The competitiveness of athletes, especially in team sports, is determined not only by physical and technical, but also by tactical qualities that require a high level of development of sports intelligence. The article presents a study on the creation of a "model of intelligence" of a basketball player. The model includes: mental judgment, accuracy and dexterity of operational thinking; breadth and volume of attention, observation, visual memory. A high level of sports intelligence allows basketball players to quickly understand the significance of a change in position or rearrangement of players, which the coach is trying to draw their attention to, to make effective decisions, avoiding hard physical contact if possible. Players with a low level of intelligence, trying to win, often resort to hard physical contact, break the rules. During sports training, it is necessary to develop the intelligence of basketball players, improve their social regulators in order for them to reliably increase performance, using socially recognized means to achieve goals. With mistakes in preparation, basketball players become less trusting, more suspicious, and their willingness to follow the norms of behavior decreases.