Basketball Video Guidance
Having the right video is key to the recruiting process. Coaches want to learn everything they can about an athlete before recruiting them and the best way to do this is by watching their videos.
FieldLevel has spoken to multiple college basketball coaches about what they want to see AND what they don’t want to see in an athlete’s video.
Here are 5 things you can do to impress college coaches and have the best video possible.
1. Create a Highlight Reel
Your highlight reel is a chance to showcase your best moments as an athlete. These are the moments that will catch a coach’s eye — without highlights, getting seen is nearly impossible. Post the highlights that you do have and continue to upload new ones as time goes on.
| Your highlight reel should … | Your highlight reel shouldn’t … |
| – Start strong and have your most impressive plays at the beginning. – Include clips of you moving without the ball and playing defense. – Show a variety of skills including your ability to create shots and take defenders off the dribble. – Include plays against multiple good teams instead of just one mediocre team. | – Only include clips where you make a shot — make sure to show how the play develops and how you got the shot opportunity. – Be complicated — there’s no need to stop, pause, replay clips, or freeze-frame a shot. – Include basic plays that anyone at your position should be able to make, such as free throws. – Just showcase your ability to dunk or do tricks — there are many more important things to include. |
“Everyone has highlights, coaches want to see what led up to that highlight … how the play developed.”
2. Have Game Video Readily Available
After watching your highlight reel, coaches will want to study your game tape to verify the talent they saw in your highlights is consistent throughout a game. This is where they will be able to see how you move, interact with your teammates, improve from game to game, and your overall attitude and leadership abilities. Even though you can’t upload a full game on FieldLevel, it is important to have it readily available in case college coaches request it from you — we recommend having at least 2-3 full game tapes at-hand and some half-games as well.
| Your game video should … | Your game video shouldn’t … |
| – Be from games where you showcase a lot of different things besides just scoring and playing defense — things like boxing out, making solid passes and screens, and even encouraging teammates from the bench. – Be high quality and show the full court perspective, not just the camera following you. – Be readily available, should a coach request it from you. | – Be from a game against a mediocre team — show that you can play well against good teams. – Have unnecessary edits and animations throughout. – Be blurry or shaky. |
“Game video is essential for coaches, especially if they can’t see you in person.”
3. Showcase your Positional Skills
Coaches might also be interested in seeing clear videos of you going through drills. These videos capture game-like situations from clear angles and help showcase your mechanics and range. Upload skill videos for each position you play.
| Your skills videos should … | Your skill videos shouldn’t … |
| – Show 3-on-3 drills and other drills that have continuous movement into different skills. – Replicate fast-paced gameplay as much as possible — focusing on showing your footwork, shooting drills from various spots on the floor, post drills, and catch-and-shoot plays. | – Only include you — have others involved when appropriate so the videos better reflect game-like situations. – Show the same skill over and over again. |
“Coaches want to see your skills in a variety of different game-like situations.”
4. Feature your Athleticism
The way you play in a game always speaks the loudest, but proving your athletic ability is important in the evaluation process. Take videos that highlight your strength and athleticism, and verify specific measurements.
| Your physical measurable videos should … | Your physical measurable videos shouldn’t … |
| – Show your vertical jump. – Include your mile time. | – Include false information — don’t inflate your numbers or use misleading video. |
“If you fake your athletic metrics, you will be exposed once on the college court.”
5. Record Verified Measurables
Coaches will need to verify that your physical measurements are accurate. Measurable verification usually happens during visits, but you can make it easier for coaches by verifying your measurables with video.
| Your physical attribute videos should … | Your physical attribute videos shouldn’t … |
| – Show footage that verifies your: *Height *Weight (for men’s basketball) *Hand size *Wingspan *Shoe size | – Include false information — video doesn’t lie. |
These 5 key things will likely impress any basketball coach you speak with during the recruiting process. Coaches and athletes — if you would like to learn more or share the information found in this article, you can download our worksheet below.
If you have any questions about video or the recruiting process, the FieldLevel team is here to help you and support you. If there’s anything we can do, please contact us in one of the following ways:
Phone: 888-908-7124
Email: support@fieldlevel.com
Demo: Schedule a Time
where do i put the videos
Hi Erica. To post a video on FieldLevel, first, go to your profile. Under the “Timeline” section, there is a button that says “Post video to timeline” and after clicking on that, you’ll be able to add your video. Please feel free to reply here, DM us on social media, or email support@fieldlevel.com if you have any troubles or any other questions for us. Have a great day.
Is there a max size that the video can be?
Hey Scott! Thank you for your question and patience with our reply. Videos can be 3 minutes each, with a maximum file size of 600MB. For more information about uploading video to an athlete’s profile, check out this article: https://support.fieldlevel.com/en/articles/811785-adding-video-to-an-athlete-s-profile