Basketball is just as much mental as it is physical. The only difference is that there is no off season for mental preparation. In mental preparation for basketball, your mind needs to remain constant. There are no days off for mental preparation in the game basketball. So even though you are not practicing as much on the court as you would during your season, you will not be losing any of your momentum when you train your mind. If you visualize your practice, it is just as effective as going to practice. So if you visualize yourself at practice every day, making every shot, when you get back on the court it would be as if you were practicing physically throughout your entire off season.
By staying mentally active during the off season, you will be able to better mentally prepare yourself for the next season. Were you distracted by other players? What about factors outside of basketball, did they upset you during game time? You can begin to build basketball mental toughness through a variety of different body mind exercises that will thoroughly prepare you for next season. If you speak to anyone who knows about sports psychology for basketball they will be able to give you specific exercises that will prepare you for next season.
Your mental ability will also affect your instincts on the court. If your mind is clouded you might not be able to react fast enough. If this happened a lot last season, you probably saw yourself sitting on the bench a lot. And as a matter of fact, you probably lack confidence because of all the negativity about being on the bench. So take this off season to come back better than ever. Become mentally acute so when you feel you need to shift to the lift you do so automatically without losing that fraction of a second that makes the difference between winning and losing. Basketball psychology will fully prepare you for what comes next.
Without mental preparation in basketball, you might not be able to go as far as you would like in your basketball career. You can’t get by on just talent. By breaking through the mental barriers, you are able to achieve accomplishments on and off the court that you may have not thought possible. Take your off seasons to create a mental routine that helps to push you further and further. By the time next season rolls around, you will be a different basketball player.
