Luke takes you through the “Born Ready” between the legs that Lance Stephenson uses. Great change of direction move if you your defender cuts you off!
February 6, 2010
Born Ready Between the Legs with Luke Meier
February 5, 2010
Want To, by Alan Stein
If you follow high school basketball closely you have probably heard our leading scorer… senior Terrence Ross… suddenly withdrew from Montrose this past Tuesday. Terrence was our leading scorer (averaging close to 20 ppg) and is currently being recruited my several of the nation’s top programs. This past fall he verbally committed to Maryland but re-opened his recruitment a few months ago. His abrupt departure came as a complete shock to our team. I am not at liberty to make any further comments at this time, but will certainly disclose as much as I can when appropriate… so make sure you check back.
If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook you know we (Montrose) had a tough time in Orlando this past weekend. We lost back to back games in the Montverde Academy Invitational Tournament.
We lost our second round game to the host, and eventual tournament champion, Montverde Academy (Orlando, FL) who is now the 10th ranked team in the nation (ESPN). We played our hearts out… our guys really and truly left it all on the floor. Overall, we played pretty well. However, we made a handful costly mistakes that you just can’t make in big time games and expect to win. We lost by 2.
The next night we came out flat and got out-hustled, out-worked, out-smarted, and out-toughed by Arlington Country Day (Jacksonville, FL) who is now the 37th ranked team in the nation (ESPN). Our players were still dejected from the loss the night before. Instead of using the loss to motivate us, we had no passion and we had no pride. In essence, we let Montverde beat us twice. Point blank – those are the reasons we lost. But I must say, the officiating in that game was absolutely horrendous. All three of those officials had no business doing an elite level high school basketball game. They had no clue. They had no consistency whatsoever… sometimes they called touch fouls and other times they allowed both teams to play rugby. And not one of them had even a remote understanding of what a traveling violation is. Hell, two of the refs made the All Tournament Team!
As I said, they are not the reason we lost, but they certainly didn’t help and their incompetence fueled our team’s frustration. Mid way through the second quarter I was given a technical foul. I am not positive, but I think I am the first strength & conditioning coach in the history of basketball to get one (which in an odd way… makes me kind of a pioneer). Certainly not my proudest moment. Thankfully I don’t work for Kevin O’Neil… or I would have been fired on the spot!
For the record, I didn’t use any foul language or scream any obscenities (which I will admit, I have done on occasion). The players from ACD kept grabbing the ball after they scored to intentionally slow down our fast break. I offered my justifiable complaint to the baseline ref. He blew the whistle (stopping our fast break), turned and looked directly at me, and he broke me off a “T” with no warning. It was ridiculous. Everyone sitting near me (players and fans) was dumbfounded. Nevertheless, I sincerely apologized to the team and to our staff after the game and promised it wouldn’t happen again. And it won’t.
So after back to back losses, and having our leading scorer literally pull a Baltimore Colts on us, we find ourselves knee deep in adversity. We need to come together as a group and get refocused. We still have a lot of season left to play. But we need to do this quickly, next week we head up to New Jersey to play Coach Bob Hurley’s St. Anthony’s team!
Jay Bilas, who is a friend and someone I really admire, wrote a compelling article on ESPN.com last week that really sums up our current state. The premise of the article was about winning. He made several key points that really hit home. The most applicable one for us was a quote from Bill Parcels:
“You have to understand what causes you to lose before you can understand how to win.”
I believe I have pinpointed the reason we are struggling. Our players go through stretches where they lack the “want to.”
They know what they are supposed to do and they have all of the talent in the world to do it. Our guys have the potential to be one of the top teams in the country this year…but they go through periods when they don’t “want to.” It has nothing to do with ability. It has to do with a consistent desire and commitment to excellence. There are times when they don’t “want to” box out, times when they don’t “want to” make the extra pass, and times when they don’t “want to” play defense. Hell, the entire point of my blog “Lesson Learned?” was a question of their “want to.”
Terrence Ross is a perfect example. Before you think I am picking on Terrence because he left, please understand… I like Terrence. I always have. He was always cool with me. While I am very disappointed he left, I harbor no hard feelings or ill will and I wish him the best. I sincerely mean that.
But anyone who knows TRoss will readily admit he is the epitome of why you would question someone’s “want to.”
No one has ever questioned his natural ability or talent. TRoss is 6’5”, has the wingspan of a Pterodactyl, has cat like reflexes, and can absolutely jump out of the gym. His jump shot is smooth, effortless, and has NBA range. Despite needing a few more pounds of muscle, he is a prototype 2-guard. With the exception of Kevin Durant, TRoss is the most naturally gifted player we have had a Montrose… and believe me… we have had our share of studs.
Despite his natural ability and talent, people have always questioned his “want to.” High school ranking evaluators and college recruiters have questioned his work ethic. They have questioned his dedication. They have questioned his leadership, his heart, and his competitiveness. They have consistently questioned his “want to.” Which is a shame because his “want to” is 100% controllable! I hope for Terrence’s sake, he finds it.
I read a book last week called Strengths Finders 2.0. While it used different terminology, it basically made the same point I am trying to make:
Talent X “Want To” = Potential for Success
Please re-read that formula. That is very powerful stuff. Think about it like this in regards to basketball:
Your talent is defined as your natural gifts…primarily your height, length, and overall athletic ability (quickness, reaction, explosiveness, etc.). While you can certainly make some improvement through proper training, these characteristics are for the most part uncontrollable. Not everyone can have LeBron’s body (sorry).
Your “want to” is your desire… primarily your effort, enthusiasm, heart, competitiveness, and ability to be coached. These characteristics are 100% controllable.
To predict someone’s potential for success, in this case, on the basketball court, simply rate their talent and rate their “want to” on a scale of 1 to 10. Then multiply the two numbers for a maximum score of 100.
The best players in the world… guys like Kobe, LeBron, CP3, and Kevin Durant have a high talent rating and a high “want to” rating. These guys’ scores are right around 100.
Players who are looked at as underachievers (“wastes of talent”)… guys like Darko Milicic, Stephen Marbury, and Kwame Brown have a high talent rating and a low “want to” rating. These guys’ scores are low… but they have the potential to raise them and put themselves in the superstar’s group if they would just “want to.” The only thing holding them back is themselves.
Players who are looked at as overachievers… guys like Bruce Bowen, Ben Wallace, Brian Scalabrine, and Tyler Hansbrough may not have been born with tremendous talent… but have a “want to” that is palpable. These guys’ can’t do much else, they are already maximizing and making the most of their talent.
Our team is currently underachieving. Our talent is very high. This is the most athletic team we have had at Montrose in my 7 years. But our “want to” is sporadic and inconsistent. Until we fix that, we will continue to have a roller coaster of a season.
Before I sign off, I wanted to give a quick update on the young lady who tore her ACL over the holidays. I spoke with her father the other day and her surgery went very well. She had no meniscus damage and there has been no swelling. She is walking fine and doing physical therapy 3 times per week. Her PT is very pleased with her progress and credited her lower body strength as a reason the injury was less severe and why her recovery is going so smoothly!
And as always, check out (and subscribe to) www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom. Last week I posted a video of Duke Basketball’s Pre-Game Warm-up. This week I will post Nike Skills Academy Warm-up. Weather permitting; this weekend I have tickets to go to see Villanova at Georgetown and North Carolina at Maryland. I am planning to get to both games an hour early to film their warm-ups and will post over the next few weeks.
