Posts Tagged ‘basketball training’
It’s Where You Finish, by Luke Meier
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009Weaknesses from the First Part of the Year, by Luke Meier
Friday, December 18th, 2009I’ve been able to get out and see several high school games since the start of the season. When I watch these games I pay special attention to the fundamentals and skills of each player. Obviously each player and team has their individual strengths and weaknesses, but in the games I’ve seen this year I’ve noticed three common areas where players really seem to struggle. Rather than trying to address each of these areas in one post, I will address each area individually, breaking them down into a three part series. Subscribe now to be notified of Part 2: Reading Screens.
Part 1: Relieving Pressure
Being able to handle defensive pressure is key to the success of any team. I firmly believe that in order to handle this pressure, you must be comfortable with the basketball. Being comfortable with the ball while dribbling and in the triple threat will allow you to see the floor rather than worry about what you are doing with the basketball. Improving you handle will go a long way in how you deal with any type of defensive pressure.
Along with developing your handle, the ability to use a bounce back is crucial for creating space. To execute a bounce back, get sideways and “bounce back” away from the defense. Keep your chin on your front shoulder so you can see the entire floor, push off your front foot and reach with your back foot. It is important that you stay low and use long low strides. Standing upright and “hopping” back is too slow. Lastly, dribble the ball behind your back foot, therefore making sure the ball is protected from the defender.
There are four situations where you to use your bounce back:
1. Full Court 1 on 1 – The defender is running along side you or cuts you off while you are advancing the ball up the floor, bounce back to create space. When the defense tries to recover attack their high foot and blow by them.
2. Full Court Trap – Two defenders have attempted to put a trap on you while you are advancing the ball. Rather than dribbling into the trap and/or picking up your dribble, bounce back and create space so you can see the floor. Remember, if two players are guarding you it means one of you teammates is not being guarded.
3. Ball Reversal of Penetration – In a half court setting you try to penetrate to the hoop, but get cut off by the defense. Again, rather than picking up your dribble and eliminating your passing options use your bounce back to get to the perimeter where you can initiate a ball reversal.
4. Stalling at the end of a quarter or half – While stalling for one shot or trying to kill some clock with a lead get you defender moving and then bounce back to create space and initiate a new 5 second count.
Young Buck, by Luke Meier
Thursday, December 3rd, 2009Since the start of the NBA season the entire nation, Milwaukee especially, has been buzzing about Bucks rookie Brandon Jennings. I can truthfully say that I was on the bandwagon as soon as the “Young Buck” was drafted, but I didn’t expect him to be playing as well as he has so far this year.
I have heard or seen countless interviews with and about Jennings and one thing seems to be very clear about him. He understands that in order for him to be successful he needs to put in the extra work. Here is a guy who was at the top of the rankings for his high school class, played a year at the highest level in Europe, and was a top 10 NBA draft pick, but he’s still working his tail off to get better.
Jennings, along with Bucks Assistant Kelvin Sampson, gets to the arena 3-4 hours before the tip to get extra work in. He makes between 200 to 300 floaters each day. That’s right, MAKES 200-300.
There are no secrets for success. Work hard, work smart, be dedicated and good things will happen.
Video of the Month: New Jonny Flynn Drill
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009The Low Man Wins, by Luke Meier
Friday, November 27th, 2009My girlfriend and I recently got a puppy named Eddie. Although he doesn’t understand that he shouldn’t go to the bathroom on the carpet or that everything in the house isn’t a chew toy, basketball players at all levels can learn something from this little pup because he plays low. One of Eddie’s things to do is try to rip a little, red stuffed animal out of my hands. He quickly realized that the only way he can pry his toy out of my hands is to get low and use all the leverage that he can muster.
We always say that players need to “live low.” It doesn’t matter if you are an NBA all star or the last guy off the bench, playing low in a universal stance (knees bent, hips dropped, straight back) is something that any player can employ to improve their game. If you are playing on ball or help D, boxing out, spotting up for a jumper, or driving to the rack, staying low will do several things to help your game.
1) You will be in a better position to create and take contact from other players.
2) Being low puts a player in position to be as explosive as possible.
Think about it. If you were testing your vertical would you jump from a straight up and down position or would you squat down and then explode upward. Obviously you would choose the latter.
