Learn Hardcore Chinese: tā dǎ lánqiú de shíhou méi yǒu xìnxīn, dàn shì tī le jǐ cì zúqiú yǐhòu, juéde zìjǐ yě kěyǐ mànmàn tígāo. - She doesn’t have confidence when playing basketball, but after playing soccer a few times, she feels she can also slowly improve.

时候 = “when / the moment / the period when something happens”
Used with specific situations or actions:
- 我累的时候 = when I’m tired
- 下雨的时候 = when it rains
时间 = “time” in a more general, measurable sense:
- 你有时间吗？ = Do you have time?
- 没有时间做作业。 = No time to do homework.

In the sentence, we’re talking about the time when she plays basketball, so 打篮球的时候 is correct; 打篮球的时间 would sound more like “the time available for playing basketball,” which is different.

What does the 了 in 踢了几次足球 do? Is it past tense?

了 here is an aspect particle, not a tense marker.

In 踢了几次足球:

踢 = kick / play (soccer)
踢了 = the action of playing is viewed as completed
几次 = a few times
踢了几次足球 = “played soccer a few times (and those events are done/completed)”

Chinese doesn’t mark past tense the way English does. Instead, particles like 了 show that an action is completed or has occurred. The whole clause plus 以后 (“after”) and context make it clear we’re talking about the past.

Why is 几次 placed between 了 and 足球 (踢了几次足球), and not somewhere else?

The typical order in a verb–object structure with a measure of frequency is:

Verb + 了 + Number + Measure word + Object

So:

踢了几次足球
- 踢 = verb
- 了 = completed aspect
- 几 = several / a few
- 次 = measure word for “times”
- 足球 = object

Other orders like 踢几次了足球 are ungrammatical. You could, however, also say:

踢了几次 (without mentioning 足球 if clear from context)

What does 几次 mean exactly, and what is 次 doing here?

几 = a few / several
次 = a measure word for occurrences or times something happens

So 几次 = “a few times / several times.”

In Chinese you almost always need a measure word between a number-like word and a noun or verb event. Here:

踢了几次足球 = “played soccer a few times.”
Literally: “kicked (completed) a-few-times soccer.”

What does 以后 add in 踢了几次足球以后?

以后 means “after” or “afterwards”.

踢了几次足球以后 = “after (she) had played soccer a few times”

It marks a time after the completed action. It links the first part of the sentence to the result that follows:

Before: no confidence when playing basketball
After: having played soccer a few times, she feels she can improve

Why is there no 她 before 踢了几次足球 and before 觉得? Who is the subject?

In Mandarin, the subject is often dropped if it is clear from context.

The sentence starts with 她打篮球的时候 (“When she plays basketball…”), so 她 is already established as the topic. In the following clauses:

(她) 踢了几次足球以后
(她) 觉得自己也可以慢慢提高

the subject 她 is understood and does not need to be repeated. This is natural and very common in Chinese.

What is the function of 自己 in 觉得自己也可以慢慢提高?

自己 means “self” / “oneself.”

觉得自己可以… = “(she) feels that she herself can…”

Here, 自己:

Refers back to 她
Emphasizes that she herself can improve, not just generally “one can improve” or “people can improve.”

You could say 觉得也可以慢慢提高, but 自己 makes it clearer and more personal: she believes she can do it.

What does 也 mean here, and why is it placed before 可以?

也 means “also / too / as well.”

In 觉得自己也可以慢慢提高:

也 suggests that she too can improve, perhaps like others, or in addition to something else she can do.

The normal word order is:

也 + (modal verb like 可以/会/能) So:
也可以 = “can also / also can”

Putting it after 可以 (可以也) would be wrong in this sentence. 也 typically comes just before the verb or the modal verb it modifies.

Why is 可以 used instead of 会 or 能 in 也可以慢慢提高?

These three words overlap but have different core meanings:

会: know how to / will (ability based on learning or skill)
能: be able to / be capable of (possibility, circumstances, physical ability)
可以: can / may (possibility, permission, suitability)

可以 here expresses that it is possible / feasible for her to gradually improve:

也可以慢慢提高 ≈ “can also gradually improve / is also able to make gradual progress.”

Using 能 or 会 is not impossible, but they would subtly shift the nuance:

也能慢慢提高 – more about capability
也会慢慢提高 – can be understood as “will gradually improve” (a bit more like a prediction)

What does 慢慢 mean, and how does it work with 提高?

慢慢 literally: “slowly, little by little”
提高 = “to raise, to improve, to enhance”

So:

慢慢提高 = “to improve slowly / improve little by little / gradually get better”

Here 慢慢 is an adverb describing how the improvement happens — not suddenly, but gradually over time.

Why is 打篮球 used but 踢足球? Why different verbs for different sports?

Chinese uses different verbs for different sports, often based on the main physical action involved:

打篮球
- 打 = hit/strike (with hands)
- Basketball mainly uses hands, so you 打篮球.
踢足球
- 踢 = kick (with feet)
- Soccer/football is played with the feet, so you 踢足球.

Similarly:

打网球 (play tennis)
打排球 (play volleyball)
踢毽子 (kick a shuttlecock toy)

What is the difference between 但 and 但是, and why does the sentence have 但是 with 是 written separately?

但 and 但是 both mean “but / however.”

但是 is more common in spoken language and slightly more formal/complete.
但 is shorter and slightly more literary or concise, often used in writing.

Strictly speaking:

但 = but
是 = is
But together as 但是, they function as a single conjunction: but / however.

In your sentence it’s written as 但　是, but it’s really the word 但是. In normal text you’d just write 但是 without a space:

…没有信心，但是踢了几次足球以后…
= “…had no confidence, but after playing soccer a few times…”

Could we say 没信心 instead of 没有信心? Is there a difference?

Yes, 没信心 is also correct and quite common.

没有信心 – a bit more complete/neutral
没信心 – slightly more colloquial/compact

In most everyday situations they are interchangeable in meaning: “not confident / have no confidence.” In this sentence:

她打篮球的时候没有信心
她打篮球的时候没信心

both are fine and natural.