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Basketball, The Positions


Point Guard

Point guards direct the team when on offense and cover the guards on defense. They are usually the shortest players on the team, but their quickness, ball-handling and passing ability, and ability to make steals (i.e. intercept) balls make up them very important players, despite their lack of height.

Off-Guard/Shooting Guard

Shooting guards are skilled at driving towards the basket to score lay-ups, and are especially good at jump shots and shots from beyond the 3-point line. Their primary responsibility is to point scoring.

Center

The Center is usually the tallest player on the team and is responsible for scoring points ¡°in the paint¡± on jump shots, bank shots, layups, and dunks. On defense, the center usually guards the opposing team¡¯s tallest player and tries to block or alter shots taken by the opposing team.

Small Forward

The Small Forward must be good at driving hard towards the basket, point scoring, rebounding and play solid defense.

Power Forward

The Power Forward is usually a larger player who has good defensive skills like shot blocking, and excellent short range shooting skills.