"The Edge" The Ultimate in Youth Basketball Training

How To Make Your High School Basketball Team

2011-05-17T20:56:00.000-07:00

Today's special guest, Coach Marcus Konde, Head Girls Basketball Coach at Fairfax High School, gives us his version of what a high school coach is looking for in a player.

Below is the link the interview. Listen closely. Take notes and enjoy.

Feel free to share with a friend.

Comments are always appreciated.

Easy Steps to Get Your Players to Play with Confidence

2011-05-17T20:53:00.000-07:00

This article is a continuation of the previous posting where we discussed what your child or player should learn.

Coaching is a matter of building player’s confidence, especially at this age (6-9) when they are just at the beginning stages.

When players are confident they will:

• Practice more
• Challenge themselves
• And find the game more enjoyable.

You may ask how you build their confidence?

Here are the 3 steps, I usually take when teaching this age group.

1) Create Fun Easy Drills

This group drills should concentrate on ballhandling, such as dribbling & passing. I break down passing into two sections: catching and receiving.

The players must be able to see themselves performing the drills. The simpler, the better. One of the easiest drills is the Isiah 7, and it presents a challenge to the players because it requires the same rotation of drills from both hands

2) Demonstrate
Many coaches tell players what to do rather than show them. This age group is very visually oriented, and learns quicker when shown how. This only mirrors society as a whole. Even more of these postings will be via video.

3) Give Praise
Younger players want to please their coach and/or parent(s). They thrive on praise.

So Give it to them!

As a coach/parent it is easy to fall into the trap of focusing on all the things a 6-9 year old is doing wrong.

Be special!

Focus on what they are doing right and let them know about it!

Their confidence and enjoyment levels will soar and so will yours.

Ballhandling (ISIAH 7)
As promised, here is a drill you can use with very little space required. I will have a ton to say on this subject later, but for now just click the link below and get busy!

http://www.bestyouthhoops.com/Test/wp/blog/?p=176

Post your comments below and make sure to share with a friend

What Skills Should Your Players Learn

2011-05-17T20:51:00.000-07:00

The past couple of weeks have been one of great observation to narrow the focus of training for various age groups.

Generally, we want all of our players to master the basics of ballhandling, defense, shooting as well as knowledge of the game. Wouldn't that be the ultimate player at any age?

As we very well know, it takes time to mold a complete player.

That is why have broken down my observations into 3 age groups.

1) 6-9

2) 10-11

3) 12-14

Today's posting will concentrate on the 6-9 age group.

What I have found is as follows:

Players ages 6-9 need to learn the basic movements, not just of a particular sport, but footwork and stances that will assist them many sports. There is a posting on this site about the magic position as a starting point for many sports.

From this position take them into many activities that incorporate running, jumping, stopping, changing directions.

For basketball specific fundamentals, if you begin in the magic position with a basketball, you are now in the triple threat position. This is where you have the option of passing, shooting, and dribbling.

Primarily, with this group you spend most of your time teaching ballhandling skills which includes dribbling, passing, and receiving.

Right now I can stop and say this all they need to learn. Many times we get caught up in looking at the whole rather the parts. In youth basketball, most points are scored within 5 feet of the basket because a player who has tremendous footwork and ballhandling skills usually is attempting quite a few layups. Notice I said attempting, not making.(There will be a posting on this later)

Certainly, you want them to learn how to shoot properly, especially layups. What you will find is making layups is mainly a matter of having proper footwork.

While having proper footwork is important on the offensive side, it’s more significant for defensive purposes.
Usually a quick fix for lack of footwork is play zone defense. If any of you have been reading the previous posts, you will know I don’t consider zone until age 14. That’s just a matter of opinion.

The next post will cover some cool drills you can implement for this age group.

7 Easy Steps to Becoming a Top Dribbler

2011-05-17T20:48:00.001-07:00

As we know dribbling is a key component of basketball. Proper dribbling takes practice and patience.

Players should start with stationary drills and move into more movement drills with each of the steps.

A great drill brought to my attention and used by my players as well as students is the "Isiah 7". It's simple and easy and can be perfected without much effort.

Best part you don't need much space. Do this in the driveway, sidewalk, patio, basement, garage, etc.

Below is a video taken by Coach Barry Thompson with Leila Thompson performing the drill.

The 7 steps are:

1) right side dribble
2) left side dribble
3) Side V, right hand
4) Side V, left hand
5) Front V, right hand
6) Front V, left hand
7) Crossover

Make sure the players keep good basketball positioning with their heads up while dribbling.

