Keith McKnight: How I Get to the Basket
Keith McKnight in a summer all-star game at Hudson Catholic before his senior year.
The first time I saw Hudson Catholic senior Keith McKnight play basketball - when he was an 8th grader in Garden State Bounce’s AAU program - was also the first time I ever photographed a basketball game.
Keith was undersized compared to his teammates, but what I noticed about him was how determined he was to take the ball to the basket. In fact, that’s exactly what I wrote in an Instagram post at the time: “#21 was taking it hard to the basket!”
His play stood out to me, and I made a mental note to keep an eye out for him in high school.
Keith glides past a defender as an 8th grader playing for Garden State Bounce.
Since that day, I’ve photographed two of Keith’s high school games. Each time, I had to do a double take at how much taller and bouncier he’d gotten since the last time I’d seen him.
When I met him last week to interview him for this article, his 6’7” frame towered over mine. I had watched some of his most recent highlights on Instagram, and I wanted to learn more about his impressive ability to attack the basket, and in many cases, soar above it for emphatic dunks.
The Importance of Strength Training
It didn’t start out that way. When Keith first began playing rec basketball for Teaneck Youth Basketball he said, “I was nervous, shaking nervous. I didn't want to go out and play in front of all these people. But then, as I started playing, I noticed I enjoyed it.”
Keith McKnight as a freshman playing for Teaneck High School.
Keith feels that his ability to get to the hoop didn’t really take off until 11th grade, when he joined the Hudson Catholic basketball team after playing for Teaneck High School varsity his freshman and sophomore years.
He said that at Teaneck he was more of a perimeter player who shot threes. When he tried to drive the ball, “I was getting bumped around down there,” he said. “I was scrawny.”
But at Hudson Catholic, he started a rigorous weightlifting routine that allowed him to put on muscle and absorb the bumps from defenders as he drove to the basket. “We were trying to get personal records in the gym. Squatting, benching, all these things,” he said of his team. Not only did the weights help him take punishment from defenders, it increased his vertical leap so he could throw down dunks with ease.
Keith said that at Hudson Catholic, the team emphasized heavy weights and low reps (5 - 8 reps per set). “We did legs three times a week, arms twice,” he said. Then the next week, they’d switch to arms three times and legs twice. He said that he was squatting around 250 pounds, which is a lot for someone with his tall, lanky body type.
Keith also worked with Bobby Whyte, a trainer in Montville, who introduced him to isometrics. Keith described it as holding a static position, such as a squat or lunge, with heavy dumbbells for as long as you can, until you reach complete failure.
Becoming More Confident
While Keith mentioned weight lifting as the primary reason he improved at taking the ball to the basket, building his self-confidence also played a huge role. “I was playing super passive my sophomore and junior years,” he said, and his coaches were urging him to be more aggressive.
Keith’s Mom Taana noted that when he was with the seniors on the court, he was a pass first player. “I don’t think he wanted to overstep any other players on the court, so he would pass to the most dominant player,” she said. It was difficult for him not to defer to more heralded teammates, including future Auburn University star Tahaad Pettiford.
“But as Keith saw himself growing [as a player], he was missing opportunities to score, and that’s why a lot of pressure came from the coaches and the stands to be more aggressive,” Taana added.
So how did Keith do it? He simply decided to.
“I had to [be more aggressive],” he realized. “This is why I’m on the floor.” And the more he started driving and putting the ball in the basket, the more he continued doing it.
Keith is proud of how he grew mentally as a player during high school. In addition to becoming more confident, he felt that he took his competitiveness to another level. “I can’t leave a gym without winning something,” he said. “Even if it’s just a shooting drill, I gotta complete it the right way.”
His Mom agreed. She shared how Keith “never left a court where he didn’t want to come back and beat the player [he lost to],” even if it’s at his local 24 Hour Fitness in a pick up game.
Keith played his junior and senior years for Hudson Catholic. Photo provided by Keith McKnight.
Technique and Reads
At Hudson Catholic, Keith played the 3 and 4 positions, so most of the time he was catching the ball either on the wing or in the short corner.
I asked him to walk me through his technique and reads for getting to the rim.
He told me that when he catches the ball, he’s looking at the gaps in the defense, specifically the help defense. “If somebody’s not in help, then that’s an open lane. I can go in,” Keith said.
To get by his defender, Keith’s preferred approach is to attack the defender’s top foot since he said it works for him most of the time. He’ll often size up his defender with a float dribble then use a counter move to attack the top foot. “And then I would put my guard hand out and keep them from blocking my path,” he said. If the defender beats him to the spot, then Keith will try to counter with another move.
Once Keith gets a step on his defender, Keith might back into the defender while he’s still behind and slow him down. “Then I can view what’s in front of me,” Keith said. “If there’s help, if the help overplays, I can hit the open man, maybe in the corner, maybe on the wing.” He might also try to rise up for a mid-range jumper. “If there’s no help, then I can get to the basket,” he said.
Keith McKnight finds the open floor in a summer all-star game.
The Air Up There
Of course, once you get to the basket, you have to be able to finish. Keith remembered dunking for the first time during a workout in 8th grade. “It was a little alley, and I caught it and dunked it,” Keith said, surprised at the time that no one really reacted.
The reaction to his first in-game dunk, which occurred at the end of a game his freshman year, was different. “I had the wide open fast break,” he said. “So I went up, cocked it back and dunked it. Then we all went crazy.”
Many of us who are more earth bound are fascinated to know what it’s like to defy gravity. “Seeing the top of the rim is a surreal experience,” Keith said. “Being up there and knowing you’re about to throw the ball in the rim, it’s just a good feeling even before it happens.”
Keith said that he often surprises himself with his dunks, including a windmill dunk he had on a fast break during a game last season for Hudson Catholic. I asked him if he’d ever dunked over another player. “Yeah, quite a few,” he replied.
Here are a few of Keith’s highlight dunks:
For players who don’t have the height or athleticism to play above the rim, Keith recommended learning how to make the right reads (for example, where the help defense is) and play up contact. “If you’re not tall, it doesn’t mean you can’t go to the basket and finish,” he said.
He cited Jalen Brunson in particular as a great example to study. “He’s finishing over seven footers, and he just developed a floater and the ability to play off contact and slow his game down, draw fouls,” Keith said.
I asked Keith if he had any other advice for players when taking the ball to the basket.
“Make it exciting,” he said.
Next Steps and Goals
Keith has committed to play basketball next season for Quinnipiac University, a Division I school in Connecticut. He said he liked the campus on his visit and found that the coaches there were very welcoming and genuine. He also said that he quickly got along with the players, two of whom he already knew.
As Keith talked about how far he’d come and his ultimate goal of one day playing professional basketball, his Mom looked on, beaming with pride. “He started in second grade, and we’re here now going to Division One,” she said. “I get emotional every time I talk about that,” she continued, tearing up. “But I’m happy. I’m very happy.”
“Softie,” Keith joked, after a brief moment.
And the way he smiled and sheepishly buried his head after saying it, I could tell he felt the same way as his Mom - appreciative of everything they’ve been through together on this beautiful journey.
Keith McKnight (third from right) with his Garden State Bounce teammates. He’s come a long way since then.
Keith would like to thank the coaches of all the AAU programs that he has played for (Playtime Panthers, Milbank Flyers, Garden State Bounce, and PSA Cardinals). He also singled out Coach Nick at Hudson Catholic “for taking me under his wing, making me like family there, and challenging me to get me to where I am now.”