And if you need anything else, or if I can be of service in any way, don’t hesitate to email me at Alan@StrongerTeam.com. I will respond as quickly as possible.
One love.
Alan Stein
February 4, 2010
Bonus Tennis Ball Video
The bonus tennis ball video for our Elite Skills Membership has just been posted in the members only section. Login from any page on our site to view the video!
January 30, 2010
Elite Skills Membership Video
Here is the preview of the video included in this months Elite Skills Membership. Bonus video coming soon!
January 29, 2010
Illinois Select Workout, by Mike Lee
Last night I had the pleasure of working out the 14U Illinois Select boys team in Rolling Meadows, IL. We had a great 1.5 hour workout. The kids worked extremely hard and I could see in their eyes the passion that some of them had for the game. Ray Glassman, the director of Illinois Select, is doing things the right way. He would jump in some of the drills and offer teaching points, which were right on point. Simple teaching points like “Play the Ball. See Your Man” Simple and short. The Coach Eastman way! If you get a chance to play for him and do not take advantage of it you will be missing out on a great opportunity!
Ray is also running the President’s Day Hoop Prospects showcase at the Lake Barrington Fieldhouse. For more information check out the website here. I will be running the skills sessions along with 3 Time NBA World Champion, Dickey Simpkings. Where do you rank? Come find out!
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The founder of Mike Lee Basketball Services (formerly Playmakers Basketball), Mike is known throughout the country for individual player skill development. He has been a speaker at several events and has also recently authored several instructional workout DVDs, which will be released over the next year. Titles out right now include, 25 Killer Scoring Moves, Secrets of Unstoppable Guard Play and Secrets of Unstoppable Shooting. Since 2006 Mike Lee Basketball has trained over 5,000 boys and girls through their skill development programs. Dozens of players that Mike has worked with have gone on to play collegiate basketball, some at the NCAA DI level. In addition to his own basketball services, Mike is a Nike Girls Skills Trainer and a member of the Nike sponsored, Ganon Baker Basketball.
From 2001-2006, Mike participated as a player and assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. During the fall of 2006 he was awarded a scholarship to attend the Coach K and Duke University Leadership Conference in Durham, NC. In December of 2006 he graduated from the University of Wiconsin-Stout with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a self-planned concentration in Basketball Entrepreneurship.
Check Out More Videos, Add me as a friend on Facebook or Get Updates on Twitter!
http://www.youtube.com/mikeleebasketball
Duke PreGame Warmup, by Alan Stein
Check out the video below that Alan filmed prior to the Duke vs. Wake Forest game in January. We actually do some of the two ball passing drills at our camps!
January 26, 2010
Kentucky Misdirection Pinch Post Handoff
Hey guys,
I just saw Kentucky run this set to get an easy bucket for John Wall. I also saw them run it a couple weeks ago so it must work! I put it up in our members section titled “NBA and NCAA Sets”. I know that I said you would get 1 set a week, but I’ve put 3 up for you to get started. If I can do anything for you let me know!
January 25, 2010
Lesson Learned, by Alan Stein
This is a spontaneous follow up to my last post, “Losing Sucks.” Why a follow up? Because this past Saturday night we were very lucky to escape with a 4 point overtime win against Kecoughtan High School from Hampton, VA. Before I say anything, let me congratulate their players and staff for playing an excellent game. They played winning basketball, and in all honesty, they deserved to win the game. They should hold their heads high and be very proud of their effort.
Our performance, if you can call it that, bothered me so much I felt compelled to write this. If you haven’t already done so, I suggest you read “Losing Sucks” first for the proper foundation as I mentioned something in that post that is paramount to the point I want to make here:
“It is so important to recognize when you play well and lose. It is equally important to recognize when you play poorly and win. You need to learn from both.”
KHS needs to recognize they played very well even though they lost the game. I recommend they watch the film and take note of the many things they did so well. My guess is, if they do those things against every other team on their schedule… they will win most of their games and have a great chance at a state title. They took great shots and played tough defense for 32 minutes.
On the other hand, our players need to be humble enough and mature enough to admit they played poorly and still won. And they played really poorly. While I am thankful we got the W, I absolutely consider our performance a loss.
Why do I consider it a loss? Let’s review, from “Losing Sucks,” the three reasons you lose a game:
- You weren’t as talented as the other team.
- You didn’t execute or make plays.
- You played with a lack of effort.
The only reason we squeaked out a win was because we were more talented than they were. Bottom line, and I mean this with sincere respect to the KHS team, we had better players. However, Montrose alum Kevin Durant’s favorite quote is quite applicable here:
“Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard.”
We almost found that out the hard way.
KHS should look back and accept they lost because we had better players (Point #1)… there is no shame in that. They did execute and they did make plays (Point #2). They did play with passion, heart, and effort (Point #3).
Our players, on the other hand, need to look back and admit the exact opposite. The only reason we won was because we had better players. We didn’t execute or make plays and we sure didn’t play with the passion and effort that is the epitome of the Montrose legacy.
Please notice I said “our players” as opposed to “we” in an attempt to distance myself and the coaching staff from our players. I did that intentionally. While we are all in this together, and we are all part of the program… the coaching staff very well recognizes and admits the shortcomings from this game… I am not quite sure our players do. They need to be mature enough to learn from this. Our coaching staff already has. As coaches, all we can do is prepare our players in the best manner possible and do everything in our power to put them in a position to be successful. We can’t play the game for them. That is 100% on them.
I have mentioned time and time again, that the Montrose program is run exactly like a major college program… only with 16, 17, and 18 year olds. That is why our players are so successful at the next level, because they have already acclimated themselves to the academic and athletic schedules and standards of excellence required of big time Division I programs. We take a lot of pride in “What We Do” (another previous blog post). What separates our program from others is our attention to detail, our strict discipline, and our proven system for building a time honored basketball powerhouse. Structure and discipline are the backbone of our program… and this past Saturday our players lacked both.
The problems began at our standard Saturday game day shoot-around. Our players were told to eat their pre-game meal at 2pm (4 hours before tip-off). On Saturday games we give our guys the freedom to eat on their own or with their families. They were also told to be dressed in their practice gear and game shoes and on the court at 4pm. When the clock struck 4pm, only two players were dressed and ready. For the next 10 minutes players casually strolled in… some wearing practice gear and some wearing Montrose sweats. Some even had the audacity to have food in hand when they walked in! This arrogant, lackadaisical attitude is the antithesis of what our program represents and is absolutely unacceptable. This attitude goes against everything we believe.
Part of the problem was the kids knew that Coach Vetter was not going to be at the pre-game shoot around. They knew he would delegate that to our associate head coach, Dan Prete (who is a phenomenal coach in his own right). Coach Vetter chooses not to see our players until right before the game. Coach Prete was shocked and extremely offended by this blatant act of disrespect. He gave them a much needed verbal blasting… hoping to nip their overconfidence in the bud.
However, a verbal blasting a few hours before game time was not enough to knock some sense into our guys. They pretended to put on their game face and act as if they were ready to play… but my keen eye knew better. Our guys continued to go through the motions of our warm-up with a pompous, care free attitude. I tried to light some fire in them…with a few words of wisdom and an array of “F” bombs… but it was to no avail. Their attitude was too deep… they were cocky, thought they were untouchable… and were just plain out of it.
Our staff knew we were in trouble. And boy, were we right.
