Man To Man Defensive Principles - Teamwork
In it's simplest form, basketball is about making shots while keeping the other team from doing the same. Many coaches spend a lot of time in practice teaching skills related to the offensive side of the game but don't spend the same amount of time on the defensive side. Think about it. In basketball you not only need to score but you also need to find a way to keep the other team from scoring. That statement tells us that defense is just as important as offense and as such it would be wise to make sure you spend as much time in practice on your defensive principles as you do on your offensive ones.
Now that we have established how much time we should spend practicing defense let's move into the details. What is a good defensive philosophy?
In my opinion a good defensive philosophy always starts with a man to man defense. The term man to man is a misnomer when applied to the correct way to play defense because if played correctly, a man to man defense is all about teamwork and being prepared to help each other out. You need your teammates to defend a pick and roll, to defend a screen, to pick you up if your man beats you, to box out and grab the rebound, and to deny the ball when you properly stop the ball.
Without teamwork a man to man defense is what the term sounds like, individualistic and ultimately unsuccessful.
So now that we know how important teamwork is when playing defense, the next question is can a coach help his team improve their team work or chemistry? We posted on this topic in a previous article (here). One of the most important things you need to do as a coach is spend some time explaining to your team how important teamwork is if the team is to be successful. By being up front with your team and explaining to them that helping each other will help the team you begin the process of teaching them how important this element is to the success of the basketball team.
Promoting teamwork is not about offense or defense. It's about the whole basketball team. I've seen inferior teams beat teams with superior players on a regular basis simply because the team with the less regarded players understood how to play with each other and for the team. They knew how to make the extra pass, or how to rotate over on a player driving to the basket and it made the difference.
In conclusion, although teamwork is listed as my most important defensive principle , it is more than that. It is the main pillar in building my basketball teams. Without it the chances of success in any season are reduced considerably.
Now that we have established how much time we should spend practicing defense let's move into the details. What is a good defensive philosophy?
In my opinion a good defensive philosophy always starts with a man to man defense. The term man to man is a misnomer when applied to the correct way to play defense because if played correctly, a man to man defense is all about teamwork and being prepared to help each other out. You need your teammates to defend a pick and roll, to defend a screen, to pick you up if your man beats you, to box out and grab the rebound, and to deny the ball when you properly stop the ball.
Without teamwork a man to man defense is what the term sounds like, individualistic and ultimately unsuccessful.
So now that we know how important teamwork is when playing defense, the next question is can a coach help his team improve their team work or chemistry? We posted on this topic in a previous article (here). One of the most important things you need to do as a coach is spend some time explaining to your team how important teamwork is if the team is to be successful. By being up front with your team and explaining to them that helping each other will help the team you begin the process of teaching them how important this element is to the success of the basketball team.
Promoting teamwork is not about offense or defense. It's about the whole basketball team. I've seen inferior teams beat teams with superior players on a regular basis simply because the team with the less regarded players understood how to play with each other and for the team. They knew how to make the extra pass, or how to rotate over on a player driving to the basket and it made the difference.
In conclusion, although teamwork is listed as my most important defensive principle , it is more than that. It is the main pillar in building my basketball teams. Without it the chances of success in any season are reduced considerably.
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