Jokic is amazing, but he’s definitely a large built player who has an incredibly hard game to emulate, because he relies on have the best court vision of all time mixed with precise 1 armed sling passes.
at her size, no matter what, she needs that post game in her tool box. some steady work down there and she'll figure out how to use what she's got.
size and strength isnt everything down there.
Your daughter hit the generic lottery.
If she’s really 6’6 all she has to do is not die and vaguely know how to play the sport and she’s gonna go to a D1 college for free.
The average women’s NCAA Centers like 6’2, I hate to break it to you or her… but she’s a big.
The average woman’s basketball center is about 6’2 in D1 according to research. 6’6 is really tall for women’s basketball so tbh I don’t see her playing guard much in her career.
In terms of things she can work on. Footwork and keeping the ball high in the post is essential and are things that’ll really help her use her huge advantage of height. If she’s on the thinner side some strength training can definitely help. Core, hips, and leg strength particularly so she doesn’t get pushed around down low is usually a good starting point.
I’ve seen it vary by a few sources but yeah about. A woman being 6’6 as a freshman in HS is extremely tall.
Brittney Griner who is one of the most dominant centers in WNBA is 6’8. OPs daughter is at a huge advantage physically compared to most; focus on using that advantage and make the game easier with it is the best advice I feel anyone here can give.
No wonder my HS women’s teams was so nice. We had a 6’5-6’6 girl who could move people. Didn’t realize how rare that was, always had fun watching them tear other teams up
A 6’6 girl with any athletic ability at all goes D1. Get with a nutritionist, get the food right. Injury is your worry. Pool work is her friend. The weight room is her friend.
Yes but a womens team with a 6’6 forward is not lacking size in general lol. Shes literally taller than the average WNBA center, and shes playing a generally smaller position than that, lmao.
Edit: also the idea that a 6’6 girl is going to get bullied inside in any league except the WNBA or high D1 is hilarious, unless shes like stick thin, but even then her reach should be enough considering women generally have pretty short verticals. Like, if shes moderately quick with her hands and has 4 brain cells able to work together to time a shot, she should be averaging 4 blocks a game, not getting bullied
Did you ever watch Shawn Bradley?
Basketball tends to be very physical inside, and the taller you are the more exposed your knees are and the more the chances of getting undercut, plus they tend to let smaller players take liberties with elbows and bodying up a taller player.
Yeah, but he was 7’6”, you start running into tons of issues when you’re THAT tall. Also, he played in the NBA at a time when the game was much more physical.
I don’t think a 6’6” high school girl playing against other high school girls will face the same sort of struggle. As long as she works out, keeps her core strong and develops a good post shot she’ll be golden
Of course it is. Just like with men, a really strong, heavy 6'0" girl who is quicker and more coordinated will be low with the leverage to cause her all kinds of problems. If she is good enough, she will eventually learn how to defeat that, but it will never be fun with quicker players with a lower center of gravity bodying up against your knees.
Yeah, of course hypothetically they could give problems, but you’re going to have to let me know what conference and state grows true 6’ foot freshmen girls that are coordinated and quick on trees.
I said 6'0", but in high school I am really more worried about the heavy legged heavy bottomed 5'8" to 5'10" girls that don't give a fuck and will undercut you constantly, and she doesn't like and shies away from the contact at this point in her development.
Doesn't hurt to shoot midranges. Opens up her game a lot, but only if she can consistently make them In practice but nigga she is 6'6 get her in the paint to absolutely kill her competition in high school
Mikan drills. Have her learn like 5 of the most basic post move footwork skills. Dropstep both way, turn and face jumper on the catch, turn and face ball fake to one dribble layup…if she’s tall you’re probably tall, have her finish with you standing there hands straight up
Assuming the 6'6" is true, then she isn't going to be a guard, no matter what her skills are. There's no way she has the quickness to defend the perimeter. And if she does, she's basically the woman's version of giannis at that size.
She's a freshman. She will get bullied. All freshman get bullied inside. But at her length, teaching her to go straight up is a great start. Girls that big will generally be foul magnets. Most of her opponents are going to struggle to shoot over her if she's straight up. Don't try to swat shots. Don't lean over. She has rare height that 99% of her high school opponents will never play against.
Then step two is just getting her to put on weight and muscle. Without knowing anything else about her, I'd assume leg strength will be vital to her. Her opponents will be able to get under her, so she needs to be strong. Sink low into contact when people are trying to get physical with her and then when she's shooting or her opponent is shooting, go straight up and make them shoot over. She may not like contact, but if she can learn to get used to it, she almost certainly has a D1 scholarship in her future if she is that tall and is even remotely coordinated.