We missed 6 lay-ups during warm-ups. SIX! Five of which were from our starters. We are one of the top 15 teams in the entire country… we have numerous high major Division I players… and we missed 6 lay-ups?! That can only happen from a severe lack of focus.
Our players thought they could just show up and win based on pure talent.
Looking back, I hope they realize if KHS scored 1 more point during regulation…just 1… they would have showed our guys how wrong they were and taught them a lesson they would never forget. Now, all we can hope for, is our guys are mature enough to learn the same lesson without suffering the actual loss. As mentioned before, we have not lost a home game in the 7 years I have been with the program.
And what is the lesson I hope they learned?
“Respect every opponent; don’t take anyone lightly. On any given night, you can beat anyone. On any given night, anyone can beat you.”
If you don’t really believe that… believe me… someone will eventually bite you in the ass. Ask Tark and Larry Johnson if they thought Duke could beat them in the 1991 national semi-finals. Or if Mike Tyson thought Buster Douglass could win… much less knock him out. The list of surprising upsets is long.
Another lesson I hope they learned?
“It’s not who you play; it’s how you play that matters most.”
Great players and great teams prepare for every game the same way. Whether it is a pre-season scrimmage or a state championship… their mindset is the same.
Please know I really and truly care about the players on our team. They are amazing young men and I am very thankful to get an opportunity to work with them. And that is the main reason I hope they learn from this. I want to see them grow. I want to see them get better. I want to see all of the sacrifices they have made to be a part of our program pay off… not get flushed down the toilet because of an afternoon of immaturity and cockiness.
I told them afterwards, there are three things they need to do when reflecting on this particular game:
- 1. Admit they were overconfident and didn’t take their preparation seriously
- 2. Learn from it
- 3. Don’t ever, ever let it happen again
If they do those three things, then this can be the spark that ignites us and takes us to a whole new level. We absolutely have the potential to be the #1 team in the nation… we have the tools. It will be interesting to see how we respond.
Hopefully they respond quickly as we have a great opportunity in front of us this week. We head down to Orlando on Wednesday to play in the Montverde Classic. Our first round game is against one of Florida’s state champs from last year, a team that is 14-1 and has most of their players back from last year. If we win that game, we will most likely play the host school, Montverde Academy… a team that hasn’t lost a home game in several years. Montverde is currently ranked # 21 in the nation by ESPN and is coached by Kevin Sutton… a former Coach Vetter assistant of 13 years and an amazing coach. If we were to win that, we will most likely play Findlay Prep in the championship… who is currently ranked #2 in the nation by ESPN… and a team that beat our ass in the semi-finals of last year’s RISE National Championship tournament.
So we have a few days to get it together and take advantage of a special opportunity. I will be tweeting in regularly from the tournament, so make sure you follow me at www.Twitter.com/AlanStein for updates and behind the scenes insight.
And as always, check out (and subscribe to) www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom for video clips of our Pre-game Warm-up, On Court Warm-up, and In-Season Workout.
And if you need anything else, or if I can be of service in any way, don’t hesitate to email me at Alan@StrongerTeam.com. I will respond as quickly as possible.
One love.
Alan Stein
January 24, 2010
Secrets of Unstoppable Guard Play Vol. 2, by Mike Lee
Here is the preview for our latest DVD, Secrets of Unstoppable Guard Play Vol. 2. You can pre-order the DVD and it will be shipped Mid-February. Click here for ordering details or visit shop.mikeleebasketball.com
Elite Skills Membership Program
Over the past year I have started to receive emails from players and coaches across the world asking for advice on skill development and other basketball related questions. With our blog we have been able to address a lot of these questions through our free videos, blog posts and our guest, Alan Stein, however I wanted to be able to provide more.
Individual instruction has always been a passion of mine. As a player I was always looking for ways to get better and nothing fulfilled me more on the floor than learning a new concept or skill. I don’t think I ever enjoyed any part of the game more, except for when I was younger and was engulfed by the kicks, gear, SLAM, the Fab Five and hip-hop dynamic of the game.
Even though I was always looking for ways to improve my skills I don’t think I truly understood how to work on my game until after my senior year in high school. I didn’t understand how to organize workouts and efficiently work on my game. This is the reason for our Elite Skills Membership Program. I hope it not only influences you to work on your game, but shows you how to build your own individual workouts by recognizing your weaknesses and being able to effectively address them in your skills sessions.
With that being said, some drills have been tweaked, but it is mainly a collaboration of drills and teaching points I have picked up over the past 16 years of playing and teaching. In addition to skill development we’ll be releasing thoughts on mental toughness, motivation, leadership and other mental aspects that are proven skills for success in life and basketball. If you have the commitment to apply these life skills our Elite Skills Membership Program will assist you in achieving your basketball dreams.
For Coaches: Developing your players is essential to reach your potential as a team. The more skilled your players are the easier it is going to be to get them to run your offense. The bottom line is that it doesn’t matter offense you run if your players can’t handle the basketball, pass under pressure, and make plays you won’t be successful.
For Parents: If you are looking for someone to train your kids, but can’t afford one, are looking for new drills or don’t have any qualified trainers in your area this is a solution for you. Our Elite Skills Membership can provide you with all the resources they need to improve their game and get to the next level. Whether that’s making the freshman team or learning what it takes to play in college, we have you covered. GUARANTEED!
For Players: Want to know how the elite players in the game train? We’ll show you how NBA players workout, innovative drills to keep your workouts fresh, and be there to provide advice when you have questions about your skills training.
Free Consultation: We will provide free consultation on skill development training for all of our Elite Skills Members. Having a problem understanding a certain drill or move? No problem. We’ll make sure you are on the right track to improving your game.
Click here to subscribe!
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The founder of Mike Lee Basketball Services (formerly Playmakers Basketball), Mike is known throughout the country for individual player skill development. He has been a speaker at several events and has also recently authored several instructional workout DVDs, which will be released over the next year. Titles out right now include, 25 Killer Scoring Moves, Secrets of Unstoppable Guard Play and Secrets of Unstoppable Shooting. Since 2006 Mike Lee Basketball has trained over 3,600 boys and girls through their skill development programs. Dozens of players that Mike has worked with have gone on to play collegiate basketball, some at the NCAA DI level. In addition to his own basketball services, Mike is a Nike Girls Skills Trainer and a member of the Nike sponsored, Ganon Baker Basketball.
From 2001-2006, Mike participated as a player and assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. During the fall of 2006 he was awarded a scholarship to attend the Coach K and Duke University Leadership Conference in Durham, NC. In December of 2006 he graduated from the University of Wiconsin-Stout with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a self-planned concentration in Basketball Entrepreneurship.
Check Out More Videos, Add me as a friend on Facebook or Get Updates on Twitter!
http://www.youtube.com/mikeleebasketball
January 23, 2010
Innovative Tennis Ball Drills
Congratulations! You have just taken the first step to realize your basketball dreams by subscribing to our Elite Skills Membership Program! The first workout we’re providing is one of our favorites, Innovative Tennis Ball Drills, which features several innovative tennis ball dribbling drills to help improve ball quickness, hand eye coordination, and reaction time. These drills are used at the prestigious Nike Skills Academies and can [Content protected for Elite Skills Membership Program members only]
January 22, 2010
Can You Beat Me Skills Contest
We will be holding a monthly skills contest with prizes such as FREE DVDs, subscriptions to our Elite Skills Membership Program, NIKE apparel and more. Coaches and parents: This is a great opportunity to get your kids excited about skill development! Check out the video below for our first contest: 2 Ball Skips in 30 Seconds. Can you Beat Me?! If you beat my score you need to film it and upload a video response on our YouTube page here. Good luck!