Leave comments and share with a friend.

What is the Magic Position in Basketball?

2011-05-17T20:46:00.000-07:00

This is the 2nd of 2 videos regarding cueing and how your players respond to your commands.

To some coaches, there is nothing magical about the position, but to players using the words can trigger an immediate positive response.

Click the link below to find out how:

Dribble, Pass, Shoot Clinic

2011-05-17T20:44:00.000-07:00

[gallery]Below is video of the January 31st "Dribble, Pass, Shoot" Clinic

How Do Your Players Respond To Your Drills?

2011-05-17T20:40:00.000-07:00

Over the past 2 weeks, I have been involved with Coach Barry Thompson in putting on full day youth basketball clinics on 2 separate days.

We have rehashed and discussed what was discovered at each of those events.

One of the topics was regarding "cueing" and it's effectiveness in getting players to respond to various drills.

"The Edge" has upgraded it's blog to include video blogging, and below Coach Thompson explains what cueing means to both coaches and players.

Enjoy and Feel free to Share with a friend.

Can Your Youth Basketball Player Complete This Move?

2011-05-17T20:32:00.000-07:00

The real question is do they have the athletic ability to play defense, dribble past their man, create space to get off their shot, etc?

This type of training goes by many different names ranging from agility training to footwork skills. Most of the skills can be taught without a basketball and usually cover a variety of sports.

For basketball purposes, they need to be taught:

* How to jump and land
* Move in different directions
* Elusiveness
* How to make quick power moves, stop/slowdown, and make that
power move again

I was watching the Dallas Mavericks play last week and the announcer commented how Dirk Nowitzki's basketball coach demanded lots of footskill work and encourage him to play another sport.

While he is a very talented player at 7'1", his work habits on the very basics has made him into a great player.

I believe all youth should play at least 2 sports. They will be able to use different muscles groups and further enhance those that are used in multiple sports.

Below is the play button to a fun interview with Barry Thompson regarding agility training.

Side note: There no basketball secrets. Whatever knowledge you receive graciously pass along to another coach, player, parent with expecting anything in return. It will come back to you in great quantities.

Great Program For Female Athletes

2010-11-28T14:10:00.000-08:00

If you lhave a daughter who plays sports or if you are a coach for a girls team, this interview is a must listen.

“The Stronger Woman is a non-profit organization, founded by Steph Wood, whose mission to inspire females of all ages to develop permanent spiritual, mental, emotional and physical strength through athletic competition, camps, motivational speaking and mentoring.”

They are various programs such as: teams, sports programs, mentoring, and community service programs.

Click below for an exclusive interview with Coach Steph.

Make sure to share with player, parent or coach and leave comments.

Who’s Passing Up This Opportunity?

2010-11-18T21:06:00.000-08:00

Passing the basketball is a learned art, just like shooting, dribbling, and many other aspects of the game. You have to practice the fundamentals and then also add in a mix of situations where the conditionals aren’t ideal.

Here’s a super fun drill which every team I have coached has enjoyed. It’s called the Ring of Fire.

I first found it at the site: http://www.akcoach.com/index.htm

Again posted by Coaches Ed Riley and Steve Jordan.

Below is the reprint:

Five players or more stand in a pretty wide circle, with one more player in the middle of the circle. The player in the middle has a ball, and a player on the circle has a ball.

The middle player bounce passes it to a player next to the outside player with the ball. At the same time, the outside player with the ball passes to the middle player. The middle player catches and passes to the next player, while receiving a pass from the last player with the ball.

Confusing? Kids love this drill so I am going to take the time to explain it. Imagine you have a big pie cut into 5 pieces. The center of the pie is where your middle player stands.

Now each piece of pie is numbered one through 5. At the crust of each piece of pie stands your outside players, 1-5.

Your middle passer passes to 2, and catches 1’s pass. Then passes to 3, while catching 2’s pass. Now do you understand it? If not, draw it on a piece of paper. Once the player in the middle has passed it to everyone twice, they switch places with someone on the circle and they start passing and catching.

You do this until everyone has done it. What do you learn from this drill? To pass, catch, and use your peripheral vision.”

Make sure to post comments below and to share with us your experience in using this drill during the season

Passing: Another Fundamental Youth Basketball Players Need to Learn

2010-11-16T19:07:00.000-08:00

While some players can dribble and score from end to another or beat the defense off the dribble in a set offense, it’s the pass the makes the player a more creative and offensive player.