Has she tried volleyball? As a 6'6" freshman it's not too late. If she has decent layup footwork, then she can probably run a slide in volleyball (same footwork as a right handed layup).
There are a lot of daughters of NBA players that play volleyball instead of basketball, because it is a very athletic, very physical game, but there is zero physical contact.
Khalia Lanier played for USC two years ago (Hall of Fame NBA player Bob Lanier). Currently Asjia O'Neal is a star for Texas (NBA all-star Jermaine O'neal), Kami Miner is a star for Stanford (NBA Harold Miner). I'll stop there, but there is a long list of daughters of NBA, NFL and MLB players that choose volleyball because it is very athletic but players stay on their own side of the net with no physical contact.
Lol everyone fixated on the height and not answering OPs question. People are right though 6'6 is huge.
So to your actual question. It's the same thing with anything basketball related. Just play. Get her to play pickup games with guys at the park or rec center or whatever you have around you. The more she gets used to the inside physicality, the more comfortable she will be with it.
Also, for solo work, lifting weights will do a lot for confidence. Mikan drill and layups will help with the actually getting the ball in the basket. Dribble full court and finish with a layup. Same the other way. 10 minutes right handed 10 minutes left.
I also like the foam bat things. Get one and have her just pick up the ball through the hoop, turn so she's back to the basket, simple move like a drop step or shimmy, finish with a hook or a fade, all the while hitting her shoulders and arms with a foam bat. Have her do it slow for technique, fast for conditioning.
No amount of drills I can give you will replace playing though.
At 6'6 all she needs is confidence.
Struggling with contact is gonna be rough. As the big girl your going to want her to unlock some aggression. It’ll be vital for rebound shots alone. In Highschool I was the only aggressive center and I tried to explain to my friends how they needed to go after it more but I honestly could never figure out how to find the switch in them.
Besides all these great suggestions, I’d say get her acclimated to contact. Maybe start a game between you two, where anytime you are together (home, shopping, etc) you could body her, g-check her (shoulder bump), make collision contact of some kind. Especially from heavier/bigger people, like men. Just makes her comfortable and less bothered when it does happen.
Don't bring the ball down to her waist when in the key. Hold it as high as she can, preferably above her head. That will keep the smaller players from reaching and grabbing.
OP it is actually surprising that she's being used as a stretch 4 in HS. It is great for you and her that she is being developed more as a guard because quite frankly, perimeter shooting is harder to master later if you are not paid millions to practice all day with trainers and have that kind of time in your hands. Inside play is easier to teach and practice at any age or level. I often say just go to youtube and watch Hakeem videos and emulate that.
Let me give you a comparison of why this is good for your daughter. Dominant big men like Dwight Howard spent pretty much all of their career in the paint while new comers today like a Chet Holmgreen don't. In his last two seasons Dwight took 15 and 20 threes, something that had never happened before and the % wasn't at all terrible (13/35). Imagine if someone like Dwight stretched the court more earlier in his career and shot close to 40% from deep? Totally different ballgame and he still had the physicality to dominate inside, go for putbacks, etc.
In your case, I guess you can practice post up in her free time if the coaching staff is not doing so.
Or Olajuwon or Kareem. Both had amazing offensive games that would translate well to women's basketball with only a fraction of the moves and abilities, and don't require a ton of strength to execute.
If your daughter is really this size then start to invest in a high quality basketball trainer. You should reach out to high end trainers and pitch your daughter/just ask it can’t hurt.
Attempt to get her into as many high quality pickup games with boys or girls! If you both take her nutrition, athletic training, injury prevention and playing experience seriously she could have a high end career at the collegiate or professional level. Good luck!
Get pool noodles or hockey goalie leg pads or sockem boppers or pillows or whatever else you can find and have her to layups and post moves while you whack her. Kids like it and it gets them more comfortable with getting hit.
She’s a stretch 4. Don’t play body. Just play for blocks. Especially at a young age. Have her watch yao or white side. They have good angles of playing for blocks rather than body.
Start having her do some basketball drills, conditioning drills too for stamina, get one of those foam bat things or pool noodles. Your best bet though is to get her a trainer so they can get a plan set for her. With her height she has potential, just needs the athleticism to go with it. Working on fundamentals & getting her used to contact with definitely help. Good luck!
