Smart Basketball Training: Finishing

To become a complete offensive player, you must compliment a good shooting stroke with the ability to get past a defender and finish around the basket. Austin McBeth, Smart Basketball Training's lead trainer, gives you 19 drills in this video that will boost your finishing skills and help you become a huge threat to score every time you drive to the hoop. Additionally, you'll not only learn the physical part of the game, but also the thinking behind each move and when to use the right move at the right time.

Without Contact

The key to becoming a great finisher is to train yourself to anticipate, react and beat any situation the defense wants to force you into. In this section, you'll learn different moves to execute on the way to the hoop and also learn to pair them with various styles of laying the ball in. Notable moves include the Euro step, slide shot, Paxson, pro hop and floater.

With Contact

An aspect that many players struggle with when it comes to finishing is absorbing contact from the defense. As athletes continue to move up in levels of basketball, officials begin allowing more contact around the rim, making it more important to learn to finish through the defense's physicality. You'll get drills and instruction that feature a partner with a pad to train yourself to explode through contact and get more accurate around the rim - even if you take a hit in the middle of your finish.

With Objects

The final series of drills takes advantage of cones, chairs and stand up dummies to simulate game situations. McBeth teaches you how to use a cone as if it's a defender slowing you down, a chair as if it's a live defender, and a stand up dummy to play the part of a post defender in the lane that you must shoot over. Every drill is designed to prepare you for common scenarios so you'll be ready to attack and score.

If you're looking for a video to help you get better at finishing, look no further than this comprehensive guide from Smart Basketball Training.

88 minutes. 2016.