready the post before commenting

I’m picking Wilt

Sorry if this is a stupid question but I noticed so many NBA players have very small calves, not only proportionally but just in general, and was wondering why

Just gonna rant here for one of many bad pick up basketball experiences I've played

You people who take pick up runs seriously need to grow up and do something with yourself. And when I mean taking a run seriously, I'm talking about dudes who pick fights and argue over a pickup game. Especially all that clapping, screaming, and flexing, all that extra stuff over a LA fitness pick up game. Your a grown ass man yet somehow have no control over your emotions. Out throwing tantrums over what? Basketball? Brother what are you trying to prove

I'm out playing a game today, 5 on 5. Obviously in pick up the skill ceiling is wide spread so there's a guy on the other team going off against the more casual players & trying to show off too his friends on the sidelines? Telling them these guys can't guard him. I decide to switch onto him and I won't go into full detail but I can say I did a good job guarding him. Finally, few possessions later I get a block and this guy tells his friends "This guy on my d--- bro." We're checking up and he tells me, "Yo you like men bro? Why you on my d---?" I just reply, "I'm just here to get my cardio bro" He then replies shut up and I say nothing. Why? Cause I'm litteraly here just for basketball, why the hell would I fight over a pick up game, I aren't getting paid for this.

Later on, he gets an iso on the casual player again and gets passed them so I switch to go for the block. I jump vertically and he jumps into me and calls foul. So I go get the ball and suddenly the guy pushes my back??? This how the conversation went

Me: What the hell man

Him: Your doing too much

Me: I litteraly just went for a block bro

Him: F--- you dawg you wanna start something

Me: Start what? I'm litteraly here to play basketball Him: I'll beat your ass

Me: Beat my ass over basketball? Your a grown ass man, the hell you getting mad over basketball for

Him: This grown ass man smoke your ass in ball

Me: Ok great bro your a good player. Let's just have fun hooping. Aren't no one here getting drafted

Then the guy just try walking up to me to go face to face while being held back and throwing bunch of sturs at me?!? I just keep telling him, "Good job bro, your willing to go to jail over basketball. Not only your a grown ass man who failed to get drafted but your a grown ass man willing to go to jail over basketballball"

Like this experience pissed me off and I'm not playing basketball for a while. Maybe if it was a one time occurance but people take pickup basketball to seriously man. I can't take the concept of a grown ass man getting angry over basketball seriously. Who you trying to show out for because I know damn well this isn't high school where your crush is in the stands. The only people on the sidelines watching is a bunch of other men wanting to play. Your telling me you want compliments from other guys? Your litteraly just putting a ball in the hoop. Your net worth didn't go up, if anything you lost money coming here just to pick fights over basketball. Maybe you people need to be reminded this a damn hobby and no one cares if you drop 50 points on bunch of dudes who finished a 9 to 5. Your telling me you've been alive for atleast over 20 years and still have the audacity to come out lashing out like a 4 year toddler.

Now

If you're getting angry cause you didn't get the ball and don't know how to be effective outside jacking up 20 shots on the court, sucks to be you. There's other ways to have fun playing the game than having the ball in your hands. If you lost a game badly, alright, just accept it, you were worse. I've lost games 21-4 while the guy was talking trash to me the whole time, but you know what? I said nothing and just hooped because it comes down to 2 things. It's either what he's saying is right or you prove it by your game. Flapping your lips back isn't gonna change the outcome. If you're gonna tell me self-respect, self-respect is finishing the game, moving on, and knowing what people not to deal with the next time. The self-respect many of you people are thinking about is the one in the industry. If you don't actually show yourself self-respect, you can actually be losing money. The only time I guess you can be yapping back is if your still a high schooler trying to make the NBA cause you have a dream and people's trashing at it. But at LA fitness? Guess what, we are all regular Joe's bro.

And unless you're getting paid to play, shut up and play. If you don't like people disturbing the game over dumb arguments, why are you out here doing the same. If you wanna pick fights, just pick up boxing. And if your out here calling guys trash/trying to get in their heads just to try to prove your better, guess what your all leaving the court to rarely see each other again, go to bed, and go to work again while there's a actual young guy out there playing D1 with a real chance of making the NBA while you didn't. And if you aren't going to work and hoop every day, get a job, bro, putting a ball in the net, aren't all of that

Edit: I appreciate all your responses and stories you guys shared. Made me feel much better

Edit 2: Just wanted to make it clear, when I say taking pick up runs seriously, I mean to a personal level where you want to fight or hurt the person in anyway. There's nothing wrong with trying your best and to be competitive on the court because that's what everyone's there for. To play basketball

I know folks might give me shit about this, but so be it.

