STOP ADMIRING THE PROBLEM AND CHANGE!

During pregame warmups I was visiting with the coach of our rival opponent.  The opposing coach has had a long and very successful career.  Personally, I always enjoy competing against his teams because I know I will have to be at my best.  As we were exchanging typical small talk I had mentioned to him how impressed I was with how his team ran their half court offense and sets when I scouted them a week earlier.  He actually started to laugh, which surprised me because I was sincere with my comment.  He then continued and said, "Yes, we might be able to run our offense and our sets well, but it doesn't matter how well you run your offense, or what offense you run if you can't put the ball in the basket."  Hmm...

This was a "wow!" moment for me.  We had always dedicated time during our in-season practices to offensive skill development, but I will admit I was more of a drill coach that liked to break down our offense and defense to keep working on getting better at each.  And I think back to how many times I wished we could shoot a few percentage points better.  And I think back to how many times I wished we had a few more quality ball handlers on the roster.  Or maybe said to an assistant, "They just didn't work hard enough on it during the off-season."  FINALLY, I recognized I needed to make a change instead of just admiring a problem.  A coach always wants their team to improve, right?  Hoping for improvement is one thing, but taking action to fix it is another.

What I had been doing was admiring the problem instead of trying to take control and help fix it. The decision was made to then dedicate more of our in-season practice time to skill development. Dedicating more in-season practice time to skill development will obviously improve the offensive skill of our players.  The result of this becomes less hoping by the coach for a few percentage points increase in shooting percentage. 

Offenses and set plays are a big part of basketball.  But those offenses and set plays will look much better when your offensive skill is better.  Sounds simple, but it's true.

STATEMENT THAT SIMPLIFIES YOUR DEFENSE

One of my favorite off-season activities is to visit and talk shop with other coaches.  I've learned a lot over the years from having conversations with college, high school, and youth coaches.  Sometimes these conversations have a specific topic on the agenda, while other times we have a random dialog that leads us into several topics.  Either way, I get a chance to learn.

Many times these conversations will turn to X's and O's.  I would bet that most, if not all, coaches spend part of their off-season diagramming plays in notebooks, on scraps of paper, and napkins when ideas strike.  I was having one of these in-depth X and O discussions with another coach when they made the following statement:

"The better you are at one-on-one defense, the less your teammates have to help you.  This keeps your defense balanced.  This makes your team tougher to score against."

I realize that this statement is not groundbreaking by any means.  But at that moment it was very powerful to me and it simplified things for me ever since.  At that time I had been a head coach for ten years, but this simple statement made our teams better defensive teams from that point on. Simple but powerful!

Coaching points to remember when practicing defending the ball:
1. Practice defending the ball every practice.
2. Each day choose different spots to start defending the ball.
*wings
*corners
*elbows
*top of the key
*short corners
*short wings
*mid lane line
3. Limit the number of dribbles an offensive player can make (2 or 3 depending on starting point).
4. Start each rep with a closeout.
5. Make the drills competitive.
*Keep score
*Consequence (run) for giving up dribble penetration to an area you don't want the ball to go.

2 OR 8 FREE THROW SHOOTING DRILL

2 or 8 is a free throw shooting drill that includes both pressure shooting and conditioning.  This drill is best utilized with two players shooting at one basket.

Player A goes to the free throw line while Player B rebounds for them.  Player A will shoot free throws until they either make 8 in a row or miss 2 in a row.  If Player A misses 2 in a row before they make 8 in a row they run a predetermined number of sprints.  If Player A makes 8 in a row before they miss 2 in a row they do not have to run.

Player A could make 5 in a row, then miss one.  If they miss the next shot, they run (that would be 2 misses in a row).  If they make that next shot their count is now at 1 in a row and they continue.

Player B starts to shoot once Player A is either finished with their 8 makes in a row or running their sprints for missing 2 in a row.

