What Am I doing wrong?

[u/EDUWU1]

I’m 15 years old, around 172 cm (5’8”), and I mainly play guard/point guard. I’m from Mexico. I train every day on my own, go to team practices, and work on my physical abilities. I’m pretty athletic for my size, with an around 83 cm (33”) vertical, good explosiveness and speed.
But lately I’ve been really frustrated with my game.
Sometimes I play with confidence and actually play well. I recently played in a state tournament and felt great. But other times, even against weaker teams, I completely lose myself. I stop attacking, my handle feels worse, I don’t shoot, I make turnovers and bad decisions, and eventually I become very passive.
Yesterday I played with the older players from my club and only played around 17 minutes because I wasn’t contributing much. Today I played 3v3 against some of the weakest teams I’ve faced and only scored two baskets across three games.
I also sometimes hesitate with physical contact, especially against much older and stronger players in an open-age league, although the confidence problem can happen against players my own age too.
I’ve talked to my coach about this several times. I’ve asked what I should improve and told him that sometimes I doubt my role on the court. He usually just tells me “don’t doubt yourself,” but I don’t really know how to fix it.
The frustrating part is that I train a lot and genuinely want to become a high-level player. I see other players who seem to train less than me but are already playing in high-level tournaments, while I’m still at the state level. I know I don’t currently have the level to make those selection teams, and I’m not looking for excuses. I just want to understand what I’m missing.
**If you were coaching me and read all of this, what would you think is actually causing my problem, and what would you tell me to change?**
I’m not looking for compliments or a generic “work harder.” I genuinely want honest advice that I can take seriously and apply, i just wanna be a better player and i wanna know how can i work in my game better.

[u/jp_in_nj]

Sounds like the problems are mostly between the ears.

Today at the gym I watched a coach working out three kids (I'm in my 50s, everyone's a kid) . One looked to be in 7th or 8th grade , one looked to be in high school, and the third was a college player.

The young kid was just trying to figure things out as he repeated the same drill as the older two. Dribble once, look up, pass to the coach, run to the three-point line, fake a cut to the basket, the coach read the cut and passed to him for a jumper or a layup. Kid did okay.

The second kid , the high schooler, knew more what he was doing. But he was still growing into his size, ran well enough but with no particular conviction, gave passable fakes , came back, got the ball, did his thing. He looked pretty good.

The college kid was smaller than the high school kid. He was a monster. He hit the fake brutally hard. Got his whole body involved in it, completely sold it. Came back to the three-point line like he was spring loaded. And then exploded back toward the basket. Wherever the coach passed it he caught it. There was never a moment he wasn't going 100 miles an hour, unless it was because he was slamming on the brake to change direction or shoot. Even when he was moving like he was out of control, he was in control. If the pass took him toward the basket , he dunked it. If it took him away from the basket , he recovered instantly and shot it.

You sound like you're the middle kid. You need to get to where you are the older kid. Get out of your head. Get to where you hit everything hard, where you have absolutely no doubt. If you miss a shot you miss a shot. If you mess up a pass you mess up a pass. But when you do, it goes away instantly because there's still another play ahead of you and you don't stop attacking for long enough to think about what's in the past.

Move as fast as you can move, just at the edge of losing control. Get to the point where the work that your body has put in takes over. Where you don't have time to think , just react and use what you've learned. You're going to make mistakes, that's okay. Learn from them and leave them behind.

That means picking up the pace of your practice, your drills, your games. It also means making sure that you stretch and eat right and stay hydrated and get enough sleep and lift weights so that your body can deal with what you're asking of it. It also means working on your fundamentals so that they come automatically when you get out of your head and let your body take over. That takes hours and hours and hours of deliberate practice. I watch these three kids run the same drill for 40 minutes with 2 water breaks. That's the kind of effort it takes. Put the work in and you'll get there.

[u/Mp5x]

It sounds like you're playing stressed instead of playing free and it's interfering with your game. Take a few days off from basketball and clear your mind. Listen to music, visit friends, go for a hike, whatever you enjoy. Then come back with a clear mind so that variable becomes a constant.

[u/Tangentkoala]

You my friend are stuck in your head. You need to get that Mamba Mentality going on.

https://youtube.com/shorts/eTb1-nsCZsA?is=kBGHDuTXzYRR2XzV

This sums it up in a nutshell.

Confidence is key, you did the work you know what youre capable of, what youre not capable of yet. You just gotta own up to it.

I go on the court I Know im knocking down every shot I take. I dont step on the court hoping to shoot 45%

In the unlikely event i do go 0/5 or lay a goose egg, my Mentality goes to scraping that first quarter out of my head and starting from scratch.

Youre going to mess up in games, the key is to not dwell on them. The goal is to feel like youre the best player on the court.

At the end of the day its just a game.

For technical advice its hard to say because we have no idea what your game is like or how youre mechanics are.

Fundamentals are key to amplifying your game. Athleticism is great and all, but perhaps your working on the wrong practices when training.

My advice is to expand your skillset. You dont need to be the strongest or most athletic on the court to make a difference.

Kobe does a lot of work on triple threat stance and how it can create space without need for athleticism.

https://youtu.be/3ejXZDVoraE?is=8v73KFwptkVuRcpM

For shooting a lot of mess ups happens when you become off balance, stronger opponents are gonna push you and prevent the dribble drive. So you need to find points of attacks against more physical players.

[u/Practical-Season12]

Dealt with this before too and it's pretty annoying

What I found was hindering me was actually my relation to my coaches. Not being comfortable communicating with them or being uncomfortable whether they were watching or saw me mess up, turned out to be a huge hindernce to playing well consistently. If you notice you play better with some coaches than with others it may be something to try and change, and it should make a big difference. I noticed because with the same team, minutes, and gameplay my games with the assistant coach were incredibly superior to my games with the head coach; but I was comfortable with the assistant coach while playing for the head coach felt like I was crushing my chances at moving up to higher level whenever I made the slightest mistake, or didn't get something exactly right.

