Tool of the Day Archive April 2008

April 30 DRIVE SAFELY Work with your baseline drivers to attack the posting block, not the backboard.  Just like a post move, if a driver powers up to the basket from the block, s/he can protect the ball from being blocked from behind with his or her body.  If a driver goes up to the basket from between the backboard and the posting block there is too much of a chance to get the shot blocked without a foul.  Protect the ball using the rim, the body , and extending the arms to the basket from the posting block when finishing a drive.

April 29 BE LIKE MIKE Wouldn't it be great if all of our players wanted to "be like Mike" in terms of his passion for the game, his competitive drive, and his work ethic? If you have not seen these two commercials with two really good messages for players from Michael Jordan, take a minute to look at them.  In one, he describes his many failure as his reason to succeed and the other relates his work ethic and not his "flash" as being the key to his success.

April 28 MATCH UP! Even if you are not playing man to man defense, have an assistant coach or a statistician watch the scorer's bench during timeouts and quarter breaks to track any substitutions being made by your opponent.  If you are in man, make sure to adjust your defensive matchups as you break the huddle.  If you are in zone, remind your players of the scouting report for the new player you will be defending.

April 25 TWO HANDS ARE BETTER THAN ONE Here's one for the "It's not what you teach, it's what you emphasize" file.  Work very, very hard with your teams to always grab a loose ball with two hands, then chin it like a rebound, rather than trying to dribble it to obtain possession.  When the ball is loose and several players are going for it, trying to dribble the ball in that crowd that has been attracted will result in just another loose ball for your opponent to grab with two hands and chin.

April 24 GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE If you emphasize a low post attack, chart the number of times each player feeds the post.  That emphasized to your players how important you feel feeding the post is.  When something is measured, it tends to improve.  Collapsing the defense opens up the perimeter, so you are measuring that by charting post feeds.  We also like the idea of charting passes that lead to good shots in your shot charting system, not only when an assist is credited for a made shot, but also for a missed good shot or when the shooter is fouled.  The passer who gets the ball to open shooters for good shots  should not be at the mercy of  the shot being made to get credit.

April 23 THE Xs AND Os OF BASKETBALL We have had a hard time finding good coaching discussion forums.  We found a really good one last week and wanted to share it with you.  The Xs and Os of Basketball has several topics including career advice, technology, transition offense, halfcourt offense, zone defense, a discussion for trading coaching resources, and many other interesting and useful topics. If you check it out, you are sure to come away with several great ideas!

April 22 SIX POINT CONTESTING DEFENSIVE DRILL We found a free video of a great defensive drill from Coach K and the Duke Men's Program.  Click here to see the Six Point Contesting Defensive Drill.  If you don't already run this drill, we bet you will next year!

April 21 FAKE IT TO MAKE IT Fake a pass, to make a pass. Fake a cut to make a cut.

April 18 ANOTHER GENERAL Competitive sports keep alive in us a spirit and vitality. Sports teach the strong to know when they are weak and the brave to face themselves when they are afraid; to be proud and unbowed in defeat, and yet humble and gentle in victory; to master ourselves before we attempt to master others; to learn to laugh, yet never forget how to weep; and to give the predominance of courage over timidity. General Douglas MacArthur

April 17 TO FOUL OR NOT TO FOUL? We encourage you to take some time to think about whether or not you would  foul with a 3 point lead in the last 10, 7, 5, seconds of a game.  Come up with a plan, work on your execution during basketball practice, and stick to it in the heat of the game.  The link will take you to The statistical case for fouling to protect a three point lead.

April 16 WHEN PAT SUMMITT TALKS... In her book, Reach for the Summit, Pat Summitt explains a system she uses for players to acknowledge that they heard her in basketball practice.  If she corrects something, the player responds with "Rebound" and if she praises something, the response is "Two Points."  Using this system, she knows that they heard what she had to say without having to ask.  You can read a free excerpt from the book by clicking on the book name above or can see a free clip from her Definite Dozen DVD by clicking here.

April 15 THE BOTTOM LINE Morgan Wrote says, 'This is the bottom line: Are we doing all we can to make our players' basketball experience as rewarding as possible?'

April 14 MENTAL TOUGHNESS There are hundreds and hundreds of definitions of mental toughness. Here is a place to start as mental toughness applies to basketball.

Mental toughness is the ability to control thoughts and actions and maintain a focus on what is truly important in a calm and poised way under competitive pressure.

If you haven't visited our site in a while, we just added a section on mental toughness with several great links and books on teaching and improving mental toughness.

April 10 OUTLAST 'EM In "A Season With Coach Dick Bennett," Coach Bennett tells his team:

"We must OUTLAST the offense on every possession!  Great defense takes consistent effort and commitment to excellence, every second of every basketball practice and every game.  It is not good enough to just go through the motions, to give the impression that you are trying, that you care.  You must take PRIDE in your defense, in your effort, and be committed to OUTLASTING your opponent.  You have to believe that!  Anything less gives our opponents the edge.  Gentlemen, we must OUTLAST the offense on every possession.  That must be our foundation." If you are interested in reading free excerpts from the book, click Then click on "Look inside the book" This link is to a page with a short video segment from a defensive clinic Coach Bennett gave.

April 9 GETTING OPEN To get open with or without the ball, teach players to change speeds and change directions and drill it in basketball practice.  Even if the defensive player is quicker or faster, it does no good to move faster than the player being guarded.  The defense must adjust to the speed and direction of the offense. If the offensive player changes speeds and directions, the defense does not know when that change is coming and is constantly being put in catch up mode.

April 8 TAKE THE RESPONSIBILITY"Don't give orders that can be understood, only give orders that cannot be misunderstood." --General Douglas MacArthur

April 7 RECORD IT AND REWARD IT Find a way to chart and reward players for the things you emphasize in your system of play. Click here to read the rest of this article 

April 4 MILK A MINUTE Think about putting in a system where you can milk a lead (and maybe a minute off the clock) without going into a full blown delay.  Sometimes if you are just running your offense and it appears that you just can't get a shot, you can run some clock before your opponent is able to adjust with more defensive pressure or trapping.  Have a call or signal for nothing but a wide open layup within your normal offense or run a continuity that doesn't lead to shot opportunities.

April 3 TIMEOUT! Consider always calling your 30 second timeouts first.  That way everyone on your bench knows what to expect and you can get right into your huddle.  The length of the timeout won't be in debate at the end of a close game--one less decision to make and less confusion to deal with.  It also leaves your long timeouts for the end of the game when you need a little more time to talk and rest.

April 2 WINNING "Winning is a by-product of working hard and doing things the right way."--Coach Wes Peek. Focus on the processes of hard work and doing the right things the right way and everyone in your program will be winners.

April 1 FALSE HUSTLE Make it a rule in your defensive system that a player does not dive for a steal or run through a passing lane and take him or herself out of the play.  Even though it looks like hustle, it has created a 5 on 4 advantage for the offense, and that is hard to defend.  Teach your players that sprinting to their new defensive position when each pass is in the air is a lot more productive use of hustle than running or diving through passing lanes.