Passing allows the player to get the other teammates involved, thus enhancing their ability to improve. It also gives the passer a chance to develop another skill, which is moving without the ball.

I often tell my players, usually the open player is the one who just passed you the ball. That is why the give and go is a great tool to teach.

Even though rarely seen in youth basketball, it’s a beautiful thing when a team can score on a fast break with the ball touching the floor.

When you teach players the correct way to pass, it’s equally important to teach them how to receive (catch the ball). There are 2 basic drills I use when specifically teaching passes.

1) The basic fundamentals of the bounce, chest, and outlet passing as well as receiving. The players should step to pass and receive.

This what I usually do:

——————-

Coach Steve Jordan has graciously allowed me to use his site as a resource. I advise all coaches to visit it at: http://www.akcoach.com

The first new drill is a pass and catch affair. Half of your players stand on the baseline, while the other half stands on the free throw line extended.

Each player on the free throw line, lines up across from a player on the baseline. This way they can pass to each other.

Every time they pass the ball, make them step into the pass. They take one step toward the player they are passing to.

Every time they catch the ball, they should give the passer a target and take one step toward the passer with their hands outstretched to receive the pass.

I know this seems too simple but it is necessary. When my daughter was in 4th grade, she was a head taller than the rest of the kids. She was also the best pure shooter on the team.

Guess what, she only scored 6 points the whole season because she couldn’t catch the ball. That ball would bounce off of her chest, her legs, her hands, and even her head.

She got more passes stolen away from her because she refused to take the step to receive the pass. I can not stress it enough that these kids need to learn how to make sharp, crisp passes and move into the pass to receive it.

——————-

This is a good fundamental start. Tomorrow we will send you the 2nd drill I have researched and used with all of my teams. When asked what drill is their favorite, the players have overwhelmingly chosen this as their choice.

Again enjoy and feel free to ask questions either in the comment box or email me at keith@bestyouthhoops.com

My Favorite Basketball Drill

2010-11-13T11:56:00.000-08:00

Of all the dribbling drills I advocate, this one is far and beyond the best.

You can immediately see the dribbling strengths and weakness of each player.

Basically it’s a dribble suicide.

The following information was written by Ed Riley and posted by Steve Jordan on his website:

http://www.akcoach.com/index.htm

This is what Coach Riley writes:

There are several different types of suicides. This is a simple one.

A. player runs from baseline to closest free throw line and back

B. then player runs from baseline to half court and back

c. then player runs from baseline to furthest free throw line and back

d. then player runs from baseline to opposite baseline and back

Try running this yourself at full speed, and you’ll understand why it’s called a SUICIDE. Now the drill is to see who is fast, who is able to start and stop, and who has endurance. Have them all run a suicide, but they must slap the floor when they reach a free throw line, half court line, or a baseline. At the end, rate your players.

This is how the traditional suicide is run, but look what happens if you add dribbling.

Have them compete in groups, so you can pay more attention to each player. They do a suicide while dribbling a basketball. They still have to slap the floor at the given intervals. This will start to let you see who your ball handlers are.

A very simple drill where you can the dribbling skill level of your players.

Do this and you will have saved yourself a lot of time.

Enjoy and feel free to share and post comments

Youth Basketball Coaches: Teach Your Players to Dribble

2010-11-08T19:44:00.000-08:00

The previous posting discussed the most popular question of what youth basketball coaches should teach their players.
http://tinyurl.com/2g3uo73

As promised, I will provide you some insight into each of the fundamentals that are necessary for youth basketball players.

Let’s start with dribbling.

Even before we begin with dribbling, the first step is basic ball handling.
Being able to control the basketball is a very key step in becoming an accomplished dribbler.

Some of the drills include:
* fingertip drills
* figure eight
* front V
* Side V
* ball slaps
* Candy Cane

Here you can see the video taken from one of “The Edge” basketball agility training classes. Click the link below:
http://bestyouthhoops.com/Test/wp/blog/?p=90

Once you have learned these you can add:

* Between the leg V
* Figure 8 dribble

Those are the very basics. Remember, with each drill make sure your players practice dribbling with both hands and going in both directions.

Be sure to leave comments.

Youth Basketball Coaches: What You Should Teach Your Players

2010-11-04T21:14:00.000-07:00

Over the past couple of days, I have received a few questions regarding various aspects of youth basketball.

Some of the same questions have been asked multiple times by numerous coaches, usually by those who are just beginning or by others who want to brush up on their knowledge base.

By far the most popular question is:

* What should I teach the players?

Answer: I’d like to answer this in 2 steps and break the question into 2 parts.

