How to Draw a Charge in Basketball

Basketball to most people is about dunks and three-pointers, but any coach will say basketball is in the details and the fundamentals. One of these primary fundamentals on defense is the ability of a defender to draw a charge. Drawing a charge is not for the faint of heart because a person has to be willing to let another player run over him without moving out of the way.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

1. Practice the correct way to fall during the act of taking a charge. A defender should sit down on the court after they are run into or over. To avoid injury, do not try breaking the backward fall with the hands or arms. This can lead to hand or arm injuries. Also, keep the knees bent when falling back. Be sure to practice the correct falling technique before taking a charge during a game.
2. Anticipate the offensive player's movement in order to get into proper position. Most offensive players have tendencies on the court and after watching them a defensive player can anticipate their movement and beat them to a spot on the floor.
3. Absorb the blow from the opponents charge with the chest. If other parts of the body are the primary contact point, the official may not call the charge and it may result in injury.
4. Try not to anticipate contact. If a defender starts leaning before any contact, she will not get the charging call. This is very difficult because the natural reaction is to shy away from contact.
5. Move the feet sideways and beat the defender to the spot on the floor he is attempting to reach. There's a misconception that a player cannot move or the charge will not be called. This is false. If the player has defensive position, his body can still be moving and still draw the charge.
6. Allow the offensive player to knock you down to the floor after beating her to a spot on the basketball floor. Now you simply fall down in the same manner practiced in Step 1.
7. Listen for the official's whistle as he calls the charging foul on the other player.