Although playing lower is something you can do to make yourself better right now, you need to train you body to be able to stay in a stance at all times. In workouts, practices, and games make a conscious effort to monitor the height at which you play the game. Once you become accustomed to playing low it will be second nature. If you don’t know if you are playing low enough, remember that it is close to impossible to play “too low.” You can ask me or you can ask Eddie, but we will both tell you the same thing: The Low Man Always Wins.
3 Ways to Catch Your Coach’s Attention, by Luke Meier
Thursday, November 19th, 2009Players are often times looking for a quick fix to improve their games. There are no “quick fixes” in the game of basketball, but there are some things that you can do without any practice that can help you get the attention you may be looking for from your coaches. Here are three things you can implement immediately that will definitely catch your Coach’s eye.
1. Communicate! Coaches are always trying to get their players to communicate better on the floor. Talking is something that any player can do regardless of skill level. Don’t be shy or scared to be vocal on the floor, it’s something you can do right now to make your team better.
2. Be First In Line! Coaches notice when players gravitate towards the front or end of lines in practice. In order to get in the front of the line, you will have to hustle. Always being in the front of the line will show your Coach that you want to be a leader, you understand the need to be efficient in practice, and that you are eager to start drills and improve. Again, this is something you can do immediately that will improve your team.
3. Make Eye Contact! When your Coaches addresses you make sure that you look them in the eye. Keeping eye contact shows that you are listening to the Coach and what they are saying is important to you. Talking, bouncing a ball, or not paying attention sends a message that you would rather be doing something else with your time.
Motivational Quotes, by Alan Stein
Wednesday, November 18th, 2009I have been a self diagnosed “quote nerd” for as long as I can remember. Back in high school in the early 90’s, I started with a spiral notebook and a pen and wrote down every quote I found inspiring. Quotes from movies, coaches, books, signs… you name it… if I saw it or heard it, I wrote it down. Years later, I converted the growing collection into a computer database and added to it as often as I could.
As a professional basketball strength & conditioning coach, a big part of my job is to motivate my players to work hard consistently; to get them to do the things they don’t’ want to do because I know it will help them get to where they want to go. So there have been countless occasions where the inspiration from a specific quote has come in handy. I use quotes as tools to motivate my players as well as motivate myself. While I am strength & conditioning coach by trade, my overall goal in life is simple; to inspire, to motivate, to influence and to help anyone who is passionate about basketball and training. I have found quotes are a valuable tool in doing just that. I am extremely thankful to have platforms like Twitter, Facebook and my blog to impact players and coaches of all ages and levels… all over the world!
If you have followed me on any of those social media platforms, you know I have been posting 5-6 quotes a day for the past year. I have received a ton of positive feedback in response to the quotes I have shared and have had dozens of folks ask me to compile them in a book. So that’s what I’ve done! I just recently compiled my favorite inspirational quotes in a new e-book:
534 Motivational Quotes to Inspire Success On and Off the Court
It is important to understand this e-book is merely a collection of my favorite quotes. I am not the original author of any of the quotes. I intentionally chose not to list the original author for any of the quotes for the simple fact I only know around 20% of them (and didn’t want to put “unknown” or “anonymous” for the remaining 80%)!
I am sure you have heard (or read) many of quotes I compiled, but I am confident there are several that you haven’t. I tried to pick quotes that transcend sports and are applicable to life as well. After all, life is the game we are all playing.
You can purchase a downloadable copy of 534 Motivational Quotes to Inspire Success On and Off the Court at http://Shop.StrongerTeam.com. In addition to the 534 motivational quotes, I added a bonus section: 27 Books Every Coach and Player Should Read. This e-book is an invaluable resource for coaches and players at every level.
Here are 5 of my favorite quotes from the e-book that are too long to post on Twitter:
- 1. Persistence and patience is exemplified by the stonecutter who hammers away at a piece of rock. He may hit the rock 100 times without so much as a crack showing. Then, on the 101st hit, the rock will split in two. It was not that hit that did it, but an accumulation of all that came before it.
- 2. Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. Moral? It doesn’t matter who you are, when the sun comes up, you better start running!
- 3. If you can’t risk, you can’t grow. If you can’t grow, you can’t become your best. If you can’t become your best, you can’t be happy. If you can’t be happy, what else matters?