First, the question can be rephrased to: How should I teach my players?

The best way to get your point across is to keep it simple and do it with enthusiasm!! Not necessarily jumping up and down and putting on a circus act, but generally showing the kids this fun for you and you will make it fun for them.

You have to capture their attention. These kids are like sponges and if you make it simple and fun, their learning will be tremendous as well as yours.

The key is to demonstrate, not just tell.

Second: What should you teach your players?

You must teach them the fundamentals such as:

* dribbling
* passing
* defense (no zone.. yeah, yeah, I know some of you think it’s crazy, but man-to-man is the way to go)

Once they have success at this, they will see themselves improving and will be more willing to take on additional challenges.

Each day I will delve into the fundamentals above and provide you with my favorite drills to enhance your player’s development.

Of course, you must make sure they know the rules of the game and what is allowed your league.

For instance, some leagues for U-9 allow 6 seconds in the lane, and once you reach the U-10 and above level, it goes back to 3 seconds.

I even heard of one club only permitting man-to-man defense.

Hope this provides you with some insight into the groundwork you need to implement.

Have a great season.

Feel free to leave comments for discussion and share with a fellow coach, player and parent.

Are Coaches Passionate About Teaching Your Kids?

2010-10-26T17:40:00.000-07:00

Starting a program from scratch can be a very trying ordeal; however, with passion and desire you can accomplish just about anything your mind perceives.

Over the past few months, I have noticed such an individual in the San Antonio, Texas area who displays much of the attributes needed to be successful in any endeavor.

Basketball is his passion, and working with youth as well as established players appears to be his “calling”.

I recently had the privelege of interviewing Coach Tim Springer, and became more of a fan than I already was.

Click the play button button and listen for yourselves. Feel free to share with other parents and coaches and don’t hesitate to leave comments

Basketball Video: Something Old, Something New

2010-10-19T20:40:00.000-07:00

The Edge" videos were taken this summer mainly as a review guide for the players between classes. This allows them to practice just a few minutes a day on the skills learned in the prior class.

The following video encompasses some older ballhandling drills as well as newer ones. Youth basketball coaching is about constantly teaching and encouraging the players to use what they learn and to challenge themselves to newer heights.

As part of the agility training we strive to make sure the players keep a proper stance and balance so they can shift quickly from one move to another with or without the ball.

A complete basketball player will need the basic skills necessary to compete and the athleticism and balance to be able to implement their moves.

Drills You Can Practice On Your Own

2010-09-25T12:56:00.000-07:00

First day of "The Edge".. What the beginner's can do right in their own basement, backyard, sidewalk, roof (just kidding)

How Can A Soccer Guy Teach You About the Benefits of Free Play in Youth Basketball?

2010-09-15T19:23:00.000-07:00

Coach Mike Thompson discusses why “free play” is important and it’s benefits.

He’s created an event called “Soccer Festivals”. Can you see how this transfers to basketball or other sports?

Click the play button below to find out how.

Interview with Coach Ronn

2010-08-30T19:27:00.000-07:00

Coach Ronn discusses his philosophy on life and basketball.. Also, provides insight into how coaches should coach and how to setup your practice when you have limited time.

Click the play button below to review the interview with Coach Ronn Wyckoff

Agility Training and Why It's Important To Youth Basketball Players

2010-08-10T19:10:00.000-07:00

Coach Thompson discusses the reasoning behind the agility training and how it can enhance a player's enthusiasm and keep them involved in sports, and much more.

The link below is an interview with Coach Barry Thompson

1st Training Session, the Future Stars are Aligned

2010-06-20T08:48:00.000-07:00

How to Deal with Coaches

2010-06-16T19:42:00.000-07:00

It is important that, as a parent, you have clean open lines of communication with your player’s coach. All coaches are not created equal, so this can be a challenge at times.

Use these tips to get along with any coach.

1. LOOK IN THE MIRROR.

Volunteer Youth Coaches are just like you.

They have busy professional and personal lives. Just like you.

They are pressed for time. Like you.

They have worries. Like you.

They do not have enough time in the day. Like you.

When you are busy and rushed, how do you want people to approach you with questions?

2. DO NOT COACH.

If you want to volunteer coach do it.

Otherwise, do not coach.

To be effective, every coach needs the “authority” to coach. In volunteer coaching, that “authority” is granted by you, the parent, by not coaching.

Coaches are not high and mighty, but they are the adults in charge. When children hear competing adult voices, they can become confused and will begin to shut out all adult voices.

