That Basketball Life

We will be starting a new topic of conversation.  It is one that is very important and one that should be considered by all coaches.  The topic is called Game Situations and will cover everything that a coach should consider before he steps on the floor to coach a basketball game. The topics that will be covered are as follows:

The last part of our series on dribble penetration deals with which hand you should finish with.  Determining which hand to finish with depends on the angle the defender is taking when he is guarding you.

Continuing our discussion of dribble penetration, we would like to talk about how a player who will drive to the basket can reduce the chance of his shot getting blocked by taller or more athletic players.  In a nutshell the name of the game is to eat up the space between you and the player covering you.  This seems counterintuitive at first glance.  Most players initial instinct would probably be to run away from the defender.  However, moving away from the defender just gives the opposition more space to time the block and to take a running start into their leap. I found a cool video which helps describe what I spoke about above.

In our first installment on the topic of dribble penetration we will discuss how to protect the ball when going through traffic in the paint.

The next topic that we will be covering here at TBL is dribble penetration in traffic.  What we mean by this is how can a player properly enter the lane when it is heavily congested and protect the ball (keep it from getting stripped) while still giving himself a chance to score.  All of the great penetrators I have seen have an uncanny ability be "strong down low and soft on top."  What this means is that good penetrators can be really strong in protecting the ball as they are going through traffic, absorbing pressure without allowing it to impede their progress, while being soft when they go into shot mode.

Nice drill I found on the internet. It emphasizes 1v1 finishing going to the basket.

In our latest segment covering man to man principles we are covering a topic that does not apply to the defensive side of the ball exclusively but is so vital to a solid defense that we want to include it in our discussion of defense.  The topic is loose balls.  During a game there will be many opportunities for you team to grab a loose ball bouncing or rolling across the floor.  How many of these balls your team will track down can be the difference in a tough ball game.  The question is how do you as a coach teach your kids to get to loose balls.