GOLD STANDARD COACHING - @CoachLok

When Naismith invented the game at the old YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1891, the game of basketball began. Given the cold Massachusetts winters, Naismith needed to find a recreational activity that could be played indoors and he preferred a sport that would develop skill and one that was not exclusively relying on strength. How far away from that have we gone. The game is very much about bigger, faster, and stronger. Now we need to add "smarter". We need to get back to the game of skill that Naismith intended. Originally the game was going to be "Boxball" but the janitor didn't have any boxes. So the "baskets" became old peach baskets that the janitor nailed to the balcony railing (that coincidentally were 10 feet high). Basketball in it's infancy was sometimes a rowdy game. Fans would try to reach over the running track (balcony) to deflect the shot (the basket was mounted on the facade of the overhead running track)...

One of my favorite reads every couple of days is Blog Maverick - www.blogmaverick.com . It is the owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Mark Cuban's, (almost)daily blog. Like him or not (and I do) Cuban is usally right on with his thoughts commments. Or at least he and I just agree. Here is what he says, "Thank you David Stern. Thank you Ronnie Nunn. Thank you Stu Jackson. Because of the initiative and action taken by the NBA to call the game by the rules as written, we have the seen the game become much more free flowing, and as a result the scoring is way, way up , reversing a long trend of decline. I know that Ronnie Nunn and Stu Jackson put in a lot of hours going through tape, coming to the realization, correctly so, that contact on the perimeter slows down play, impacts shooting percentage and gives the defense an advantage that shouldnt be there. I know there are some playground purists that think the league 'should let them play'. Suggesting that if th...

The future is NOW! As I was "blogging yesterday about Basketball4all 's involvement with the ACE IntelliGym tm around the world other news agencies were posting this article on their websites: "MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Memphis forward Simplice Njoya sat hunched over a laptop, testing an theory first studied on Israeli fighter pilots. The premise: Skills he picks up playing a complex computer game can make him a better basketball player. 'The theory is, it's going to be the weight room for the brain,'' Memphis assistant coach Ed Schilling said. The on-screen action looks nothing like a basketball game but is designed to work on the visual and decision-making skills a player needs. Basketball programs at Memphis and Kentucky are testing the game to see if it gives players an edge. Called IntelliGym tm , the game was created by Israeli company Applied Cognitive Engineering Inc .".... read more

Basketball for ALL endorses the ACE IntelliGym : "How many times do you see a player and say, "he ...really has court sense"...sees the floor"...understands the game"...or...has a high basketball IQ"? If you're like me, not often enough. In the '60's and '70's basketball training was all about fundamental skill aquisition and footwork. In the '80's and '90's it was about physical training and getting bigger, stronger , faster. Now it's time to address the final frontier..the brain! ACE (Applied Cognitive Engineering) has developed a revolutionary training tool that enables basketball players to dramatically improve their game-intelligence skills. The ACE IntelliGym tm directly stimulates the brain-functions responsible for basketball's cognitive skills. By doing so, this unique trainer enables super-quick development of proficiencies that, until now, were considered an 'instinct', something th...

Basketball-Tips.com FREE weekly newsletter : "'We never know the love of a parent, until we become a parent ourself.' I think that once a coach becomes a parent, it changes his perspective on how to teach young people. Raising my children, I did not only want them to do the right thing because 'Dad said so' but rather because it was the right thing to do. Their comes a time when 'Dad'(or Mom) is not going to be there, and yet a correct decision must be made. In order for this to occur, they had to learn 'why' it was the right thing, and 'how' it was going to benefit them. I believe that a similiar approach must be taken in basketball coaching, and that is stressed at Basketball4all . We call it 'Parenting the Program.' "... read the rest here

A paragraph in the middle of an article regarding "overated" NBA players is very telling in the problems we are having in the game today. FOXSports.com - "Overated Basketball Players" : "The trouble starts in junior high school, where superior hooplings are recruited (in public and on the sly) by agents, sneaker manufacturers, AAU teams, and even colleges. Adults who should know better solidify their influence over these kids by telling what great players they are, and how much greater they will become if they sign up with the right people. Should one of these pumped up youngsters have a bad game, well, then, it's always somebody else's fault - his teammates, his coach, or the referees. Hey, kid. Want a free sweatsuit, free sneakers, and a free trip to play in a tournament in Paris? Stick with me, kid, and I'll make you a multi-millionaire." Read any magazine, message board, chat room and you'll see that this is, far too often, ...