That Basketball Life

During the round of 64 of this year's NCAA tournament, one of the best coaches in college basketball was questioned about how he laid into one of his ball players during a timeout.  The reason why he did this was because the player was not doing what the coach needed him to do on the floor.  Many viewers responded to this so called abhorrent display in disbelief and horror.  How can a coach embarrass his player in a situation like that?   Wouldn't it be better if he just took him to the side and addressed him in a more civil tone?  Doesn't he know that kids won't respond to harsh criticism?  Such is the backlash that Tom Izzo received after his on court dress down of Aaron Henry.  Was he right or wrong with what he did? From all reports Tom Izzo is loved by his players and has their ear through the respect and loyalty he has earned from them over the time he has had the privilege of coaching them.  Being that this is the case, the dressing down was warranted, in my opin...

Offense is always hit or miss.  Sometimes your team has a good game and sometimes they don't.  A bad shooting night will cost most teams a win but not those teams that can fall back on a solid in your face man to man defense.  A good man to man is a great equalizer in basketball.  It can make inferior teams more competitive, it can help push a team past an equally talented opponent, and it can help reduce the risk of upsets when your team is the favorite.  In order to teach a good man to man defense a coach tries to reinforce a couple of things. Force the offense into spots on the floor where they do not feel comfortable playing in and  Everyone on your team is on the same page.

The second principle to sound defense is also very similar to our first principle.  It's similar in that it doesn't require unique athleticism, or an excellent basketball IQ.  Just like team work everyone should be prepared to talk to teammates on the basketball court.  Without communication it is impossible to defend.  As a defender you have a responsibility to keep an eye on your man and the ball.  This is a very difficult task so to add keeping track of possible screens, and switches is nearly impossible.  A good defense relies on all five players on the floor talking to each other.

When you are coaching a team sport your most important job is not the x's and o's but rather to convince your team to play for each other and to talk to each other.  Many times this can be difficult, after all there is nothing that feels better than scoring a basket on your own.  There are a few things that you as a coach can do from the beginning of practice to make sure that your players share your vision that the team is more important than any one player and to encourage that they communicate with each other on the floor.