Posts Tagged ‘milwaukee basketball training’

Illinois Select Workout, by Mike Lee

Friday, January 29th, 2010

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.

mike@mikeleebasketball.com

Check Out More Videos, Add me as a friend on Facebook or Get Updates on Twitter!

www.mikeleebasketball.com

http://www.youtube.com/mikeleebasketball

http://www.facebook.com/mikeleebasketball

http://www.twitter.com/mikeleehoops

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Can You Beat Me Skills Contest

Friday, January 22nd, 2010

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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!

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Innovative Basketball Training: Jay Wolf’s Shooting Strap

Tuesday, January 12th, 2010

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.

mike@mikeleebasketball.com

Check Out More Videos, Add me as a friend on Facebook or Get Updates on Twitter!

www.mikeleebasketball.com

http://www.youtube.com/mikeleebasketball

http://www.facebook.com/mikeleebasketball

http://www.twitter.com/mikeleehoops

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Self Made Players, by Luke Meier

Monday, January 11th, 2010

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.

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Weaknesses Part III: Finishing, by Luke Meier

Wednesday, January 6th, 2010

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:

  1. 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.
  2. 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!
  3. 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.

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It’s Where You Finish, by Luke Meier

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

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Young Buck, by Luke Meier

Thursday, December 3rd, 2009

Since 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.

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Video of the Month: New Jonny Flynn Drill

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

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The Low Man Wins, by Luke Meier

Friday, November 27th, 2009

My 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.

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Maximizing Your Time, by Mike Lee

Tuesday, November 17th, 2009

I 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!

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