Imagine, in your house, while you are trying to instruct your child, multiple adults begin talking to your child at once and all saying different things.

Not a pretty image.

Do not coach.

Cheer.

Your player will benefit and the coach will appreciate it.

3. SAY THANK YOU.

No matter what you think about your coach, all coaches do a ton of things that no one realizes.

But the biggest thing coaches do is make the time to coach because they think it is important. Without them, in many cases, your child and other children would not have a chance to play.

Remember to thank them from time to time. It will be appreciated.
____________

This article was written by Barry Thompson, FPYC Football Commissioner and Basketball Coach. For more articles, visit his blog at: http://ffxsportsparents.wordpress.com/about/

Pick and Roll: Offense For the Ages

2010-06-07T20:05:00.000-07:00

Many coaches love to run various offenses which actually appear to confuse their own players.
In previous email you were provided with 3 simple offenses you can implement right away. As promised, the pick and roll offense will be discussed. The folllowing is a excerpt written by Ed Riley, www.coachingyouthbasketball.net/chatterbox.

A well respected coach, Steve Jordan, has allowed me to provide you with the information which appeared on his site http://www.akcoach.com/index.htm. I highly recommend this site because it has been a valuable resource for me as well as thousands of youth basketball coaches and players.

Pick and Roll - This is a little harder to teach. A pick or a screen is really hard for younger kids, but so is riding a bike and they learn how to do that!

Here's how to teach a screen to younger kids. Tell them that they are a detective who has to sneak up on the bad guy and stand to the right or left of the bad guy. By the way, the bad guy is the opposing player who is guarding their teammate with the ball. Their job is to block the bad guy and stop them from following your teammate. The dribbler's job is to dribble around you and run their defender into you, so the bad guy can't follow the dribbler.

The hard part is the person doing the blocking has to keep their feet planted in one place. If they move their feet, they just fouled the other player. The next hard part is that they can't lean their body into the defender, because that too is a foul. The last part of this is that they can't use their hands or arms to block the defender. The way to avoid hands and arms is to have them cross their arms across their chest. The real secret is to get the defender to run into you. This is a pick or a screen.

So what is a pick and roll? Once you succeed in the pick, then you break to the basket looking for a pass or a rebound. All colleges and pro teams use some form of a pick and roll. This offense never goes stale, you can use it forever.

Remember, simple is good? Guess what, there is no more offense to teach you. If you can teach your team these 3 and 1/2 things in the first year, you will have accomplished what it took me 3 years to accomplish. Don't try to get fancy or complicated. You may be ready to learn new things, but your kids won't be. Remember, this game is not for you, it's for the kids. Except for some inbounds plays and things, I have just given you your whole first season's offense. If you can accomplish what I've taught you, you will be a basketball god in your league.

The following is written by Steve Jordan, aka Alaska Coach. His site and Coach Jackson's website are my basketball Encarta. And heeerrrreeee's Alaska!!

Ed "you mentioned the pick and roll. I think you should add a paragraph about how the screener should "roll." I , too, teach arms over the chest, but then have the kids lean on whichever elbow bears the brunt of the contact. The body weight freezes the defender and allows the screeners something to use as a pivot point. The end result is a perfect seal position, for a moment anyway. Too many kids will run up and bang into the defender, jump around and race to the hoop. This makes for a sloppy pick and a tough passing target. A beautiful pick is deliberate and methodical. The extra time creates extra space and gives the offense more options."

I read this and re-read it, and boy did he hit the nail on the head. For those of you who have never seen screening at the younger ages, it can be extremely ugly. Here is some of what you will see:

1. Your player is about to screen a defender, so they run into the defenders back and almost knock them over. This is a foul on your player.

2. Your player sneaks up on the defender, stands straight up, knees locked and the defender runs into your player. This sounds right, right?? Wrong, with their knees locked, your player will normally fall down or stumble. Now they are out of the mix for several seconds until they regain their feet.

3. Your player will run up to the defender, not wait for their team mate to run the defender into them, and then roll to the basket. The net result is that they never ever set the screen for their team mate.

Without waiting for the body contact and without a slight lean on the elbow and side, it is hard to actually block the defender and stop them from fighting through your pick. By slightly leaning, you will have your knees slightly bent so you don't fall, stumble, or look like an idiot. AND, you maintain your proper stance and footwork. AND YOU STOPPED THE DEFENDER from following your team mate.

Enjoy and share with a fellow coach.