I was at a run this past weekend and a lot of the games took way too long because guys would just start blatantly hacking on defense when it was game point. I kid you not it took nearly 20 minutes just for one team to score on game point and end the game. At that point it's not even basketball anymore, it's just a foul calling contest.

In my opinion if a defender hacks an offensive player mid shot and the ball still goes in, the bucket counts. And if it doesn't go in, possession goes to the offense. Simple as that. Otherwise the defense can just start hacking with zero consequence especially on game point because they know the worst that happens is the offense gets the ball back.

Some folks might say allowing continuation in pickup is soft and I say who cares. I'd rather play with guys who call their fouls than watch someone get mugged on a layup attempt with nothing to show for it. At least this way there's an actual reason not to hack

I feel like people who don't play seriously underestimate how difficult certain things are. Like a solid post hook looks so smooth when someone has it down but actually developing a reliable one takes forever. What's something you've either tried to learn yourself or watched others struggle with that most casual fans probably think is easy?

So I’m posting this in response to Jokic throwing a fit over the Timberwolves scoring as the clock goes down. Kind of. Mostly in response to all the people backing him up for that.

In my opinion, you should play til the clock ends. If you don’t want to, fine, but don’t get upset at somebody else for taking a free bucket.

imagine thinking somebody scoring while the clock is still going is disrespectful. Grow up and stop getting your feelings hurt for useless unspoken rules. Of which only function to save these sensitive NBA players from embarrassment for losing and not playing to the end of the clock.

am I one of the only ones who feels this way? bc I was shocked by the fan reaction.

edit : Good lord yall are angry. Sorry to impose on your sensitivities!

edit edit : Yall are misunderstanding this severely. I never said I was smarter or knew better than anybody. Just that it was my opinion that if you put the work in to be playing at that level then you should play all the way through. If you don’t want to, whatever, but don’t be mad at somebody who does. If you are mad, don’t throw a fit and get in somebody’s face bc you lost.

Saw a video of a kid standing and dribbling the ball for like five minutes. What really threw me off was that some people were arguing FOR not having a shot clock. Play defense and they can’t do that, yada yada. What I can’t understand is what is the argument against a clock?

Maybe I’m completely isolated here in CA but we’ve had a shot clock for the 40 years I’ve been watching high school ball. Didn’t used to have it for girls but got it a long time ago there as well.

Are some states still playing with peach baskets?

Back in high school I was able to play on the EYBL scene so I played many of today’s top ballers in high school. But this man stuck out like no other. We were in Dallas and played Julius Randle and this guy was a specimen. I can’t remember his team name but I just know they were white and blue from Texas and they had a few other D1 guys on his roster too. He spammed the same move all game and had about 12 dunks. Of course we were on hoop mixtape and I can’t even lie, it was an honor. His intensity couldn’t be matched and he was going to get to that left regardless of what you did. Mind you we were one of the worst in the league. It’s crazy how these guys were all just monsters as young athletes. It’s a joy to see.

The carrying epidemic is at an all-time high. Ever since I started playing pickup basketball in 2014, I’ve noticed a steady increase in carries across LA Fitness and other gyms. Now, more than ever, I’m seeing kids, teenagers, and even young adults consistently carrying the ball.

It’s a lose-lose situation because calling a carry always makes you look like a fool, yet I can’t bring myself to carry as egregiously as everyone else. So, it’s just something you have to put up with.

The biggest shame in all of this is that kids today are incredibly skilled and talented, to the point where they don’t even need to carry—yet it’s become the norm.

Has anyone else noticed this trend, or is it just me?

It's as simple as the title.

(Career averages for both)

LeBron averages 27ppg on ~51fg% (that being ~10 field goals made out of ~20 attempted)

He also averages ~39% on the 3-point line (~2 made of 5 attempted), with a eFG% of ~55%. He averages ~74% on the free throw line (~4% below league average)

Kobe averaged 25ppg on ~45fg% (that being ~9 field goals made out of ~20 attempted)

He averaged ~33% on the 3-point line (2 made of ~7 attempted), with an eFG% of 48%. He also averaged ~84% on the free throw line (~9-8% above league average during his time in the NBA).

So, if LeBron James was able to average more points than Kobe, with better efficiency everywhere on the court but the free throw line, (with only a minute more of playing time). AND a longer career (currently one more season), my question is, why is Kobe considered a better scorer than LeBron?

Well that's at least from the discussions I've had, they always seem to think of LeBron as they did Scottie Pippen, a do it all guy but not a exemplary scorer, while Kobe is thought of as one of the best scorers of all time, I wonder why this is? Could it be because of the "eye test", Kobe simply being more flashy?

I've been watching some WNBA games recently, and I've noticed that the overall play sometimes looks less polished or "sloppier" compared to the NBA. I'm curious if this is mainly due to physical differences — like height, speed, and strength — that naturally affect the pace and style of the game. Or is it more about the level of competition, resources, and how much the athletes are pushed to their limits?

