How to win NBA Jam
Posted at 5:03 pm on Monday, March 16, 2009, in Uncategorized, and tagged nba jam.
Last week, I won an NBA Jam challenge.* The two of us picked five teams in draft fashion. I picked first, he picked second and third, I fourth, he fifth, etc. For no reason other than my amusement, we conducted the draft over Twitter. I picked the Hornets, Spurs, Kings, Clippers and Bullets. My opponent picked the Bulls, Sonics, Jazz, Hawks and Pistons.
I admit that I was worried about a Bullets-Pistons game for the series, but that wouldn’t come to matter, since I swept the series 3-0. The first game was a back-and-forth nail-biter, just the type of game you’d like to see from an NBA Jam challenge. The second was my blowout; I believe I won 60-31. The third game was supposed to be his blowout. He was up by 13 at the half, and up by 7 or so with a couple minutes remaining, but I ended up winning by four (with the last shot being a three-fourths court buzzer beater). Again, I swept the series, but how did I do it?
The short answer is defense, but the long answer follows…
a. You must press. Every step of the way. You must push your opponent every chance you get (remember, there are no fouls), especially around the rim and as a player takes a three. The key is timing. Wait until your opponent is off the ground attempting a three-pointer, then push him. Then it is a race to the ball. Feel free to push in this case too. When all else fails, push. It is a win-win situation.
b. Outlet passes. It is not a secret that your teammate takes off for your opponent’s basket on a missed shot, so if you grab the rebound, take advantage by passing to the other player immediately. And don’t wait until you land on the ground to make this pass, do it while you are still in the air. It will lead to uncontested fast-breaks, or in the context of an NBA Jam challenge, easy money.
c. Deferring to fire. Becoming on fire in NBA Jam is akin to dating the hottest girl in school: you can try all you want, it is highly unlikely to take place, and when it happens, you are not even sure what to do, and soon enough, it will all be over, and you won’t even remember what happened when it is. The point being, don’t dwell on it. Don’t pass up easy baskets to try and get your one player on fire. Let it happen organically, and if it does…
d. Take advantage of being on fire. That means threes. Even Patrick Ewing will drain threes when he is on fire in NBA Jam. Fire at will. But…
e. Don’t rely on threes. Use your time playing defense and dunking. Try not to waste precious possessions launching threes that may be rejected. Remember, goaltending in NBA Jam is an art; it doesn’t come easy. So unless you are on fire, go for the jam; and if you do find yourself on fire, see (d) above.
* The challenge was conducted with a Sega Genesis on a 19-inch old-school television (with rounded corners).
No related posts.