OFFENSE IS NOT AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY SYSTEM

As coaches we say "We need more shooters."  In reality we should be saying "We need more makers."  Any player can be a shooter, but not every player is a maker.  Every player brings a lot of value to their team.  Each player is important.  But when it comes to taking shots not every player should have the same opportunity.  There is a reason some players are open when they have the ball on the perimeter.  Just because you are open doesn't mean that situation should warrant a shot attempt.  Players need to shoot from where they are capable of making shots.  Because of this it is up to the coach to help their players understand what is and what isn't a good shot for them.
Here are a few ideas on how to help define what a good shot is for each player:

1. Chart shooting drills in practice. This data can be invaluable.  If a player is shooting a low percentage in shooting drills from around fifteen feet, then it shouldn't be a surprise that they aren't making any fifteen footers during games. 

2. Before allowing a player to shoot three point shots have them earn their 3-Point License. There are various ways to earn a license. One would be to shoot a series of 50 three point shots and having to make a certain number of those shots.  This must be done three separate times (not necessarily in a row) before a player is allowed to shoot a three point shot.

3. Talk to your players and be specific.  Examples:  Let them know that you don't want them shooting a runner.  Let them know they aren't allowed to shoot a three point shot off the dribble. 

4.  Help your better scorers understand what good shots are for them as well.  Sometimes scorers feel they can take a high number of shots, but many of those are contested.  They must understand that because they can score doesn't mean every shot is a good shot for them.

5. Put players in position for them to have success.  If a player is a true post player and excels at scoring around the basket it wouldn't make sense for them to be playing out on the perimeter for half of each possession.  If you have a small guard who would struggle in the post, why would you have them post up in the block?

Players want to and love to shoot the ball.  It's part of a basketball player's DNA.  The facts are that some are better "makers" than others, and those players need to be getting more of the shots your team takes. Taking shots on offense is not an equal opportunity system.

5 OFF-SEASON TO-DO'S YOU SHOULD BE DOING...NOW!

1. ANALYZE YOUR PERSONNEL
One of the first things you need to consider when your off-season begins is personnel.  Figure out what the strengths and weaknesses are of each one of your potential returning players.

2. ANALYZE YOUR X'S AND O'S
Once you have a good grasp of they type of players you have returning, now you have to see how your next team will fit into the X's and O's you are currently using.  You may have a 'system' or a way you always do things, but based on personnel some changes may be needed.  These changes might be large or possibly a small adjustment is needed.  The fact is that you need to have X's and O's that will help put your players in the best position to be successful.  When personnel changes, so might your X's and O's.

3. MEET WITH YOUR PLAYERS
Schedule time to have exit interviews with your players after the completion of your season.  This is a time for player can coach to share thoughts on the previous season and where to go from this point on.  Coaches can also use this time to give players guidance on what they need to work during the off-season.  Also, check in with your players from time to time when you see them in the gym or at school. 

4. SCHEDULE YOUR OFF-SEASON ACTIVITIES
This should be done sooner than later.  Give your players a calendar with all of the off-season opportunities your program offers.  Getting this calendar of events earlier gives your players a chance to start planning their own summers. 

5. MEET, SHARE, LEARN, GROW
One of the great things about the coaching profession is that coaches are willing to share ideas.  If you are interested about a certain concept or topic, contact a coach who might.  Or plan a get-together with a group of coaches and share thoughts and ideas.  This can be as easy as sitting down at a restaurant to diagram X's and O's or share philosophies of coaching.  Coaches will share.

TIPS TO GET THROUGH THE DOG DAYS OF YOUR SEASON

1. Shorten the length of practices as the season progresses. 

• Keeping your players fresh is important.  As you get into the last 1/3 of your season you may want to consider shortening the length of practices.  Fewer minutes on the court can be a psychological boost to your team.
  

2. It's ok to have some fun in the gym on occasion - just for the sake of having fun.

• Organizing some fun basketball related activities at the end of an occasional practice session will keep your players spirits up.  Get your work done first, then allow your players to experience some fun together on the court.  Let them see the coaches enjoying it too.

3. Give your players a day off. 

• If your schedule allows you to give your players a day off, go ahead and do it if you feel your players need it.  Make sure you give your team enough practice time before your next game though.  
  

