Want to develop DeMar DeRozan’s footwork for basketball? Want to improve your footwork to be like the pros? Here’s how to do it and why you should implement these drills into your workout.
The majority of the time, when a player reaches a certain age, his skills and development will begin to decline.
He’ll peak and won’t be able to learn and absorb new skills as easily and as quickly as when he was in his prime.
In addition to that, he’ll start to lose his athleticism. He’ll get slower, become less explosive, and lose some of his stamina.
But this wasn’t the case for DeMar DeRozan (at least from the eye test).
When he was traded from the Toronto Raptors to the San Antonio Spurs in 2018, I thought he wasn’t going to do well.
He was 29 years old and the Spurs coach, Gregg Popovich, had a different system than his previous coach’s.
I didn’t think DeRozan’s skill set was going to mesh well with how his new coach wanted his players to play.
Boy, was I wrong.
DeRozan fit in with the Spurs’ offence well. And not only did he fit in, he got better.
He went from shooting 45.6 percent in 2017-18 to 48.1 percent in 2018-19 with roughly the same amount of field goal attempts.
This shows that his shot efficiency improved and his decision-making got better, too.
And the reason why his skills continued progress, in my opinion, is because he had his basketball fundamentals down.
How DeRozan’s Footwork Helped Him Evolve
When a player has mastery over the fundamentals, it’s easier for them to pick up new skills.
They already have the basics down, so adding to it is less complicated than if they didn’t possess the core fundamentals at all.
This was the case for DeRozan.
He just had to improve his IQ and decision-making a tad and he was able to easily transition from being a go-to scorer on the Raptors to one of the primary playmakers and scorers on the Spurs.
The Popovich Effect
Prior to joining the Spurs, DeRozan already had top-notch footwork and excellent shooting fundamentals.
He was constantly getting open shots via pivots, Euro-steps, step-backs, and such, thus increasing his gravity.
Every time the ball was in his hands, defenders crowded him to make each shot more difficult.
But now, playing for Coach Popovich, instead of shooting a heavily contested shot, he looks for open teammates to assist to (hence the improved IQ).
DeRozan’s playmaking got better as a result and he was able to average 6.2 assists per game in his first season with the Spurs and 6.9 assists in his third season with the team.
This is why footwork is so important and something that all players of all levels need to put more effort into.
It’ll help you evolve and thrive as a player (as it did DeRozan) and also make it easier for you to pick up new systems and styles.
How to Improve Footwork for Basketball
So, how can you work on your footwork?
There are many ways to improve coordination, mobility, and agility. But the best ways are with ladder exercises and post-move drills.
Ladder exercises are done on an agility ladder to improve your coordination, quickness, agility, and changing of direction.
They are also great cardio and strengthening exercises.
My favourite ladder drills are: Straddle Hops (forward and backward), Side Step High Knees, In and Out, Icky Shuffle, and X-Country Skier Drill.
I like these movements because they’re fun to do, which is really important because this factor will keep you going.
But you can pick a handful of any ladder drills and they’ll all help you move better in basketball.
Here are a few examples of what ladder drills look like:
How Post-Move Drills Improve Footwork
Post-move drills are exercises that help you learn and/or improve your post-game.
These movements help with developing footwork because moves in the post require a lot of it.
So, as you learn the move (via doing the exercises), you’ll also be working on your coordination, balance, and agility because good footwork is needed to execute the move well.
If you’re a beginner, I suggest you read this article on drills for developing post-moves first. It talks about the basics of the post-game and the exercises you should do to learn it.
However, if you’re an intermediate, I suggest you learn the core fundamentals of Kobe Bryant’s post-game.
It’s packed with post-up footwork, such as pivots and backdowns, and will improve your movements on the court.
Additionally, this is what DeRozan did to improve his game.
He studied and mimicked Kobe when he was younger and when he made it to the NBA, he trained with the Los Angeles Lakers’ legend in the off-season.
The following video shares some of the basics of Kobe’s moves:
Final Thoughts
I want to note that it will take a long time before your footwork will start to feel comfortable.
These exercises aren’t magical spells that will miraculously boost your skills. It will take time and hard work.
Thus, you have to take your time to learn them and practice them. Do them slowly and pay attention to your movements. And train often and consistently.
Eventually, you will juke your opponents without even realizing it.
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P.S. If you’re struggling to improve in basketball, you may be training wrong.
This is why you need to check out my Old Man Game Activity Guides. They are convenient training systems that will help you work on your fundamentals and conditioning.
Click here to learn more about them.