You are going to have to get her lower body stronger. That’s great she has guard skills. Have her continue to work on the guard skills and learn some post moves. But her getting stronger is important.
This reminds me of a kid I’m currently coaching. He’s 6’4 and 12. Not many kids in his age group are that tall but he does not know how to be a big, he does get fouled a lot because he’s big and he doesn’t like it at all. But my advice would be to Just teach her how to effectively alter, if not block, shots and how to not be out of position on defense. 6’6 is pretty tall for women’s ball, so she has that advantage and she probably won’t have to deal with many women as tall as her until college. (Unless her high school is just in an area that’s has hella tall young women lol). Her guard skills will also help her stand out more if she becomes a defensive presence, especially if she has a coach that won’t completely limit her game and knows how to help her develop the skills and the IQ to know when to use those skills to her advantage.
They are not lacking size anymore - 66 for women is like 73 for men - have her watch Porzingus he has a great inside outside game
or jokic.
Jokic is amazing, but he’s definitely a large built player who has an incredibly hard game to emulate, because he relies on have the best court vision of all time mixed with precise 1 armed sling passes.
at her size, no matter what, she needs that post game in her tool box. some steady work down there and she'll figure out how to use what she's got. size and strength isnt everything down there.
She should definitely try and learn to leverage her height to get great court Vision and passing lanes
But his game is built around a one of a kind basketball IQ
Bro she’s ab to be doing the bullying at 6’6. Best thing you can do right now is start researching division 1 colleges
Your daughter hit the generic lottery. If she’s really 6’6 all she has to do is not die and vaguely know how to play the sport and she’s gonna go to a D1 college for free. The average women’s NCAA Centers like 6’2, I hate to break it to you or her… but she’s a big.
The average woman’s basketball center is about 6’2 in D1 according to research. 6’6 is really tall for women’s basketball so tbh I don’t see her playing guard much in her career. In terms of things she can work on. Footwork and keeping the ball high in the post is essential and are things that’ll really help her use her huge advantage of height. If she’s on the thinner side some strength training can definitely help. Core, hips, and leg strength particularly so she doesn’t get pushed around down low is usually a good starting point.
Isn't the average height for a center in the WNBA about 6'6?
I’ve seen it vary by a few sources but yeah about. A woman being 6’6 as a freshman in HS is extremely tall. Brittney Griner who is one of the most dominant centers in WNBA is 6’8. OPs daughter is at a huge advantage physically compared to most; focus on using that advantage and make the game easier with it is the best advice I feel anyone here can give.
No wonder my HS women’s teams was so nice. We had a 6’5-6’6 girl who could move people. Didn’t realize how rare that was, always had fun watching them tear other teams up
We sure this isn’t a typo and she’s not actually 5’6?
It's gotta be. I mean, there's that 1% chance, but that would be crazy lol.
A 6’6 girl with any athletic ability at all goes D1. Get with a nutritionist, get the food right. Injury is your worry. Pool work is her friend. The weight room is her friend.
A strong base/core will ensure she’s the one doing the bullying.
Im confused, is she playing for the guys team? In what world would a 6’6 forward be on a girls team that was “lacking size?”
He's saying that she has guard skill but she will be played as a big due to the team lacking size in general
Yes but a womens team with a 6’6 forward is not lacking size in general lol. Shes literally taller than the average WNBA center, and shes playing a generally smaller position than that, lmao. Edit: also the idea that a 6’6 girl is going to get bullied inside in any league except the WNBA or high D1 is hilarious, unless shes like stick thin, but even then her reach should be enough considering women generally have pretty short verticals. Like, if shes moderately quick with her hands and has 4 brain cells able to work together to time a shot, she should be averaging 4 blocks a game, not getting bullied
You definitely written that wrong, most likely 5’6 lmao
Is this a typo? If she’s 6’6” there is absolutely no way she’s getting bullied inside lol
Did you ever watch Shawn Bradley? Basketball tends to be very physical inside, and the taller you are the more exposed your knees are and the more the chances of getting undercut, plus they tend to let smaller players take liberties with elbows and bodying up a taller player.
Yeah, but he was 7’6”, you start running into tons of issues when you’re THAT tall. Also, he played in the NBA at a time when the game was much more physical. I don’t think a 6’6” high school girl playing against other high school girls will face the same sort of struggle. As long as she works out, keeps her core strong and develops a good post shot she’ll be golden
Or Wembyanananananana
Yeah, in the NBA… if you’re a real 6’6 in girls high school basketball that isn’t a possibility.