January 21, 2010
Losing Sucks, by Alan Stein
Losing sucks.
How’s that for an introductory line and title? Hell, I don’t even like losing my car keys! Chris Paul said it best during a talk at his camp last summer, “I hate losing more than I like winning.” I know a lot of elite level ballers who feel the same way and use their distaste of losing as a major source of motivation.
As much as losing sucks, I do hope we can all agree, especially given the catastrophic events that have recently taken place in Haiti… that losing a basketball game is not the end of the world. As important as basketball is, you have to keep things in perspective. Nevertheless, I still stand by my opening statement… losing sucks.
Now, some of you reading this haven’t lost a game this season (John Wall, are you there?). And some of you have lost almost every game you’ve played (hmmm…. New Jersey Nets). However, I imagine a majority of you are somewhere in between.
Given January is the “hump month” for high school and college hoops, I have received a few dozen emails in the past two weeks asking me how we (Montrose Christian) deal with losing.
Whether you are a player or a coach, how you handle a loss and deal with adversity speaks volumes about your character, your competitiveness, your commitment to excellence, and determining whether losing will become a habit or the initial spark that ignites success.
Even though losing is not the end of the world… losing should hurt. When you invest an inordinate amount of time, effort, and love into something like the game of basketball (and at Montrose we do)… losing should hurt. If it doesn’t hurt, then you don’t care. And if you don’t care… you shouldn’t be playing. However, you can’t let it hurt for long. You can’t wallow in self pity. You must lick your wounds, learn from the loss, and quickly move past it. If you don’t, it will happen again. And it will continue to happen until the reasons you have been losing are corrected.
I will be the first to admit how fortunate I am to be involved in a program that doesn’t lose very often. In my 7 years at Montrose, we have only lost around 15 total games (not sure of the exact number, but we have only averaged a couple of losses per year). I mean we haven’t lost a home game or to a local opponent since I have been there. The good news is we don’t have to deal with losing very often. The bad news is, when we do… it really sucks!
Losing, like any other setback or failure, should be looked at as a learning experience and a way to grow and improve. It is very important to learn from every loss… and use it as a stepping stone to future victory. You don’t want to let one loss rattle your team’s confidence and snowball into a streak of losses (like what’s happening to the North Carolina Tarheels right now). You need to learn from it and nip it in the bud!
However, in order to learn from it… you must honestly and accurately identify why you lost. In my opinion, there are only three reasons you lose a game:
1) You weren’t as talented as the other team.
2) You didn’t execute or make plays.
3) You played with a lack of effort.
Determining why you lost is the most important factor when deciding how to handle it and how to bounce back.
If you lost because the other team was more talented… did you still compete? Or did you play scared?
If you lost because you didn’t execute or make plays… was it a mental thing (lack of focus)? Or was it just a poor shooting night?
If you lost because you lacked effort… and the other team outworked you… was it because…
Scratch that, there is no because. There is never an excuse for playing with a lack of effort. That is absolutely unacceptable. Losing from a lack of effort is the only time you should punish yourself or your players at the next practice. And you should make a statement to make sure it never happens again. Like killing an ant with a sledgehammer.
I can accept and admit when the other team was better. I can accept and admit when we had an off night (poor shooting)… but I cannot and will not accept losing from a lack of effort.
Our most famous loss in my tenure at Montrose was last year’s double OT loss to Oak Hill in the Championship game of the Iolani Classic. That was a devastating loss. However, our kids played their hearts out. We couldn’t have asked them to play any harder. I am not much into moral victories, but ironically… I still to this day think that was the best game we played all year… and we lost! It is so important to recognize when you play well and lose. It is equally important to recognize when you play poorly and win. You need to learn from both.
Our only loss this year was to Neumann Goretti out of Philly (currently ranked 9th in the nation by ESPN) in the semi-finals of this year’s Iolani Classic. We played very hard that game; we just didn’t play particularly well. We didn’t execute and we didn’t finish plays. We missed 13 shots in the paint, 12 free throws, and had 11 empty possessions (where we didn’t even get a shot off because we turned the ball over). And we only lost by 7! While we were very disappointed in the loss, we knew our missed shots and careless turnovers were correctable mistakes. So we let it hurt for the night and then we woke up, put our hard-hats on, and went back to work. And our response paid off as we played very well the next game and beat a nationally ranked team out of Georgia.
NOTE: while we certainly missed some chip shots and freebies at the line, I don’t want to take anything away from Neumann Goretti. They played an outstanding game and deserved to win that night.
In addition to identifying why you lost, it is equally important to evaluate how you lost. Did you show proper sportsmanship to the other team and the officials? Did you play like a team or did you play selfishly, point fingers and make excuses? Obviously no one likes to lose, but it is very important you learn how to handle losses like a professional and with character… not like a petulant child.
We are very strict about this with our players and don’t give them an inch when it comes to sportsmanship or playing the blame game. We win together, we lose together. No one player wins a game by his or herself and no one player loses a game either. Missing a shot at the buzzer, or throwing the ball away with 3 seconds left, is never what actually loses the game. It was an accumulation of the previous 31 minutes and 57 seconds.
Make sure, as a coach or as a player, you take some time to reflect and evaluate both why you lost and how you lost and use it as a learning experience for your next game as well as for the rest of the season. Even though January is coming to a close, there is still a lot of ball to be played!
If I can ever be of service to you or your team, please don’t hesitate to email me at Alan@StrongerTeam.com. I promise to respond as quickly as possible.
If you haven’t done so, please check out (and subscribe) to www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom. I just posted a new video of a Montrose Basketball In-Season Workout. Next week, I will post clips of the Duke men’s basketball team’s pre-game on court warm-up. I got some awesome footage from their game against Wake Forest!
Also, for those of you who follow me at www.Twitter.com/AlanStein, or are my “friend” at www.Facebook.com/AlanSteinJr, beginning in February I will be posting weekly trivia questions for folks to win some sweet prizes – like Nike and Jordan gear! All of the questions will come from my blog archive… so make sure you read past posts and study up.
Play hard. Have fun.
Alan Stein
January 20, 2010
Billy D and the Three, by Luke Meier
Last year I got a chance to hear University of Florida Head Coach Billy Donovan speak at a clinic in Chicago. The focus of his talk was using the 3 point shot. Here are some of the key points from his talk.
- Each game Florida has the goal of making more 3’s than their opponent
- They want to get their 3 point shoots three different ways, which Coach Donovan terms “The 3 Concepts of the 3”
- In transition
- Post feeds
- Dribble penetration and kick
- Passers should make passes to the shooters inside shoulder, leading them into the shoot
- Have players pass to shooters in drills to develop timing and skill
- Shooters should get 1 to 1½ ft behind the 3 point line and step into their shots
January 16, 2010
January 15, 2010
No Guarantee, by Alan Stein
The word on the street is Mark McGuire read the second half of my blog post from last week (“Random Thoughts”) and finally decided to admit he took steroids. Thanks Big Red, it only took you 10 years. And it wasn’t the slightest bit obvious (insert sarcasm). All joking aside, the year he broke the home run record, the measured circumference of his right forearm was an inch and half bigger than my neck! How in the hell could that be natural?!
OK, back on topic.
One of the toughest things to deal with as an adult is the concept that nothing in life is guaranteed. Except for death and taxes. And while I certainly despise paying taxes, my gut feeling is I would like death even less.
