Posts Tagged ‘milwaukee basketball training’
It’s Where You Finish, by Luke Meier
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009Young 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.
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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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.
It Doesn’t Just Happen, by Mike Lee
Friday, October 16th, 2009Continuous Improvement, by Luke Meier
Tuesday, October 13th, 2009As the NBA season gets close to tip-off, I am always interested to see what skills or moves players have added to their games over the summer. When players return with a new and/or improved skill set for the beginning of a season, it means that they have put a great deal of time and hard work into their games. It also means that the player has a desire to be better, they aren’t satisfied with where they are.
Regardless of what you did or didn’t do over the summer as players there is always room for improvement. Working on your game isn’t about where you are right now; it’s about where you are going. Where will you be in a month, six month, a year from now? Making large improvements in the culmination of several smaller improvements over time.
Throughout the course of you season I challenge you to not settle, and put in the extra time to really get better. Set goals for yourself to accomplish before or after each practice. Maybe its 15 minutes of extra 2 ball drills and 15 minutes of extra shooting off the catch. Schedule your workouts, write them down, and then make a commitment to completing them each day. If you are detailed and efficient with you time, you will be amazed at the improvements you can make over the course of time.
