Sixth Man

• Outline
  • Gameplay
  • Positions
  • Equipment
  • Official
  • Violations
  • Fouls
  • Strategy
• Techniques and Practices
  • Basketball Moves
  • Shooting
  • Layups
  • Slam Dunks
  • Posting Up
  • Rebounding
  • Passing
  • Dribbling
  • Blocking
  • Triple Threat Position
• Positions
  • Point Guard (PG)
  • Shooting Guard (SG)
  • Small Forward (SF)
  • Power Forward (PF)
  • Center (C)

The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the starters and posts similar statistics. He is often a player who can play multiple positions, hence his utility in substituting often. For example, Kevin McHale, a famous sixth man who played for the Boston Celtics in the 1980s, variably played center and power forward. The presence of a good sixth man is often a sign of team excellence. It usually means that a team has excellent depth, as the sixth man is usually more than talented enough to start for most teams.

A common strategy is to place a good scorer as a sixth man when the starting lineup already has enough scorers. In this case, the sixth man will enter the game without the team suffering a drop-off in scoring. This was used during the Chicago Bulls' NBAThe National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and is considered the premier professional basketball league in the world. The NBA was created on August 3, 1949, with the merger of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and the National Basketball League (NBL). The league later adopted the BAA's history and considers its founding on June 6, 1946, as its own.NBA championship runs with forward Toni Kukoč and more recently with Manu Ginóbili of the San Antonio Spurs, Leandro Barbosa during his tenure with the Phoenix Suns, Jason Terry during his time with the Dallas Mavericks, James Harden during his time with the Oklahoma City Thunder, and Jamal Crawford with the Los Angeles Clippers. Another common strategy is to wait for the game to develop, thus letting the sixth man read the opponent's weak spots and take advantage of them once he steps in.

Legendary Boston Celtics coach Red Auerbach is often credited throughout basketball with creating the sixth man. He first used the role for guard Frank Ramsey, who played behind the Hall-of-Fame duo of Bob Cousy and Bill Sharman during the early part of the Celtics' dynasty years. Though Ramsey was one of the Celtics' best players, he felt more comfortable coming off the bench and Auerbach wanted his best players fresh and in the lineup at the end of close games. The most famous sixth man, however, was teammate John Havlicek, who revolutionized the role during his 16-year career.

• Outline
  

  SPORTS WORLD

  Basketball

  The object of the game is to outscore one's opponents by throwing the ball through the opponents' basket from above while preventing the opponents from doing so on their own. An attempt to score in this way is called a shot. A successful shot is worth two points, or three points if it is taken from beyond the three-point arc 6.75 metres (22 ft 2 in) from the basket in international games and 23 feet 9 inches (7.24 m) in NBA games. A one-point shot can be earned when shooting from the foul line after a foul is made.

  Rules and Regulations

  Gameplay: A jump ball is a method used to begin or resume play in basketball. Two opposing players attempt to gain control of the ball after it is tossed up into the air in between them by an official.

  Positions: During the early years of basketball's evolution, two guards, two forwards, and one center were used.

  Equipment: The only essential equipment in a basketball game is the ball and the court: a flat, rectangular surface with baskets at opposite ends.

  Official: Basketball is regarded as among the most difficult sports to officiate due to the fast speed of play, the complexity of rules that must be followed, the unique case-specific interpretations of rules, and the instantaneous judgement required.

  Violations: The ball must stay within the court; the last team to touch the ball before it travels out of bounds forfeits possession. The ball is out of bounds if it touches a boundary line, or touches any player or object that is out of bounds.

  Fouls: An attempt to unfairly disadvantage an opponent through certain types of physical contact is illegal and is called a personal foul.

  Strategy: The playbook starts as a canvas picture of the basketball court with all its boundaries and lines. On top of that, the playmaker can draw O's for players on offense, and X's for players on defense.

• Techniques and Practices
  

  SPORTS WORLD

  Techniques and Practices

  Basketball moves are generally individual actions used by players in basketball to pass by defenders to gain access to the basket or to get a clean pass to a teammate to score a two pointer or three pointer. Basketball Moves »

  Shooting: Shooting is the act of attempting to score points by throwing the ball through the basket, methods varying with players and situations.

  Slam dunks: A slam dunk, also dunk or dunk shot, is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air, controls the ball(s) above the horizontal plane of the rim, and scores by putting the ball directly through the basket with one or both hands.

  Rebounding: Rebounds in basketball are a routine part in the game, as all possessions change after a shot is successfully made, or the rebound allows the defensive team to take possession.

  Passing: A pass is a method of moving the ball between players. Most passes are accompanied by a step forward to increase power and are followed through with the hands to ensure accuracy.

  Dribbling: Dribbling is the act of bouncing the ball continuously with one hand, and is a requirement for a player to take steps with the ball.

  Blocking: In basketball, a block or blocked shot occurs when a defensive player legally deflects a field goal attempt from an offensive player.

RESOURCES
This article uses material from the Wikipedia articles "Basketball", "Sixth Man", "National Basketball Association" which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.