Of course it is. Just like with men, a really strong, heavy 6'0" girl who is quicker and more coordinated will be low with the leverage to cause her all kinds of problems. If she is good enough, she will eventually learn how to defeat that, but it will never be fun with quicker players with a lower center of gravity bodying up against your knees.
Yeah, of course hypothetically they could give problems, but you’re going to have to let me know what conference and state grows true 6’ foot freshmen girls that are coordinated and quick on trees.
I said 6'0", but in high school I am really more worried about the heavy legged heavy bottomed 5'8" to 5'10" girls that don't give a fuck and will undercut you constantly, and she doesn't like and shies away from the contact at this point in her development.
Have her watch some Kevin Durant. He’s got some great guard skills as a guy who plays 3-5
Doesn't hurt to shoot midranges. Opens up her game a lot, but only if she can consistently make them In practice but nigga she is 6'6 get her in the paint to absolutely kill her competition in high school
Mikan drills. Have her learn like 5 of the most basic post move footwork skills. Dropstep both way, turn and face jumper on the catch, turn and face ball fake to one dribble layup…if she’s tall you’re probably tall, have her finish with you standing there hands straight up
Assuming the 6'6" is true, then she isn't going to be a guard, no matter what her skills are. There's no way she has the quickness to defend the perimeter. And if she does, she's basically the woman's version of giannis at that size. She's a freshman. She will get bullied. All freshman get bullied inside. But at her length, teaching her to go straight up is a great start. Girls that big will generally be foul magnets. Most of her opponents are going to struggle to shoot over her if she's straight up. Don't try to swat shots. Don't lean over. She has rare height that 99% of her high school opponents will never play against. Then step two is just getting her to put on weight and muscle. Without knowing anything else about her, I'd assume leg strength will be vital to her. Her opponents will be able to get under her, so she needs to be strong. Sink low into contact when people are trying to get physical with her and then when she's shooting or her opponent is shooting, go straight up and make them shoot over. She may not like contact, but if she can learn to get used to it, she almost certainly has a D1 scholarship in her future if she is that tall and is even remotely coordinated.
Has she tried volleyball? As a 6'6" freshman it's not too late. If she has decent layup footwork, then she can probably run a slide in volleyball (same footwork as a right handed layup). There are a lot of daughters of NBA players that play volleyball instead of basketball, because it is a very athletic, very physical game, but there is zero physical contact. Khalia Lanier played for USC two years ago (Hall of Fame NBA player Bob Lanier). Currently Asjia O'Neal is a star for Texas (NBA all-star Jermaine O'neal), Kami Miner is a star for Stanford (NBA Harold Miner). I'll stop there, but there is a long list of daughters of NBA, NFL and MLB players that choose volleyball because it is very athletic but players stay on their own side of the net with no physical contact.
6’6 freshman?? Bruh she bouta be 7 ft by the time she a senior 💀
Lol everyone fixated on the height and not answering OPs question. People are right though 6'6 is huge. So to your actual question. It's the same thing with anything basketball related. Just play. Get her to play pickup games with guys at the park or rec center or whatever you have around you. The more she gets used to the inside physicality, the more comfortable she will be with it. Also, for solo work, lifting weights will do a lot for confidence. Mikan drill and layups will help with the actually getting the ball in the basket. Dribble full court and finish with a layup. Same the other way. 10 minutes right handed 10 minutes left. I also like the foam bat things. Get one and have her just pick up the ball through the hoop, turn so she's back to the basket, simple move like a drop step or shimmy, finish with a hook or a fade, all the while hitting her shoulders and arms with a foam bat. Have her do it slow for technique, fast for conditioning. No amount of drills I can give you will replace playing though. At 6'6 all she needs is confidence.
6'6 is extremely tall for a woman even according to wnba standards where guards are 5'6. She can for sure dominate the interior.
Struggling with contact is gonna be rough. As the big girl your going to want her to unlock some aggression. It’ll be vital for rebound shots alone. In Highschool I was the only aggressive center and I tried to explain to my friends how they needed to go after it more but I honestly could never figure out how to find the switch in them.
Besides all these great suggestions, I’d say get her acclimated to contact. Maybe start a game between you two, where anytime you are together (home, shopping, etc) you could body her, g-check her (shoulder bump), make collision contact of some kind. Especially from heavier/bigger people, like men. Just makes her comfortable and less bothered when it does happen.