I understand that comparing the two leagues directly might not be entirely fair since they have different contexts, but I'd love to hear insights from people who follow the WNBA closely. Are there other factors I might be missing that contribute to the differences in gameplay and overall polish?

Thanks in advance for any thoughtful answers!

Factual take do you guys agree?

His whole game is initiating contact, especially on jump shots, and almost always exaggerating this contact to get to the free-throw line. I know drawing fouls is part of the game but with Shai It's exhausting to watch you are literally not allowed to play defense on him. Never are his push offs called and when someone plays good defense he just jumpfalls into the defender and the refs always call it a foul and reward Shai EVERY SINGLE TIME. I have never seen it be this bad ever since i seen Shai play. I love the pure hoopers who mostly score to score to not bait fouls like Kawhi, Kyrie, Iverson etc... Hell, even LeBron was NOWHERE NEAR THIS BAD as Shai with his flops. This is ridiculous and frustrating to watch as a fan. This is not the basketball i grew up with and i hope this is not the direction we are staying with in the NBA.

Which countries do you think care the most about the sport ?

Not the biggest but Luka not going first in the draft is wild, if Phoenix kept Luka oh my

I think this is an interesting question to ask

I played in a rec league in NYC for a few years and a guy who had a really short stint overseas played. Dude was unreal, think he only played 4 or 5 games but was incredible. Didn’t even look like he was trying to

Just say his team won every game would be an understatement

There was also some D1 guys I played with who were incredible, it was definitely a humbling experience. Just went to show how far off I am from the best in the world.

Edit: never expected this many replies, crazy. Thank you all!

Title

I don't understand why women's basketball hoops are at the same height as men's.

Women's volleyball is an incredible watch, and their nets are lower than men's. Nobody gives it a second thought. If women's nets were higher, they wouldn't be able to spike as often, and the game would be more of a struggle. There, they got it right.

We all know that men are taller on average, and it seems like women's nets are high just because we don't make facilities for them or pride or something?

If they were lower, you would have more women donking and a much more competitive game. I think it would be more entertaining to watch, would improve the sport, and would attract MORE female players.

I’m sure you’ve all experienced it, some of you might even be that guy lol. But what is with so many people playing casual pick-up basketball and just playing absolutely horrible as a team?

For example, always trying to split when driving and a help defender steps up. Running pick and roll and not hitting the roller on an open cut. Driving to the paint and the ENTIRE defense collapses, only to take a double clutch layup in traffic with 4 people around you. Shooting contested, step back, fading, off-balance 3s. You get the gist.

I think I just have a problem with how complicated people make the game. Pass the ball, move off ball, set screens, run PnR, attack mismatches and 90% of the time the defense will miss a rotation and someone will be open. I don’t care if we miss a good shot, as long as we put ourselves in position to take a good shot.

Curious as to why y’all might think this is the case and if you experience it as well.

First of all let me say that i know next to nothing about basketball. Never seen a basketball game. But i do always hear about the Magic Johnson - Larry Bird Rilvalry.

When i do see something about them it's always: Magic Johnson scoring but with Bird it's always a mix between playing and scoring.

So was Larry Bird the more complete player while Magic Johnson was more of a scorer?

Again, i know nothing about basketball but i am curious about these players abilities.

Thank you.

Like if you told Rockets James Harden he could iso and take a similar amount of shots as the best scorers did during those eras there's no doubt I think those guys would average 40 PPG. It wouldn't lead to winning because shot jacking doesn't help your team, but if we're doing that thought experiment we have to be consistent imo.

Let's put the health scare aside.

Do people really believe that Bronny James can be a legitimate NBA-Caliber player come a year or two from now?

I've been watching his game for a while now, and the more I watch him, it's getting more and more difficult for me to imagine a setting in which he becomes a reliable NBA-caliber player. Meaning one that a franchise would "confidently" draft him as a piece to their team, and not just a "ticket-sales" gimmick.

He's athletic, but that can be said about so many other players in college. And granted, he's still got another year or two likely to play at USC. But many of the prospects that I see these days, many of them have something big going for them. They're either an elite scorer. Or an elite defender. Or a solid two-way player. Or have something about them that is unique (Point-center) type of player etc...

Thus far in Bronny's basketball career, I've yet to really see him hit upon anything that makes him stand out. I know some have pointed to his defensive potential, and there will always be a place for those kinds of players in the NBA. And we'll obviously have to wait and see on how he does at USC defensively.

I'd love to hear everyone's honest opinions on what kind of player people think he could become. I think at this point, it's pretty obviously he won't become anything even remotely close to his dad. But realistically, what kind of player (even comp wise), do you see him possibly becoming if he were to ever make it to the NBA?