Offense - team objectives

All coaches, based on their respective philosophy, have points of emphasis and objectives for their teams. As mentioned previously, those points will be based on personnel, desired style of play, and a host of other factors. On the offensive side of the ball, consider stressing the following to achieve success:

• want to get a shot EVERY possession, so we must take care of the basketball (that concept of possession value requires constant reinforcement)
• ideally want a layup or post up - if not available then need crisp ball movement (always preach and appreciate the unselfish extra pass)
  
• need to generate three point shots that come as a result of inside out passes (again the emphasis of patience after post reception and shooters moving/spacing)
• want to change sides of the floor because defense is strongest on the first entry (ball pressure and help side is in place - need to break that down and beat in recovery)
  

Point guard - profile of success

Successful point guards possess many talents - perhaps the greatest among them is the ability to make their teammates better. When discussing the best at the PG position, Jason Kidd's name should definitely be a part of the conversation. Watch the following profile. Listen to the attributes. Pay attention to the eyes. See the entire larger play plus the fine smaller details - just as Jason Kidd sees them.

Link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh1DalWSuAc&feature=player_embedded#

Perhaps the most pertinent line in the commentary is "Playing the point isn't about threading the needle through a handful of defenders. It's about finding your scorers and placing the ball exactly where THEY want to catch it." With thanks to Rob Mahoney, The Two Man Game, Jason Kidd, the Dallas Mavericks, and the NBA.

Learning from BIG games

Big games are part of every team's schedule. You have to prepare for them. Kentucky and Louisville had a well publicized one yesterday. As much as it was not necessarily the best game ever, in a way it was - because it was real. Yesterday's big game in Lexington proved that sports are played by people, not robots. There may have been moments during the game when the two coaches wished they had robots on the court executing, but the learning and teaching of young men would not have happened.

Yesterday's much-hyped game between two historic rivals provided many lessons for coaches and players alike:

• there is no such thing as TOO MUCH work on individual fundamentals such as shots from in close, layups, footwork (offence and defence), passing, box-outs, close-outs, staying on your feet when defending up fakes, etc.
• players are NOT robots, emotions play a role in their games and those emotions need to be self-controlled (so that their coach is not forced to remove a player 8 seconds in to the game in order to have a nose to nose discussion about maintaining a cool head)
• teams can NEVER GIVE UP, whether they are down 13-1, 25-12 or any other score, there is always an opportunity to fight back and be up 42-41 after plenty of dedicated play
• teams need to always be working on small and large group concepts of spacing, talking, proper rotations, defending ballscreens, group rebounding, trapping, etc.
• given the pace of play and expended energy, proper hydration becomes even more important (to maintain energy, prevent cramps, etc.), especially for the players that will log the most minutes
  
• in order to best replicate a high stakes game versus a tough opponent/traditional rival in an away gym with an unfriendly crowd, practices must resemble chaos with multiple odds stacked against a group of five players that they must then battle through with poise
• a disruptive full court defence must be practiced - yesterday's game proved that a tough D is effective against even the most highly rated and determined point guards (in practice, it also serves to better prepare your own point guard for what they should expect to see from tough opposition - in that way, it is mutually rewarding)
• you don't always have to buy professional dvd's about certain aspects of the sport - taping an important game for your own viewing pleasure and analysis is equally, if not more, beneficial
  

Material for practice plans

Some thoughts to help with the planning of practices. The list below contains some drills or concepts to include in every practice:

• in order to get lots of shots in a simple shooting drill, go with two balls and three shooters (or 3 balls with four shooters depending upon space availability), feet always moving, rotation is space to a shot, catch and shoot, follow shot and rebound to another "shot ready" teammate, space to a new spot and quickly "prepare to shoot"
  
• in any drill, always reinforce that shot quality is greatly determined by the quality of the pass - need to emphasize quality passing in all drills
• include at least three defensive rebounding drills per day (emphasis on catching the ball above the head or above the net), with progression to box outs into fullcourt transition to simulate game conditions for the new offence and defence (want to promote handling the challenge of the quick switch between offence and defence)
  
• in any drill that results in a winning team, they should validate their win with a made free throw (depending upon philosophy or emphasis, coach can pick, losing team can pick, or winning team can select the shooter) - if free throw is missed, then the winners and losers will be conditioned together (no advantage for the win)
  
• in defensive drills, consider that most ball-handlers are likely to only take max of three dribbles in game conditions so defensive movements should mirror that scenario in practice (three slides to one side before help arrives, ball picked up, passed, or shot) - good idea to start along the imaginary centre line of the court and work to one side or the other (2 or 3 steps left or right)