“Get the fundamentals down, and the level of everything you do will rise.” Michael Jordan

Before any basketball game, every player gets nervous about missing that one free-throw that results in their whole team going down.

In fact, losing games and missing shots are the most common thoughts racing through players’ minds.

Hence, sports psychologists for basketball have emphasized mental and physical training over the past few decades, which encompasses techniques such as positive self-talk, goal setting, mental rehearsing, and others.

What is Mental Rehearsal?

Mental rehearsal is one of the most common basketball techniques athletes use worldwide to achieve their goals.

Mental rehearsal is putting a mental image in your head of what you want to happen in your performance.
For example, imagine yourself perfecting the act of your free-throw and imagining the ball swish through the net at every attempt.

Mental rehearsal is the process of identifying the source of your worries, determining how you can adapt if things go wrong, and “practicing” all of your contingency plans in your mind until you feel so prepared for the worst—and perform at your best.

What are Mental Rehearsal Strategies?

1. Practice makes progress: Just like any other skill, it is a skill that needs practice. Even though mental rehearsal can never replace physical training, it can be used to execute skills effectively. Give yourself 10 minutes a day to work on mental rehearsal techniques throughout the season.

2. Vivid is better: It is crucial to make your rehearsals as realistic and vivid as possible. Try re-creating important details of your ideal play in your mind’s image—for example, the tournament atmospheres.

3. Focus on quality- not quantity: Mental skills training requires concentration on creating and controlling images. This may be tiring and difficult when you initially start. Therefore, it is best to visualize high-quality images for short periods to begin your mental rehearsals. Gradually, increase the time you spend imagining these images.

4. Plan your mental rehearsals: Images of your rehearsals can often keep jumping in your head. However, to take advantage of mental rehearsal, planning the content of your imagery and visualization is highly crucial.

How Mental Rehearsal Impacts Performance?

As players lose their mental focus, problems arise.

Sport psychology in basketball states maintaining a positive mental outlook and focus is as vital as physical training for successful performance.

Consistency through pregame mental rehearsal routines helps the body relax and perform better; therefore, it is essential to have the same pregame routine.

The first step to gaining basketball mental toughness is understanding the power of your mind.

There is a direct correlation between top performance and mental rehearsals.

The sport psychology for basketball techniques deployed by Phil Jackson while a coach is a landmark in developing his mindset. He considered mental rehearsals and relaxation a vital exercise in pregame preparation.

As you practice mental rehearsal techniques and utilize the steps above, you will start to find your life reflecting your visualizations.

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