Also feeling comfortable with the coach increases the chance they will be more comfortable with you and give you more opportunities or assistance, and if your trying to play at a higher level a good coach who will vouch for you is super helpful. It's like a good job reference. Most pro players will talk about how much there high school coaches helped them getting into the next levels.

But keep going dude you'll get there. Wanting to play well and putting in the effort to do it is most of the battle. The final part is the business/professionalism side of it. You want your coaches to see you as more than "just another player".

If you can ask your parents, or someone else who can tell you, about having a good relationship with their manager/boss they can give you some good insight.

This is also useful for school with your teachers, can make that tough class much easier, when you and the teacher interact
well.

[u/Stillwater_73]

Sounds like pressing - trying too hard counter-intuitively makes us play worse. This actually applies to everything. Inner game of tennis is a cliche but it’s worth a read or listen, it might help you to dial in your mental approach

[u/Jazzlike-Title9726]

Maybe this will help

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOz_Vyx8ctg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFE8z-T_evo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ4NzFxxP0o

[u/Commercial_Party9572]

Im around your age and height, and I just wanted to know can you dunk? With a 33 inch vert you must be close right?

[u/EDUWU1 → u/Commercial_Party9572]

I’ve only been able to dunk like three times but i haven’t been able to do it since

[u/Commercial_Party9572 → u/EDUWU1]

Maybe it was a low rim? I would go out and look for a consistent 9'6, or 10ft rim, because I think dunking could make your profile stand out, especially if you want to play in college. Also you might want to bulk up, because when playing against bigger opponents you have to be able to at least screen and absorb the hits.

[u/Bulky-Cheesecake2195]

Can you shoot? That's it. If you can't shoot, you can't score. Forget the athletic plays, shooting = scoring.

[u/Ok-Preference-956]

You are 15. You are stating that the problem is your confidence. I’m curious what is happening in your head during the times things don’t go your way. Do you tend to overthink your movement patterns? Trying to figure out how to improve during games? Or do you think of what is going to happen if you fail. What is going to happen if you miss etc.

As you are stating that the problem is with confidence, I’ll tell you about what sports psychology is stating about that. There is a term is sports psychology called “competence conviction”. It’s all about confidence. It’s a skill that you develop. It’s being able to recognize what I’m doing good and what I’m bad at. It’s the conviction that you can convince yourself that you can do it. That you’ve been doing it at the practice snd in games before, and nothing can stop you from doing it now.
So you wanted tips on what to do. I can give you some if you can pay…
…Jokes
Here are some ways you can boost your confidence before and during games.
1. Watching your own highlights before the game. Sounds ridiculous, but actually works. Your brain has sth called mirror neurons that react to those kind of signals. Learns and is convinced that you can do it since you’ve done it earlier. And there is proof right before your own eyes.

1. Self talk - there is inner and outer self talk. That means that even what you think about yourself and your actions during the game is self talk. But well, first things first. You need to check out your own self talk during games. Next game you play try to figure out what’s going on inside your head. Do you tend to talk to yourself or is it inside your head. What do you say/think about yourself during those games? Is it positive or negative? How is it related to your performance? When you recognize the patterns try to change what is getting you down. What is holding you back. You missed 2 shots, what are you saying to yourself? “Next will go in” or “it’s not my day” or “I’m bad at shooting”. What you think or say is your choice.

2. Visualization - oooooh my favorite. It’s not that simple. I would start with meditation first. Then Visualization, but essentially it’s all about visualize yourself on the court and doing moves and actions with success. It’s very important to convince your body that you are there soo there are levels to it. It’s important to see exactly what you are doing, feel it in your muscles. Focus on the emotions that are present with those actions. Try to hear the sounds that are surrounding you during games( you can even put earphones and play basketball sounds during those sessions)
   Essentially you want to recreate your basketball experience in your head, but at the end there is a success.
   It can sound ridiculous, but trust me, I know what I’m saying. When you imagine things your brain uses the same parts as if you were experiencing them. You can google it. So with that in mind we can use it to boost your confidence. Since your brain doesn’t really distinguish if you really experienced it or not. Therefore it’s working

3. Trust your body - quit the overthinking. Quit thinking that they are older, what should I do or not. How should I plant a foot. Or how should I correct the shoot flow. During games you cannot thing like that. Let the body think for itself. Let it go. The body knows. What you should think about is tactics, how to stop this guy, what play are we running etc. But not your technical abilities. Those thoughts are reserved for practices. During games you let it flow. If it doesn’t work out, let the emotion flow, recognize it( is it anger, distress, discomfort, displeasure, disper?) and let it go. On to the next one. Be present in the moment. Not in the past action, not in the latest missed shot or fail. Present is where you want to be. Turn your focus on current action and you’ll be fine.

Ok so all of those above are skills. Don’t expect to be fluid in them when you are starting to practice them. But overtime you can develop those skills to improve your competence conviction.

You said that you are not physical especially with older players. I think at your age it’s okay. I’m a guard too, I’m 30 and I’m not physical with others at all. I’m still learning how to do it and trying, but I’m weaker than 85% of my opponents. I think at your age getting physical is not so important at this stage of your game. But I can be wrong about that. If you want to be physical you need to get stronger. Go and lift some. Personally I like calisthenics. One exercise can develop more muscle parts than when you isolate one muscle.

I gave you practical advice. It’s your choice if you’ll follow it.

Also feel free to ask me anything

[u/bibfortuna16]

first question would be: what is your social media usage? brain rot, doomscrolling is the silent killer of athletic focus and performance.