4. Add a variety of new drills to your practice routine.

• Coaches emphasize in practice what they want their teams to be good at - or known for.  Those emphasized areas are drilled throughout every practice.  As the season progresses coaches need to create a variety of drills to emphasize these priorities.
  

5. Without overloading your team, add new X's and O's to your team's inventory.

• Adding a new wrinkle to your offense or defense can add some much needed excitement to your players.  
  

6. Arrange for a guest speaker to visit with your team.

• Give your players a chance to be motivated by others outside your program.  Bring in an ex-player, a business leader in your community, a respected teacher, or someone who has experienced success in their area of expertise to deliver an inspirational message to your team.

7. Have your team re-evaluate team goals that were set early in the season.

• Allow your team to meet without the coaching staff to discuss and possibly adjust the goals that were set at the beginning of the season.  It is possible that the goals may need to be scaled back.  Or it could be that they would like create even higher goals for the remainder of the season.

8. Organize team bonding activities.

• Getting your team together outside of the gym is important.  It allows them to have fun and get to know one another better without having to deal with the rigors of basketball.

INJURED PLAYER? NOW WHAT?

Overall knowledge of the game.  Offensive plays and strategy.  Defensive strategy.  Calling timeouts at the right time.  Press offense.  Organizing practices.  These are all areas in which a basketball coach needs to be knowledgeable to help give their team a chance to be successful.  There is no doubt that knowledge of your X's and O's are extremely important.  If this was all there was to coaching the coaching world would have a lot more coaches in it.  Coaches with any kind of coaching experience who are reading this are probably thinking, "If it was just about X's and O's there would be a lot less stress in the job of a coach."  But those coaches also know this is not, and will never be the case.  If it were that easy, everybody would be doing it, right? 

There are thousands of situations or issues coaches are presented with throughout the season. This article is focusing on dealing with an injured player.  Unfortunately injuries are a part of sport.  Nobody likes it.  Nobody plans for it.  Nobody asks for it.  It happens.  As a coach, how you deal with the injured player and the team can make a big difference in the continued development of your team.

Tips to consider when dealing your team has an injured player

• Make sure the injured player knows you are genuinely concerned about their injury.  Coaches care for their players, so show it by letting them know you feel bad they have to go through this injury.  A physical injury is tough enough, but the mental toll it takes on that injured player can be a grind.  Empathy from the coach can help ease their mind while they are on track to getting healthy.
• Learn as much as you can about the player's injury.  Visit with the player and even their parents to get all the information you can.  Most likely the parents are the ones who are in contact with the doctors so you can get a report from a mom or dad about the extent of the injury.  
• Help the player continue staying active in some manner during their injury.  For example, if the injury is to the hand you can set up a stationary bike in the gym for them to help them stay in shape until they are healthy enough to play again.
• Keep the injured player informed on all team activities.  Make sure they are still given all the information the healthy players are getting (bus departures, weight lifting sessions, practice times, etc).
• Make sure the injured player is continuing to be part of all new strategies and adjustments that are being made while they are not able to play.  Keep them in the gym with the team during practice so they can learn right along with their teammates.
• Let your team know that the season will continue despite losing a player to injury.  Sometimes the rest of the team goes into a funk when they learn that a player is injured and won't be able to participate for a while, or for the rest of the season.  They feel bad because they see their injured teammate not only physically hurting, but also down in the dumps.  The fact of the matter is that you are not going to cancel the season because someone got hurt.  It's important for your team to understand this right away.  
• Keep your team updated on the progress of the injured player.  Talk to them and let them know the timeline of their return.
• Keep things as normal as possible.  You have a job to do, and that is to coach your team.  Losing a player to injury is something you don't want to ever happen, but it does.  As the coach you need to keep your same general philosophies on dealing with your team.  Depending on the impact the injured player has on your team you may have to change some X's and O's, but don't give your team a chance to even think for a second that your team can't continue to develop in a positive direction with the injured player.

Injuries are tough to handle both mentally and physically.  But remember coaches that you are the leader of that team.  And how you deal with that injury with your injured player, and your team, will be noticed by all your players.