GOLD STANDARD COACHING @CoachLok

It’s nice to have a standard Sideline Out-Of-Bounds play (SLOB) that the players can run at any time – but is versatile enough to give your team different options. There have been games where we’ve scored more than a half-dozen different ways out of the same play. Down the stretch in close games with so many stoppages of play, there are often several opportunities to take the ball out on the side. If you can come out of a time out or give the same look – yet attack in a completely different way it gives you a tremendous offensive advantage. The play easily flows into a 3-out/2-in set or works if a team is better suited to a single-post set. Finally, by having a lone multi-purpose play it saves your team practice time to work on other things that are necessary and allows the coach to Keep it Simple-Stupid (K.I.S.S) As the official hands the inbounder, the 3-man, the ball, the 5-man in the corner looks to down screen for the best shooter, in this case the 2-man. If the shooter is open i...

In coaching, especially at the youth sports level, what position a player has an opportunity to play is always a hot topic. In basketball forwards want to play guard, shooting guards want a chance to play point guard. In football, players desire to play offense rather than defense and everyone wants to be the quarterback, running back or receiver. In those youth sports, coaches often "stereotype" players into particular positions. I had a 10 yr old on a team while working a basketball camp, and after going through several substitution rotations, the 5 biggest players on the team were on the floor at once. The best of them asked me, "who's going to play point guard".. so I answered that he should. He replied, "I'm not a point guard... my coach says I'm a center". My response was, "There's no such thing as a 10 yr old center!" And he played point guard, doing quite well, I might add. In " Positive Coaching in a Nutshell" ...

Positive Coaching Alliance says that a Triple-Impact Competitor works as hard as possible to make an impact on three levels: • Improving yourself as a player and person • Helping your teammates improve • Improving the sport as a whole. This plaque was placed on the wall outside the Florida Gators athletic facility. Does this "promise" epitomize that concept? Wouldn't we all love to have a leader on our teams that would make this "promise"?

When people and coaches refer to the "Heart of a Champion", what are they really talking about? Aren't they talking about qualities exhibited like confidence, conviction, focus, poise, dedication, determination, courage, sacrifice, selflessness, and perseverance? Aren't those all heroic character traits that stem from tremendous *mental toughness*? Isn't that being "more consistent and better than your opponents in remaining determined, focused, confident, resilient, and in control under pressure (Jones et al, 2002). Wouldn't we describe that person as having the "Heart of a Champion"? Shouldn't it then be, "Play with the MIND of a champion"?

When I see the emotion on Senior Nights, or after the final game of the season, it reminds me that one day the ball stops bouncing for the players and how precious the time really is. It's our responsibility as coaches to value that time and provide the best experience possible. We get those kids that are sometimes like the fresh sand in our SoCal coastline... and we leave footprints. Every once in a while we get players that could be like the late-night beaches... they might need some cleaning up first. It's our job to help inspire them to keep going during that process. Sometimes that's with a "chest-bump", a pat on the back, or a kick a little lower. Figuratively, of course. Sometimes we inspire with a well-placed comment, a little concern and compassion, or simply setting a good example. I asked some coaches in Fort Wayne, Indiana this past fall, "What is your programs mission?" Dan Kline, retired athletic director and men’s basketball coach at India...

The topic of Free Throw Shooting is always a hot one as the games become more and more important at the end of the season. There are a bunch of great ideas out there to help. Here is one we used. One year created a "free throw ladder" for the team. Each player shot 100 FTs (during our FT-a-thon) and we placed their name on our roster board next to the scoreboard in the order of finish. The practice before a game we would lower the roster board and shoot 25 ft's. Players would pair off starting at the top. If they beat the person above them they would go to the board and the winner would switch the order of the names. We would raise the roster board and on game day the names were not in numerical order or alphabetical order, but in order of our top free throw shooters. I always worried that opponents would catch on and figure out who to foul at the end of games ! hopefully we became good enough free throw shooters as a team that it wouldn't matter !:?) Here is a sample...

The first thing that coaches need to continue to tell themselves during tough times is that it's never going to be as important to them as it is too you. Even on a championship team it isn't. It's the coaches career and we passionately think about it all day. They think about it a couple hours at practice. The second thing to remind yourself that you hadn't forgotten anything in the past year or years since the last successful season. Coaches are no "worse" a coach when they struggle than they were when they were successful, so try not to determine your "self-worth" based on the record. Sometimes it's not the X's & O's but rather, the Johnny's and Joe's! We tried to build some pride in playing * one possession at a time *. This really was the foundation behind a championship year in which we won a title. We had them convinced that a single possession in practice should be approached with the same intensity and focus as a pla...

It was only one possession, Why must my coach scream, My poor defense permitted the basket, But what can one hoop mean? As the pass comes my direction, And I fumble it into the stands, The coach's voice rings loud and clear, "Catch with you eyes and hands!" C'mon, coach, it's a single possession, Our team will be okay. It's just the first two minutes, My gosh, we've got all day. At the 10-minute mark I remember, That the center is strong and stout. A putback for two, quite simply due, To my failure to turn and block out. But it was only one possession, I didn't commit a crime, My team is ahead and I'm playing well, And there's still plenty of time! As the halftime buzzer is sounding, And I watch the ball bank in, I know that I will hear from my loving coach. Of my questionable effort to defend. But it was only one possession, Coach - don't have a heart attack! We're down by one, but we're having fun, I know we'll get the lead ba...