This concept of “nothing being guaranteed” is so evident in sports. Jim Valvano, the late coach of NC State and one of my favorite motivational speakers, once said something to the effect of:
“Just because you work hard doesn’t guarantee you will be successful. But not working hard guarantees you won’t be.”
Reigning NCAA National Champion coach Roy Williams said something similar:
“Working hard doesn’t guarantee success, but without it, you have no chance.”
Have you ever spent hours upon hours studying for a test… and still gotten a poor grade? Has your team ever spent hours upon hours practicing all week… and still lost the big game?
Of course you have; it happens to the best of us. Working hard and not achieving success is a tough pill to swallow. It is hard in basketball and it is hard in life. But it is fact. And it is something every player and coach needs to come to terms with… because no one is immune. And when a minor setback (or failure) occurs, you have to learn from it, move past it, and get back to working hard again!
A young lady I had been working with for over a year, and who is a very accomplished high school player, tore her ACL a few weeks ago in a holiday tournament. She was having a phenomenal season (team was 7-2) and a stellar game (had already hit five 3’s) up to that point. Then, early in the second half on a drive to the basket, she landed awkwardly while being fouled. BAM! Just like that, she tore her ACL and her season was over.
Her father called me to tell me the bad news and told me she was devastated. As a senior, she was being recruited by several Division I schools, but unfortunately was waiting until the spring to sign… and she was distraught with thoughts that “no one would want her now.”
Personally, I was crushed by the news. I couldn’t sleep for two days. I really care about all the kids I work with and I felt terrible she was going through this. She is such an impressive young lady, both on and off the court.
Unable to sleep, all I kept thinking was, how could this have happened? She worked so hard this pre-season. She did everything I asked of her and did it to best of her ability. After a couple hours of staring at the ceiling, I went down to my office and reviewed my notes from our sessions. I took solace in knowing we did everything possible to try to reduce the occurrence of this happening. We incorporated numerous exercises and drills, every single workout, to reduce the likelihood of an ACL injury. We worked on proper landing. We worked on proper cutting. We properly strengthened every muscle and joint in her lower body. Honestly, I wouldn’t have done anything different. So thankfully, I don’t have to live with the woulda, coulda, shoulda’s. We worked hard all pre-season and literally did everything we could have done to prevent this. Yet unfortunately, it still occurred.
I went to one of her team’s games last week to say hello, offer my support, and to speak to her father. We had a wonderful conversation and I promised him I would help her with every step of her recovery. I also told him I was confident she would still play college basketball. The road will be tough, and it is (obviously) not guaranteed, but my advice to her was to stay positive, get ready to get back to work… and things will work out for the best.
Now, I am a strength & conditioning coach… not a psychologist by any means. But I really believe after her short grieving period is over, she will need to re-focus and get back to working as hard as possible. I understand she is entitled to a period of time of feeling disappointed and depressed… but what’s done is done. She tore her ACL; it’s a fact. Nothing can be done to undo that now. Just like an errant pass or a missed shot, it is time to move on to the next play!
The most influential factor in her future success on the court will be how she responds to this setback. This will be a real test of her character. I have full confidence she will come back better than ever because she has a tremendous attitude, relentless work ethic, and the mindset of a champion.
I am proud and thankful to claim an exemplary record over the past 10 years, with a particularly high rate of success for both injury prevention and performance enhancement. And even though I can say, with full confidence, we did everything “right” in regards to her pre-season preparation… an injury still occurred. We worked hard… and as we learned… success was not guaranteed (at least success in this particular instance). Fortunately, this is not the final chapter in her playing career.
It is imperative you understand you can’t second guess the importance of working hard and of doing what is right just because things don’t turn out the way you want. You still need to make the conscious choice to consistently work hard in every aspect of your life (especially in your training). While the possibility of not achieving success is always looming, it is nothing to be feared, and certainly nothing to give in too. If you make a daily commitment to excellence… you will absolutely “win” more than you “lose.” And I am not talking about the scoreboard.
If you read my recent blog post, “What We Do”, you can see the lengths the Montrose Christian basketball program goes to in order to be successful. And yet we still (occasionally) lose games. Do you think losing a game causes us to second guess “What We Do?” No way! And when you have a setback it shouldn’t cause you to second guess yourself either.
If you have any questions about ACL injury prevention (or recovery), or if I can ever be of service to you or your team, please don’t hesitate to email me at Alan@StrongerTeam.com. I promise to respond as quickly as possible.
If you haven’t done so, please check out (and subscribe) to www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom. I just posted two videos of the Montrose Basketball Pre-Game Warm-up (one before we take the court and one on-court). Next week, I will post clips from a recent in-season strength training workout.
Also, for those of you who follow me at www.Twitter.com/AlanStein, or are my “friend” at www.Facebook.com/AlanSteinJr, I will be holding weekly trivia questions for folks to win some HOT prizes – like Nike and Jordan gear! All of the questions will come from my blog archive… so make sure you read past posts and study up.
Play hard. Have fun.
Alan Stein
January 12, 2010
Innovative Basketball Training: Jay Wolf’s Shooting Strap
If you are involved in basketball at any age you probably know that teaching players how to shoot the basketball is one of the hardest skills to teach. It requires the player to have knowledge of the shooting mechanics and, most of the time, someone there to observe them to make sure they are performing the correct mechanics. A major problem with players of almost all ages is that they “thumb” the basketball with their guide hand, usually causing side spin or a left/right miss.
Since shooting is so detailed, specific and personal to each player it obviously requires a lot of self-awareness to correct your own shot or teach yourself to shoot with proper mechanics. Jay Wolf, of New Richmond, WI has essentially cut out half of the learning process for shooting the basketball with his shooting strap. I have used it with several players that I train and recommend it at all of our shooting camps (I’ve probably sold you at least 50 of these Coach!). I truly believe like 2 ball drills, Micah Lancaster’s medicine ball workouts, and tennis ball drills, this is truly one of the most innovative basketball training tools that I have ever seen.
With this being said there are still no secrets to the success of shooting the ball. Even with Coach Wolf’s strap you still need to shoot close to 20,000 shots, with correct form, before you are going to be comfortable going at game speed. I started working with a player yesterday who drastically used his guide hand to thumb the basketball. After 1 hour and 600 shots he was already making tremendous improvement using the strap, but he understands that it takes PATIENCE and PERSISTENCE to reach your goals at anything. Will 20,000 shots takes a lot of time? Depends on how good you want to be. 500 shots a day, 5 days a week for 2 months and you have knocked out 20,000. You can get up about 500 shots in an hour if you have a rebounder or the Gun. All I know is that playing the game is a lot more fun when you can shoot the ball!
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The founder of Mike Lee Basketball Services (formerly Playmakers Basketball), Mike is known throughout the country for individual player skill development. He has been a speaker at several events and has also recently authored several instructional workout DVDs, which will be released over the next year. Titles out right now include, 25 Killer Scoring Moves, Secrets of Unstoppable Guard Play and Secrets of Unstoppable Shooting. Since 2006 Mike Lee Basketball has trained over 3,600 boys and girls through their skill development programs. Dozens of players that Mike has worked with have gone on to play collegiate basketball, some at the NCAA DI level. In addition to his own basketball services, Mike is a Nike Girls Skills Trainer and a member of the Nike sponsored, Ganon Baker Basketball.
