Basketball Rebounding Tips & Techniques

Proper Rebounding Techniques

The job of the rebounder in basketball, is as you may have guessed, getting offensive and defensive rebounds for their team. The proper rebounding techniques can you make anyone an effective and improved rebounder.

It really doesn’t matter whether the athlete is tall or if they are a quick jumper, a shorter athlete can be a great rebounder by utilizing the right rebounding tips and techniques. Its obtaining the proper skills and techniques that make a rebounder good at securing the basketball off the rim or backboard.

Keep in mind there are four fundamental aspects of becoming a good rebounder. Players need to anticipate that every shot will be a miss and then set themselves up in a rebounding position.

A skill that is hard to teach, the player needs to be determined and assertive. Below, we will dive into some rebounding tips and tricks to improve as a complete player.

I will repeat this again, having good rebounding technique consists of having great determination and confidence. Remaining motivated and working hard will make you better at grabbing those boards. The 4 major keys to rebounding are: positioning, proper rebounding stance, tipping the ball, and preventing steals.

Positioning – Positioning is incredibly important because you need to be able to know where the ball is going to land if it is missed. Being in the correct position to get the ball will prevent you from having to fight a player from the other team for the ball.

Keep an eye on how the ball is going to be thrown and be ready to get it by knowing where its going to go. The biggest thing here is reading angles and reacting. Be agile and react once the basketball hits the rim, backboard, etc.

Proper Rebounding Stance – Spread your legs out for balance and lower your center of gravity. This is going to make you difficult to push around if your opponent is trying to steal the ball from you. Spread your arms out and put your butt towards the waist of the nearest opponent.

This rebounding technique is called the box-out and its a good way to hold your position and recover the rebound. Check out the box-out video below!

Rebounding Tips & Technique Video: Boxing Out

Preventing Steals – After you recover a rebound, never dribble it. Rebound it right away because a player from the defending team is going to try to catch you off guard and steal the ball.

Bring the ball towards your chest, right under your chin and stick your elbows out. This is called chinning the basketball. This will help you protect the ball and prevent it from being taken away. You may here a coach yell, “Chin it!” That means chin the ball so that a player with quick hands can’t steal the ball from you!

Tipping the Ball – There will be many times that a player may not be able to get a firm grip on the basketball. In this case, its helpful to tip the ball towards another player so that they will be able to get the rebound.

You can also just tip the ball in your direction or tip it a few times that either you or a teammate is able to get a hold of it. Tipping can be rather beneficial and may be a necessity if you aren’t able to get in the correct position fast enough.

The Best Rebounders in the Game
The top 5 rebounders in NBA history are: Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elvin Hayes, and Moses Malone.

These guys are good at what they do, pulling in tens of thousands of rebounds because they stick to the key fundamentals of rebounding. Following the 4 basic rebounding techniques can help any basketball player become a great rebounder.

All of these players didn’t just have the rebounding techniques that was described in this article but they had the determination and passion to grab every rebound. Kevin Love and Dwight Howard are two of our top rebounders today!

Dwight Howard is currently leading the league in rebounding with 17 rebounds per game. Kevin Love recorded 30 rebounds in one game a few years ago! Yes, these guys are big, but they also have a desire to grab the ball with 2 hands and rebound with the proper rebounding techniques.