- 4. Watch your thoughts, they become your words. Watch your words, they become your actions. Watch your actions, they become your habits. Watch your habits, they become your character. Watch your character, it becomes your destiny.
- 5. Champions do not become champions on the court. They become recognized on the court. They become champions because of their daily routine and commitment to excellence. Players do not decide their future; they decide their habits and their habits decide their future!
I hope you enjoy these quotes as much as I do and use them to motivate yourself and those around you. I wish each of you the absolute best this season. Please keep me posted to how you are doing and drop me an email if I can be of service in any way (Alan@StrongerTeam.com).
Play hard. Have fun.
Alan Stein
Maximizing Your Time, by Mike Lee
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009I received this question in an email from a parent the other day. “How do you maximize your time when it’s getting cold out and dark early?”.
I really believe it is crucial to continue to work on your skills during the season. Most coaches focus on their offensive and defensive systems during practice so it is up to you to find time to work on your individual skills.
1. Knock Out Before School: When I was younger I would knock out some ball handling drills before I went to school in the morning. I would either do these out in the driveway or in the basement. See if your coach or phy ed teacher will let you into the gym so you can get a workout in before school.
2. Get to Practice Early or stay late: If no one is practicing before you get to the gym early or stay after. Ask your coach or better yet, a teammate, to stay after and get up a 200-300 threes after practice. You can get up 300 threes in 20-30 minutes if you have someone rebounding for you!
3. Use your basement or garage (yeah it might be cold, wear gloves!)
4. Before games: Before games in high school I would almost always get shots up. I think this is a great way to get prepared for a game. Go early to an NBA game and you will see guys working out, sweating and getting shots up before their game.
Last year when I was working out Sam Price, from Eau Claire North, we used to go shoot about 500 shots before her games. Is that too much? I don’t know, she is now on a full ride at Kent State. You tell me!
The bottom line is that all of these options require you to make a choice. You have a choice to sleep or get up before school to workout. You have a choice to get to practice early or play video games. Great players find a way!
The Magic Drill, by Mike Lee
Saturday, November 14th, 2009More and more I am finding that players are looking for a magic drill that is going to instantly make them a better player. Yes, we do a lot of drills with 2 Balls, Tennis Balls and are always looking for ways to challenge players, but there isn’t a drill out there that is going to make you an All-Conference or All-State player unless you do it thousands of times with correct technique at game speed. There is a reason why Kobe Bryant makes 1,000 shots per day, 6 days a week in the summer. No matter how great a drill there is no substitute for a work ethic. The motivation we make up new drills is because there are 2 things that will kill a workout:
1. Fatigue
2. Boredom
By coming up with new drills and challenging players we are trying to eliminate the boredom factor. With that being said it is important to keep drills appropriate to the player’s skill level. In Geoff Colvin’s book, Talent is Overrated, he states that students have a comfort zone, learning zone and panic zone. If you doing a drill that is way over a player’s skill level you put them in their panic zone and are not going to benefit from the drill. Most likely they will become frustrated because they are unable to achieve any success with the drill. You want to use drills that are in a player’s learning zone, which is where they will achieve some success, enough to keep them interested in a drill, but not to the point where they have mastered it.
The key to success is not finding a magic drill (there isn’t one!), but rather not becoming bored with repetition.
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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 Wisconsin-Stout with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a self-planned concentration in Basketball Entrepreneurship.
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http://www.youtube.com/mikeleebasketball
Is 1 on 1 a waste of time?, by Mike Lee
Thursday, November 12th, 2009I was speaking with a friend the other day about how much time he should spend in practice focusing on individual instruction in practice for his high school team. One aspect that came up was playing 1 on 1. I really believe that playing 1 on1, the correct way, is one of the most overlooked ways to improve your game both offensively and defensively. Think about it. How hard should it really be to defend someone when he has the entire floor to use?
1. If you can defend your own player, keep them in front and contest the face on the shot your team defense will be much better.
2. If you can beat your defender off the dribble, make the defense help and closeout, how much better will that make your offense?
If you can get players to defend with the same mindset as they should when they play 1 on 1 I think that can benefit your team defense tremendously. Playing 1 on 1 there is an increased sense of accountability because “it’s all on me”.
I got this drill from Ganon Baker, Nike Skills Academy Drirector, at a clinic a couple years ago. Check out the KOBE 1 on 1 drill below.