From 2001-2006, Mike participated as a player and assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. During the fall of 2006 he was awarded a scholarship to attend the Coach K and Duke University Leadership Conference in Durham, NC. In December of 2006 he graduated from the University of Wiconsin-Stout with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a self-planned concentration in Basketball Entrepreneurship.
Check Out More Videos, Add me as a friend on Facebook or Get Updates on Twitter!
http://www.youtube.com/mikeleebasketball
Jesperson Moves to #2 Spot in Class of 2011, by Mark Miller
posted by Mark Miller at 1/12/2010
By Mark Miller
WisSports.net Editor
There are plenty of scholarships available from both Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin for players in the class of 2011.
Whether any of those scholarships will go to a high school junior from the state remains in doubt.
At this point, no high school junior from Wisconsin has received a scholarship offer from either of the two high-major programs in the state.
Milwaukee Hamilton wing Elgin Cook, the top-ranked prospect in 2011 in the updated Player Rankings released today on WisSports.net, gave a verbal commitment to play for Iowa State last fall.
Beyond Cook, the other top five prospects in the class — Merrill wing Paul Jesperson, Milwaukee Washington wing Quevyn Winters, Brodhead forward J.J. Panoske and Hamilton forward Darnell Harris — have each received varying degrees of interest from Marquette and Wisconsin.
Jesperson has had coaches from both Marquette and Wisconsin in attendance for some of his games this season while Panoske was an invited guest of the Badgers last Saturday during their Big Ten victory over visiting Purdue.
Winters and Harris are also on the recruiting radar for the Golden Eagles and Badgers, yet like the others, they have not received an offer.
Meanwhile, Cook is the only player from the state’s class of 2011 to make a decision on where he’ll play at the next level.
A 6-foot-6 wing forward who caught the eye of Iowa State assistant coach T.J. Otzelberger over a year ago, Cook is a tremendous athlete who continues to develop his basketball skills. He is averaging 15.0 points per game for a Hamilton team that has won seven of its first nine games.
“Elgin is athletic and can do some things around the rim,” Hamilton coach Tom Diener said. “He’s a quick jumper and he has gotten better at finishing around the basket.
“His ball handling, shooting and ability to be a triple-threat player have improved, but he needs to spend more time in the off season working on some of those things.”
No player in the class has received more looks from Division I schools than the 6-7 Jesperson, a terrific perimeter shooter with a good overall feel for the game.
In addition to scholarship offers from Arizona State, Butler, Colorado State, Green Bay, Loyola, Milwaukee, North Dakota State, Northern Iowa, San Diego and South Dakota State, Jesperson continues to receive interest from Iowa State, Marquette, Northwestern and Wisconsin, among others.
Jesperson has had a solid if not spectacular junior season, though he went for 30 points in the Bluejays’ victory over visiting Wisconsin Rapids last week.
The 6-5 Winters remains perhaps the most consistently productive player in the class of 2011. Able to score off the bounce or knock down three-point shots, Winters is averaging 21.4 ppg for a Washington squad that is 6-2.
“When you look at the top kids in the state in the junior class, I think Elgin and Quevyn jump out at you,” Diener said. “I think Quevyn is really, really good. He is a different player than Elgin in that he is a better shooter and more skilled while Elgin is more athletic.”
The 6-9 Panoske may have as much upside as any other player in the class as he continues to grow into his long, lanky frame.
A very skilled big man who also has some bounce around the rim, Panoske is a good shot blocker who can score around the basket or from three-point range. He needs to get stronger and add weight so he can finish with contact, but he is a player who will get plenty of looks over the next six months.
Panoske verbally committed to Green Bay in the summer of 2009, but decided to re-open his recruitment last fall.
The 6-9 Harris has had a difficult time playing with consistency this season, but Diener believes part of the reason for his struggles is his skill set.
“Darnell’s best basketball is way out in front of him,” Diener said. “He’s a very coachable kid, but his strengths are difficult because they don’t fit the high school game. He’s a very skilled wing player, but at 6-9 do you want to put him on the perimeter?
“I believe he’ll be a two or three in college. He is extremely skilled and has a great future ahead of him.”
Diener said Georgetown is showing strong interest in Harris, who already has a Big East offer from Providence.
Hamilton’s Charles Lee, De Pere’s Chris Kading, Madison East’s Nimrod Hilliard, Seymour’s Phil Romback and Manitowoc Roncalli’s Ben Stelzer round out the top 10.
Lee is small at 5-9, but he is an intelligent point guard who defends baseline to baseline and has scholarship offers from Cleveland State, Green Bay, Loyola and Milwaukee.
“Charles plays tremendous defense, which is something I really like about him,” Diener said. “He’ll get up and pressure the ball full court. He’s a very good on-the-ball and off-the-ball defender.
“One area he needs to improve on is his decision making. He has too many turnovers for a point guard, but he is improving in that area.”
The 6-7 Kading is a powerful inside player who has great length and shot blocking ability. He was averaging 11.3 ppg before sustaining a broken pinky and missing the last several games. He is expected to return to the De Pere lineup near the end of the month.
Kading has a scholarship offer from North Dakota State along with interest from Central Michigan, Columbia, Green Bay and Yale.
“Chris was averaging around 12 points, eight rebounds and six blocked shots per game before his injury,” De Pere coach Brian Winchester said. “His stat line was good, but the impact he makes on a game you can’t really measure. His defensive presence on the floor was huge for us.”
Like Lee, Hilliard is on the small size at 6-0 and around 150 pounds, but there may not be a player in the state, regardless of class, who makes bigger plays or competes with as much passion.
East coach Rich Cleveland praised Hilliard’s basketball instincts after watching the point guard knock down a three-point shot and come up with a huge steal and layup in the final 10 seconds to trigger the Purgolders’ 57-54 victory over Madison Memorial last Saturday.
Romback is a versatile 6-7 forward who has battled injuries for the better part of the past year. He is a skilled player who can score in the lane or from the perimeter while also finding open teammates and hitting the glass.
There may not be a more efficient player in the class than Stelzer, a 6-1 combination guard who rarely takes a play off on either end of the court.
A terrific long-distance shooter with a quick release, Stelzer has a scholarship offer from Michigan Tech and interest from a number of Ivy League schools.
Players making the biggest jumps in the Player Rankings include Franklin’s Nick Romanoski (from 19 to 12), De Pere’s Reece Zoelle (from 28 to 17), Milwaukee Marquette’s John Kopriva (from 48 to 19), Nicolet’s Christian Williams (from 31 to 20), Monroe’s Bryan Tordoff (from 29 to 21), Reedsburg’s Chad Mazur (from 45 to 25), Darlington’s Alex Erickson (from 35 to 28), Sun Prairie’s Chris Hawkins (from 36 to 29) and Whitefish Bay’s Jamie Schneck (from 37 to 30).
A physical inside player who competes with an edge, the 6-7 Romanoski is averaging 23.4 ppg for a Franklin program that is 5-4.
Zoelle is a 6-3 combination guard who is averaging nearly 17 ppg for a very strong De Pere squad that is 11-1. An athletic player who continues to grow, Zoelle is hearing from several NCAA Division II programs, including Augustana and the University of Mary.
“Reece is up to 6-3 and I don’t think he’s done growing yet,” Winchester said. “He’s strong and athletic, but he’s still physically immature. He passes the ball extremely well and is second in our league in assists. He has a really good feel for the game.”
Kopriva is a skilled 6-7 forward who appears to be coming into his own while averaging 12.1 ppg for a very balanced Marquette High team.
