Most people think that basketball is about getting the physical advantage in competition, but I disagree.

I’d rather have the ability to make smart decisions on the court than be physically strong with terrible decision-making skills.

The power of decisions

Every time you step on the basketball court you will have to make decisions. Your performance on the basketball court will be determined by the decisions you make.

Not only do you have to make smart decisions, but you also have to make them quickly, and you cannot dwell on a decision once it is made.

You need to be able to react to the defense and you need to be able to force the offense to turn the ball over.

Smart decision making is the key to winning basketball games. This is why coaches are needed on organized basketball teams. In most cases, a basketball coach has an extremely high basketball IQ and has the ability to make the right decisions under pressure.

Decision making vs. athletics

How is it possible for a non-athletic basketball player to outplay an extremely athletic basketball player?

It all comes down to decision making.

The best player will always be the one who best understands the game of basketball and knows how to use his God-given talents to the best of his ability.

It doesn’t matter if you’re 6’6 and have a 50-inch vertical. If you don’t have the ability to make smart decisions on the basketball court, your game will suffer.

Examples of NBA players who excel despite their lack of athleticism include Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash, Andre Miller, Zach Randolph. These guys are proof that decision making is crucial to high performance in basketball.

How to make better decisions on the basketball court

If you want to make better decisions on the basketball court, you need to play more basketball. Pay attention to situations where you make bad decisions and fix them in your downtime.

If you find yourself turning the ball over every time you drive left, you probably need to develop your left-handed dribbling and scoring skills.

Learn from your mistakes (trial and error). Your practice sessions are the best time to try different things and learn what works and what doesn’t. Save your bad decisions for practice so that when game time comes around you can be confident in your decision making.

Learn from the professionals. If you want to start making better decisions, watch videos of the best players in the world. Take a look at what the pros are doing on the basketball court and start doing the same.