That Basketball Life

 When you play basketball, one of the most important qualities of a good player is that they are able to create space.  There are 2 ways to create space.  The first is without the dribble and the second is with the dribble. Below are some videos of creating space without a dribble:   https://youtu.be/Z6nsuN50tmo?si=LL8hZxr1OuLrE-XJ   https://youtu.be/Jj_pgnvgOoA?si=UU3cwh-jbQRBxe9b   https://youtu.be/OJe6hIVZjWs?si=fPG8mmBtj7KcXSgx   https://youtu.be/R-al1nYvQA0?si=KLOmaOoDamWsF0Ln As you see on the videos, the offensive player uses pivots, jabs, and rips to create space without a dribble.  This is something all good players know how to do but average and poor players don't. The next thing to look at is some of the moves a player can use to create space with the dribble.   Below are some videos of creating space with the dribble: Sidestep off the bounce -  https://youtu.be/JPsLsxTVT5g?si=4kHWkgUagOhrp712 Show dribble right cross left -...

There are 4 ways to build a player's confidence.  The 4 are listed and explained in detail below. Talk about the butterflies in the stomach - Explain to your athletes that butterflies in the stomach is the fight or flight response reaction your body is giving you due to the task at hand.  You're body is telling you to evaluate the situation at hand and letting you know that whether you choose to run or fight it is ready to give you everything it has to help you out.  Your body is basically telling you "hey I know there is a challenging situation your are about to face, so I want to let you know that I'm ready to run or stay and fight.  It's your choice." Preparation - When you talk to pro players about what goes through their mind when they are preparing to take the last shot of a game, almost all of them say that they fall back on the 100s of hours they have spent in the gym taking shot after shot in preparation for this moment.  What calms them down is all t...

One of my favorite parts of coaching is the actual development of players.  In the many years I have spent coaching, I have had the pleasure to coach kids who were willing to put in the work and who saw benefits from it.  My job as skills coach is to keep the players improving.  We have spoken before about getting players to go beyond their comfort zone into an area of the unknown. An area that may seem awkward to them at the beginning but with constant reps will get easier and more instinctive. The area of unknown has to be very carefully determined.  The area identified can't be too difficult for the kids to perform or else they can get discouraged.  On the other hand, the area can't be too easy as to not challenge the kids.  In order to do this properly there is a sequence that needs to be followed.  The sequence is challenge, evaluate, adjust, execute, and repetition. The first step of the sequence is to challenge.  Set up some basic drills th...

 The 5th of the 5 Pillars of Process is Trust.  Trust is a 2 way street.  The players on the team have to trust the coach and the coach needs to trust the players.  There is no compromise in this relationship between players and coaches.  If a player does not trust the coach the pillars and the team crumbles and vice versa.  This entry is about this trust and how to build, and nurture it. To start with, players need to trust the coach.  Players begin to trust the coach when they hear his voice and respect and are willing to do what he wants them to do.  Every practice drill the players do, they do with effort and skill because they want to please the coach and do everything they can to stand out.  When the coach is in the room and ready to speak they are ready to listen and adsorb everything that he has to say.  How does a coach gain such respect from his team?  Below are a few criteria: Set expectations and rules from the very firs...

Below are 3 lists that I have created which will help greatly with ball handling.  Phase 1 is the easiest and phase 3 the toughest.  All 3 are advanced so the ball handler who is new to the game will have some difficulties doing the phases.    

 I've been coaching for a very long time but I've always made it a point to approach coaching with the attitude of  "you don't know everything."  I was coaching a game last night and my team was giving up a lot of height to the opposition.  At the same time, the other team were not good shooters from the outside so we decided to play a 2-3 zone and pack it in.  This would serve the dual purpose of having all 5 of our boys crash the boards and protect the paint from the height difference we were dealing with.   The zone worked fairly well.  The rebounding was okay and the outside shooting by the other team kept us in the game as it was poor.  At about the 3 minute mark of the 4th quarter we found ourselves down 6 points and we decided that we would no longer be in the packed in zone but would rather go man to man and extend full court.  This change of defense caught the other team off guard and got me thinking.  How much did the chan...