Williams is a physically strong 6-7 forward who can score in the lane or step out and knock down the mid-range jump shot.
“Christian has made big strides since last season,” Nicolet coach Paul Hepp said. “He runs the floor very well on offense, which helps the team transition game a great deal. He has improved his back-to-the-basket play and has become an effective force on the inside. He also has a soft 15-foot jump shot. He has good agility for a guy his size.”
Newcomers to the WisSports.net Top 50 include No. 26 Austin Ryf of Winneconne, No. 27 Iman Johnson of Whitefish Bay Dominican, No. 33 Terry Nash of Wisconsin Lutheran, No. 40 Joe Sokovich of Watertown, No. 41 Alex Richard of River Valley, No. 42 Nick Roelse of Sheboygan Falls, No. 43 Cale Zuiker of Marshfield, No. 47 Andrew Schwoerer of Valders and No. 48 Chad Mathwig of New Berlin West.
Several players from the class of 2011 were dropped from the Player Rankings because they are currently ineligible.
Cinmeon Bowers, a 6-7 forward who recently enrolled at Milwaukee Rufus King, is one of the elite players in the class. He attended a prep school during the fall semester, but has moved back to Wisconsin and hopes to play for King in the future.
Darell Longstreet is a 6-1 guard who played as a freshman at Kenosha St. Joseph and as a sophomore at Kenosha Tremper. Longstreet is sitting out this season at Kenosha Bradford per WIAA transfer rules, but he is also an elite-level player who hopes to play for the Red Devils as a senior.
Haki Stampley is a 6-4 wing player from Milwaukee Hamilton who can make perimeter shots or get to the basket. Like Bowers and Longstreet, Stampley is hoping to return to the high school basketball scene in the future.
For a complete listing of the updated 2011 player rankings, simply click the Players link on the front page of WisSports.net.
Coming Wednesday: Updated Class of 2012 Player Rankings
Coming Thursday: New Class of 2013 Player Rankings
Comments 1
On 1/12/2010 1:02:40 PM benchwarmer50 wrote:Okay so the rankings are pretty solid. But, I have a minor adjustment that you should consider…Nick Aman and Matt Birchbach are in the same conference, Aman is averaging 9.5 ppg, 5 rpg, and 1.6 bpg. Birchbach is averaging 1.4 ppg, 3 rpg, and 1 bpg…Birchbach is only in the other top juniors but it would be sweet if you could change that…thanks
January 11, 2010
Self Made Players, by Luke Meier
You often hear Coaches or T.V. announcers refer to players as “self made.” How else are players made? Coaches and trainers can provide all the tools for players to improve, but it is up to the player to put in the time and effort.
The book “When the Game was Ours” by Jackie MacMullen tells about the lives of Magic Johnson and Larry Bird and their relationship with one another. Here are two of the many stories about the legendary work ethics of two of the greatest players ever.
During his summers with the Celtics Larry Bird would get up at 7am and run 5 miles uphill. Then he would ride his bike through the Indiana country for 20 miles. This was followed by 500 jump shots and 500 free throws. It was only the start of his workout and it was all done before noon.
When Magic Johnson was in high school, Dick Vitale, who was coaching in Detroit at the time, showed up at the Johnson household one winter morning shortly after 6am. When Vitale asked for Magic, his mother told Vitale that he had already left for the day. He was at the park shooting jumpers before school in the blistering cold of a Lansing winter morning.
You can make excuses about how you don’t have time or you don’t have a gym or whatever else you can think of. The truth is that is that’s all garbage. If you really want to be great you find the time, you find the space, and you make it happen.
January 7, 2010
Random Thoughts, by Alan Stein
Happy New Year! While I sincerely hope everyone’s 2010 is off to a wonderful start, I will be honest, I say “Happy New Year” somewhat facetiously. It’s January 7th for cryin’ out loud! When will people stop saying it?! On a similar note… the folks still saying “Happy New Year” are usually the same folks who thought it was cute to say “see ya next year” the last week of December or who are so void of something significant to say they say stuff like, “is it cold enough for you?” Are you kidding me? It is 7 degrees out you dolt! Yes, it is plenty cold. Oh well, I guess some people aren’t much for meaningful conversation.
Sorry to digress.
While I am not much into making New Year’s resolutions, even I get excited and inspired at the nostalgia associated with a new year. Having spent a good portion of the last few weeks reflecting on 2009, my goal for this year is the same as it is every year:
“Do more of what is working and less of what isn’t.”
This simple concept is the foundation of success. You can take that concept a step further and ask yourself this question every morning when you wake up:
“Are the things I am doing today going to help me get to where I want to go?”
Are the things you are currently doing going to help you next week? Next month? Next year? In 5 years? If you can’t answer yes to at least one of those time periods … then why are you doing what you are doing? Stop wasting your time! And both of those thoughts transition into yet another power concept:
“Don’t confuse being busy with being productive.”
Everyone is busy. Everyone has a long “to-do” list. But not everyone is productive. Not everyone gets results. Make sure the things you do on a daily basis are taking you where you want to go. Don’t just spin your wheels.
With that said, those three concepts are very applicable to basketball players and coaches.
Now that a good chunk of the season is over… what things are working? What things aren’t? Are you too stubborn to change? Are you on pace to accomplish the goals you set at the beginning of the season? Do you need to slightly alter and adjust those goals based on the results of November and December?
Are the things you are doing on a daily basis making you a better player? A better coach? I am sure you are extremely busy during the season, but are you truly being productive?
If you are a player and you have been in a shooting slump the last few games… are you coming in before practice to get in some extra shooting work? If you are, are you taking extra shots from where you get most of your shots in games? Do you even know where you get most of your shots in games? At Montrose, we run a very disciplined offensive system. Each of our players take a majority of their shots from the same 3 or 4 spots on the court. So that is where they should take most of their shots in practice… if they want their practice to be productive. If you are not playing as much you feel you deserve, have you scheduled an individual meeting with your coach to ask what you need to do to get more playing time? Or do you just sit on the end of the bench and pout? That negative energy is a cancer to any team… don’t do it! And if you are a coach, don’t tolerate it. “Energy takers” need to be nipped in the bud immediately.
If you are a coach, and your team is struggling, have you pinpointed the specific reasons why? Lack of effort? Lack of execution? You can’t do much at this point about lack of talent… but you can about poor effort and/or execution. Just make sure your practice plan addresses the specific area you need to ignite and improve. If your team is not executing well… a ton of extra running as punishment will not help solve the problem. That’s apples and oranges.
Pause… new topic.
I have always been a big believer in the concept of “choices and consequences.” Each of us has a choice in everything we do in life. Everything. Even the things that happen to us that are beyond our control, we each choose how we respond and handle the situation. And every choice we make has a consequence. Some consequences are good, some are bad. For some reason, the word “consequence,” has been given a negative connotation. But I believe the word consequence is just another word for result. Every choice you make produces a result. What is the consequence of not eating breakfast? Hunger, lack of focus, low energy, and poor performance. What is the consequence of making 10 free throws in a row before you leave practice every day? Shooting a higher percentage from the line over the course of the season and hitting clutch free throws during games. See the correlation?! Success is not an accident. Neither is failure.
