Basketball Goal Games

We all know the names, horse, pig, and many others, but how do these basketball goal games work? Let's go through one and see it we can't clear things up.

Let's start by going through the game, how it is played and how it is a winner is determined. The game of "horse" is probably the most popular driveway basketball goal game. There are two or more players involved. Free throws are usually shot to determine who goes first. The person to go the longest without missing a free throw goes first. The first person takes a shot at the basketball goal from anywhere on the court. If that player makes the shot, then everyone else must shoot from that spot on the court. If the player makes the shot, they are OK, but if the player misses the basketball goal, they are given a letter. With each miss a letter is added. First and "h", then an "o" and so on. The person who reaches the fully spelled word looses, or they are out of the game. The game would continue until there is only one player left. That person is the winner. Any word can be used for the game, the longer the word the longer the game will most likely be.

Basketball Goal Free Throws

When many people think of basketball goals they think of free throws. There is some debate as to just what a free throw is, a bit of art and science I would imagine, but the fact is that they are a big part of the game of basketball.

To shoot a free throw, you stand behind the free throe line, 19 feet away from the basketball goal, and you throw the ball, trying to get it through the hoop. There is no chance that there will be someone trying to block your throw, that would be against the rules. Nobody can interfere with a free throw, it is just the player, the ball and the basketball goal. Though players used to throw their free throws underhanded in the past, todays players use a traditional overhead shot. This shot is a bit like a jump shot, but without the jump. It would seem like a hard thing to do, but with practice, there is no reason why you can't shoot like a pro.

There are hundreds of drills that you can do to help you with your accuracy, however when the pressure is on, even the pros can have a hard time! The video above should drive that thought home.

The basketball must hit the basketball goal rim on the second free throw or the try does not count and it is the opponents ball out of bounds. The same holds true for the first shot, if there is only one shot to be made. However, this does not hold true for the first of two shots. In that case, if the player misses, he looses that chance and must try for the second shot.