How to Understand Player Positions in Basketball

Video Transcript

"Coach Rudy here. I've won championships as both a coach and a player. Today we're going to talk about player positions on the offensive side of the ball. Here's your point guard. He's your coach on the floor. He starts the offense, gets things going, he knows where everybody goes. Your shooting guard typically is number two. He's the guy you're looking to get a good open look for. All right, number three. That's your swing player. He swings from down low to up high. He can play on the baseline or out on the perimeter. Your four guy, or your small forward, he's a banger, but he also can shoot the midrange jump shot. So he can either bang inside or play on the interior. And then your big guy in the middle, he's your rebounder and shot blocker. Those are the guys that really, really, really clog up the middle and typically create havoc on both sides of the rim when people try to drive the lane. That's your five guy. Let's recap. Number one is your coach. Number two, your shooting guard. Number three, your swing player, both sides of the floor. Number four, your midrange players, plays inside or out on the interior. Number five, your big guy, should only be in the paint. Those are the positions on the offensive side."