I feel it is my duty as a coach to teach this concept of choices and consequences to the players I work with. Here is a perfect example:
Coach Vetter has a mandatory team rule that every player must wear ankle braces for every practice and every game. Right or wrong, that is his rule. One of our players asked me the other night before our game if it was OK if he didn’t wear them. I said, “Sure, if you are 100% willing to face the consequences of not wearing them.” He looked at me with a bewildered look of confusion. I asked him if he would be willing to face the consequences of Coach Vetter finding out he intentionally broke a team rule (and then have to face whatever punishment resulted), or even worse, if he severely injured his ankle during the game and ruined his season? He looked to the floor and mumbled, “No.” To which I smiled and said, “Good answer. Now put on your ankle braces.”
Here is another example of choices and consequences that is currently making headlines across the sports world:
Do you think Gilbert Arenas gave much thought to the potential consequences of bringing in three guns to the locker room? Was that irresponsible stunt worth the consequence of suspension (and possible expulsion) from the league, severe legal action, loss of millions of dollars, and a permanent black mark on his reputation? Not so funny now, is it Gilbert?
You know another valuable lesson to teach young people that comes to mind from this Gilbert situation? And don’t say, “You shouldn’t bring guns in the locker room.” If you don’t already know that you shouldn’t bring guns in to the locker room… then you either have a room temperature I.Q. or you have lived in a cave your whole life. If that’s not the case, you should be hit in the head with a sledge hammer. (NOTE: Yes, I do think Gilbert should be hit the head with a sledge hammer; hopefully it would knock some sense into him!)
No, the real lesson is one we rarely see in professional sports… taking personal accountability for your actions. Whether you are talking about steroids in baseball, Tiger’s myriad of affairs, or Gilbert bringing guns in to the locker room… I wish just once a pro-athlete would immediately accept the blame and say something like this:
“I am so sorry. I used horrible judgment and made a terrible mistake. I was wrong and I sincerely apologize. I promise to go to whatever length is necessary to right this wrong.”
Of course they all say that once it’s too late… after a week or two goes by and they have exhausted all efforts to cover up their wrongdoing and BS their way out of trouble. They all say it then. At that point, it is meaningless.
If Gilbert was man enough to be strapped with three guns, he damn sure should have been man enough to immediately accept full responsibility and hold himself accountable for the consequences. Instead, he acted like a horse’s ass and publicly joked about it.
And for the record, admitting you were wrong and apologizing does not make up for the mistake… but it does show you are a person of character and that you take full responsibility for your actions.
Lastly, I am very thankful to have received many nice Christmas gifts from my friends and family. One of my favorite gifts, given my affinity for reading, was the new Amazon Kindle electronic reader. It is awesome! If you are an avid reader, I highly recommend it.
The first book I bought was Personal Foul by Tim Donaghy (the former NBA referee who was arrested for gambling on NBA games). It was extremely fascinating and was an easy read. I knocked it out in a week. Of course, the entire book was written from the perspective of a lying, cheating, self-admitted gambling addict… but if even 10% of what he claims is true… WOW!
Also, I just posted a video montage of the Montrose Pre-Game Warm-up at www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom. Early next week I will post the Montrose Pre-Game On-Court Warm-up (showing what we do when we take the court 20 minutes before every game). Make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss any of the action!
If I can ever be of service or help you in any way, please don’t hesitate to email me at Alan@StrongerTeam.com. I promise to respond as quickly as possible.
Play hard. Have fun.
Alan Stein
January 6, 2010
Weaknesses Part III: Finishing, by Luke Meier
As a skill development trainer it is my job to teach and drill players, preparing them for situations they will encounter on the court. Different situations on the court require different solutions. A lot of player’s games are severely limited by a lack of “solutions.” This lack of solutions is no more apparent than watching players trying to finish in traffic.
Here are three basic ways to help you finish better in traffic:
- Be able to finish with either hand: Players routinely force shots up with their strong hand because they have no off hand. How many times have you seen a player’s shot get tossed by a defender because they shoot with their right hand when a lefty lay-in would get them an easy bucket? It happens every game! My high school coach once told me that for every drill I did with my strong hand, I should do two with my off hand. You should work to the point where you have no “weak” hand. Mikan drills are great for this. Mikans may not be “cool” but it’s even less cool when you can’t finish with your off hand and it costs you easy buckets.
- Defense-Body-Ball Principle: In traffic you need to protect the basketball. Keep your body between your defender and the basketball. A lot of players turn their body towards the basket when trying to finish on defenders, making it a “Defense-Ball-Body” situation. The ball isn’t protected and the shot gets blocked. Practice finishing with your inside shoulder pointing directly at the rim… work this until you become completely comfortable finishing this way. More Mikans!
- Initiate to Separate: This goes directly with number two. Initiate contact with the defense to create space to get your shot off. Get your inside shoulder into the defender or get them on your back where they have to foul you to get to the ball. When you initiate the contact you give yourself the advantage by taking away the defenders ability to go straight up and block the shot.
There are countless situations where you need to finish in traffic. Sometimes you need to take it strong, while other times you need to use some finesse. Aside from number one these principles don’t apply for every situation, but they will add a number of “solutions” to your game while finishing around the basket.
January 5, 2010
Marquette Speech Part III: Second to None Work Ethic, by Mike Lee
Marquette Speech Part III: Second to None Work Ethic
There is no substitute for having a work ethic and working smart. You Must Deserve Success. There is no reason that you should achieve something other than the fact that you have truly outworked the next person. Hard work doesn’t guarantee success, but not working hard guarantees failure.
What are you willing to sacrifice?
When I first started Playmakers Basketball (AAU teams, personal training and camps), I was also coaching at a NCAA DIII school and finishing up 15 credits of school. Needless to say I didn’t have a life. There would be nights I’d be up until 1AM, sleep on my office floor and be up at 5:30AM for practice. In the summers I’d drive 18 hours from Wisconsin to Pennsylvania just to work Five-Star and sleep in my car. You have to sacrifice what you want in the future for what you want at that moment.
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The founder of Mike Lee Basketball Services (formerly Playmakers Basketball), Mike is known throughout the country for individual player skill development. He has been a speaker at several events and has also recently authored several instructional workout DVDs, which will be released over the next year. Titles out right now include, 25 Killer Scoring Moves, Secrets of Unstoppable Guard Play and Secrets of Unstoppable Shooting. Since 2006 Mike Lee Basketball has trained over 3,600 boys and girls through their skill development programs. Dozens of players that Mike has worked with have gone on to play collegiate basketball, some at the NCAA DI level. In addition to his own basketball services, Mike is a Nike Girls Skills Trainer and a member of the Nike sponsored, Ganon Baker Basketball.
From 2001-2006, Mike participated as a player and assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. During the fall of 2006 he was awarded a scholarship to attend the Coach K and Duke University Leadership Conference in Durham, NC. In December of 2006 he graduated from the University of Wiconsin-Stout with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a self-planned concentration in Basketball Entrepreneurship.
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January 4, 2010
Marshfield Columbus nominated for Team of the Month
Joe Koeniczny, head coach at Columbus High School, has the Dons rolling again this year. Joe is the director for our boys camp in Marshfield each summer.
Marshfield Columbus – The Dons have been a solid program for a number of years, but it was hard to know what to expect this season following the loss of a 1st team and 2nd team all-conference selection from last year’s squad. All they have done is race out to an 8-0 start, including a 6-0 record in the month of December. The month opened on the right note, as Columbus scored a 12-point win over defending conference champion Colby on the road on December 1st. The Dons also gave Spencer and Neillsville their only league losses so far, as both teams sit at 5-1.