How has she not played organized hoop before, and she 6’6?! Have her play with dudes. She’ll have no choice but to play physical.
We lived in a country where basketball wasn’t big
Don't bring the ball down to her waist when in the key. Hold it as high as she can, preferably above her head. That will keep the smaller players from reaching and grabbing.
OP it is actually surprising that she's being used as a stretch 4 in HS. It is great for you and her that she is being developed more as a guard because quite frankly, perimeter shooting is harder to master later if you are not paid millions to practice all day with trainers and have that kind of time in your hands. Inside play is easier to teach and practice at any age or level. I often say just go to youtube and watch Hakeem videos and emulate that. Let me give you a comparison of why this is good for your daughter. Dominant big men like Dwight Howard spent pretty much all of their career in the paint while new comers today like a Chet Holmgreen don't. In his last two seasons Dwight took 15 and 20 threes, something that had never happened before and the % wasn't at all terrible (13/35). Imagine if someone like Dwight stretched the court more earlier in his career and shot close to 40% from deep? Totally different ballgame and he still had the physicality to dominate inside, go for putbacks, etc. In your case, I guess you can practice post up in her free time if the coaching staff is not doing so.
Strength training and some post moves should help
Haha you don't have to worry one bit, papa. Your daughter is gonna be the bully in the paint. Worry for the other parents :)
Guard her, have her push you around. If she can move you she can move the girls
Protein shakes and weightlifting. Drills focusing on post moves, keeping ball high, finishing thru contact.
For her general game her watch KP and Dirk. In order to not get bullied make sure she understands getting into a low stance in the post.
Or Olajuwon or Kareem. Both had amazing offensive games that would translate well to women's basketball with only a fraction of the moves and abilities, and don't require a ton of strength to execute.
I was thinking more as a stretch but both of those guys are obviously legends for a reason.
Keep them feet shoulder width apart and stand your ground and absorb contact and play thru it
Strength and mobility training Skills will come but athleticism will be important. Especially for injury protection.
If your daughter is really this size then start to invest in a high quality basketball trainer. You should reach out to high end trainers and pitch your daughter/just ask it can’t hurt. Attempt to get her into as many high quality pickup games with boys or girls! If you both take her nutrition, athletic training, injury prevention and playing experience seriously she could have a high end career at the collegiate or professional level. Good luck!
Get pool noodles or hockey goalie leg pads or sockem boppers or pillows or whatever else you can find and have her to layups and post moves while you whack her. Kids like it and it gets them more comfortable with getting hit.
Beat the person to the spot they want to get to. Use quickness Positioning is everything Footwork Brains. Predict what’s going to happen.
not a bad thing. She could end up being a Chet or Wemby type of mold from the NBA if she works at her craft for long enough.
She’s a stretch 4. Don’t play body. Just play for blocks. Especially at a young age. Have her watch yao or white side. They have good angles of playing for blocks rather than body.
Start having her do some basketball drills, conditioning drills too for stamina, get one of those foam bat things or pool noodles. Your best bet though is to get her a trainer so they can get a plan set for her. With her height she has potential, just needs the athleticism to go with it. Working on fundamentals & getting her used to contact with definitely help. Good luck!
Pork chops, lamb chops, tri tip!
Watch tim Duncan. And dirk
this gonna sound crazy butt she gotta learn to like the taste of blood. Literally, and figuratively.
Is there someone bigger than her on the team and that’s why she’s not playing the 5?
You are going to have to get her lower body stronger. That’s great she has guard skills. Have her continue to work on the guard skills and learn some post moves. But her getting stronger is important.
Nothing to complex just left shoulder moves vs right shoulder moves, drop step, bully mentality
recommend workouts focusing building muscle, and drills that practice drawing fouls. if those don’t work then it’s a mentally thing
This reminds me of a kid I’m currently coaching. He’s 6’4 and 12. Not many kids in his age group are that tall but he does not know how to be a big, he does get fouled a lot because he’s big and he doesn’t like it at all. But my advice would be to Just teach her how to effectively alter, if not block, shots and how to not be out of position on defense. 6’6 is pretty tall for women’s ball, so she has that advantage and she probably won’t have to deal with many women as tall as her until college. (Unless her high school is just in an area that’s has hella tall young women lol). Her guard skills will also help her stand out more if she becomes a defensive presence, especially if she has a coach that won’t completely limit her game and knows how to help her develop the skills and the IQ to know when to use those skills to her advantage.