In "The Legend of Baggar Vance" the movie was in a golf setting but was a tremendous analogy for coaching, life, or the game of basketball. The title character is a mysterious caddie and in many ways, the consummate coach. Bagger Vance helps a down-on-his-luck golfer named Junuh find the deep place inside, where his ego is quiet and where he can “be” with only himself, and where he can be at one with himself. The vehicle for his transformation is the game of golf where he becomes one with the game. This is only possible when he sets aside his ego and the need to validate himself with individual achievement. At one critical point in the movie Bagger says, "...it’s time...time for you to see the field...feel that focus. Alotta shots to choose from, duffs `n` tops `n` skulls. But only ONE shot is in perfect harmony with the field. An "authentic shot". And that shot chooses YOU. There’s a perfect shot out there trying to find each and every one of us - and all we g...

I had an opportunity to finally read Positive Coaching Alliance founder and Executive Director Jim Thompson's newest book Positive Sports Parenting from cover to cover on a flight to Florida on the day of the BCS National Championship game - unfortunately to Tampa and not Miami !:?) . Jim's book is a must read for parents whose kids are participating in youth sports. It is a very easy read and provides some real tangible tools for parents to provide the best experience in sports, navigate some youth sports landmines, build a great coach/parent partnership, and strengthen their relationship with their children - which is far mor important than any athletic success.

We've been highlighting the 2-Guard Continuity that is, primarily, an offense used vs man-to-man defenses, and some specials run out of it. Now we've "tilted" the offense for use against a zone, leaving the *continuity* from position to position as the same. However we now use cuts and slides to put pressure on the zone, rather than setting and using screens to help get players open. This allows the offense to be as effective against all zone defenses and match-ups as it is against a man-to-man. I prefer a zone offense that relies on the principles of ball and player movement, getting into gaps, and penetration via the pass or the dribble. However, many match-up or very active zones make that a bit more difficult. When facing a match-up zone, one of the toughest things for the matchup to cover are multiple cuts which force decision making on who will defend what cut, and whether the cutter will be passed or "bumped" to another defender. When run against a ...

After years of writing for Lifetips.com as their basketball "guru" they made an offer to publish some of the over 600 tips that I've written over the course of the past seven years if I would compile them into a book. The first of those books is now available at Amazon.com 101 Basketball Tips contains some of the most important fundamentals and is written in short, concise, stand-alone tips that are void of too much technical jargon and diagrams. It gives written descriptions of the fundamentals and should be a great tool for the coach looking to find a way to build a knowledge base, or the coach who may be looking for a different way to present the fundamentals they are presently teaching. While these might not be the 101 most important tips in the game of basketball, I hope that there is something for everyone. I've tried to provide some ideas that may not be mainstream, some might be presented in a different manner than usual, and a few that initially might not co...

*Pressure on the Ball* A key is to always put pressure on the basketball. Don`t let an offensive player do anything with the ball--dribble, pass, or shoot--without having one of your hands trying to get into the way. If he is looking to pass, you may be able to get a hand on the ball or discouraging him from passing to an open player. That way for that split second when the post player is open, the passer may be deterred from executing the pass. This helps the post defender immensely. Low Post Denial *Low Post Defense-ball above the Free throw line* If the ball is above the free throw line extended (imaginary line extending from the free throw line to the sideline), then you should deny on the high side (closest to 1/2 court. You should be chest to chest with the post player with your arm closest to the ball in the passing lane. *Low post defense-ball is below the free throw line* If the ball is below the free throw line try to get around the post player and "Full Front". We ...

One of the most oft-repeated quotes comes from Bill Bradley, star NBA guard for the Knicks and American Politician who said in his book Values Of the Game , Somewhere someone is practicing. If you're not and you meet them in competition, all other things being equal, you will lose! MAYBE the following statement is just as true... Somewhere, someone is resting and recovering. That will revitalize them to the point when they take the court again, they will work harder, longer, and with more focus. This periodization of training leads to a more productive practice regimen. And when and you meet them in competition, all other things being equal, you will lose!

I took special interest in a piece on ESPN's Outside the Lines profiling Elena Delle Donne, the outstanding female basketball prodigy that gave up her basketball scholarship at UConn and returned home because she no longer "had the passion" for the sport. It reminds me of the tattoo that Paul Pierce , of the Boston Celtics has that depicts a basketball with a knife plunging through it that says, "My Gift-My Curse". I sometimes find myself describing players as being "cursed with ability" . Too often we have players who happen to be blessed with some physical gifts, but don't have the passion that Delle Donne speaks of. Many times these players appear to be cheating their teammates because of lack of effort on the part of a talented "star", when in reality they may be cheating themselves by continuing to play a game they don't enjoy enough to invest the time to try to and achieve their potential. For that reason we may applaud Dell...