Keith Smith
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We look forward to providing great information to help you with your coaching.
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3 Simple Youth Basketball Offenses to Help Your Team Score More Points

2010-03-23T07:54:00.000-07:00

Usually, I don’t write much about offenses at this level because it’s difficult enough trying to learn the fundamentals. Learning plays just takes away from the development of the player’s ability to master the basics.

With that said, my premise is before you teach offense, your players must learn how to play defense. Thus, your first basic offense is a solid defense. Play solid man-2-man defense and you will be able to steal the ball for easy layups. Maybe, I shouldn’t say easy, but it is a better shot than most shots in a set offense. Also, don’t forget rebounding as the final piece in the defensive puzzle.

What if you can’t fast break? How happens when your team has to slow down the ball?

If you are forced to run a set offense because of timeouts, turnovers, or other stoppages or slowdowns, here’s what you can do.

Each of these are very simple and require no extraordinary amount of time to learn; therefore, I don’t refer to them as plays.

Here’s what I mean:

1) Teach your players to pass and move/cut. The ultimate youth basketball give and go offense. The point guard is the player to start the offense, you can have almost any set up you wish, but I prefer to spread the floor and have the point pass to the wings and cut to the basket while facing the person to whom he/she passes.

The wing player passes the ball (if no open shot is available) to the next open player and performs the same cut towards the basket. If the wing player on the opposite site has not received the ball, they stay where there are until the ball is passed to them. Also, this creates floor balance against a fast break.

This keeps the players from staring at one player and being a spectator on the offensive end.

This offense will be covered in detail in an upcoming article written by Ed Riley.

2) Screen and roll aka pick and roll.

This takes a bit of practice, but will free up a player more open shots. Defenses at the youth level aren’t equipped to handle this just yet, primarily because they lack communication.

3) Spread offense.

This keeps the point guard from over dribbling and gets everyone involved. Works best against a zone defense where the ball is passed around the perimeter and moved til the player has and open drive to the lane for a layup.

I tried this offense a couple years ago when coaching a U-9 team. We were up by 20 points in the 4th quarter and didn’t want to run up the score. So we went to basically a “four corners” offense. Those of you who are old enough should remember the old University of North Carolina’s offense run by Phil Ford.

What I found is by passing the ball around the perimeter, the zone defense they were playing, couldn’t shift fast enough to keep up with the ball, and lanes were wide open. Actually, this is how a couple of players who hadn’t scored all year garnered their first points of the season.

Side note: What to see a confidence builder? Wait til you have a player to finally score their first points of the season. You will notice the increased enthusiasm and confidence.

This offense works well against teams who allows a defensive player to freelance or spy while the rest play zone. Eventually, the player gets tired of chasing the ball and result is open lanes.

Usually, teams allow their best offensive player to roam because most of their points scored are layups from steals.

My experience is these are the 3 simple offenses you can run without sacrificing time for fundamental drills.

Each of these will be covered in detail in subsequent articles.

Enjoy and share with a fellow coach.

Youth Basketball Coaches! Do This and Watch Your Team Improve

2010-02-26T06:01:00.000-08:00

Over the past few years, I have learned to become more of an observer of players and the skills they have or in some cases, don’t have.

Mastering these skills is a matter of how you plan to coach your team.

Are you teaching and coaching or just coaching? The difference is teaching is a matter of imparting the necessary fundamentals such as dribbling, passing, defense, and shooting layups. It usually involves repetitive, but fun drills.

While coaching is how you manage your team during game time situations. Too much of this in practice, and end up not teaching the basics.

I know it’s a simplistic definition, but hopefully you get the gist of it all.

No matter how may manuals, audios, videos, you review, your best learning as a coach will come from your own experiences. In other words, you learn by doing and this goes for your players as well.

When teaching a drill, explain the purpose, then demonstrate. Youth players can implement the drill quicker when they have an understanding of it’s meaning.

Make every drill competitive. Divide them into 2 equal teams and make drills such as suicides and layups a relay race. The losing team could do an extra suicide or the winning team could get a prize, such as lollipops. Having drills that are competitive makes the practice livelier and creates team building, What happens is the players end up cheering and encouraging their teammates and also cheering for the other team’s player who hasn’t caught up to speed.

Tip: Because I am usually crunched for time, I implement drills that cover multiple fundamentals.

Let the players choose their own drill. I can see some of you questioning my sanity, but remember the players will choose a drill that you have already used in previous practices. All they are doing is choosing the one that is most fun to them.

My team always chooses the Ring of Fire drill. Don’t know why and it’s one that requires more concentration than the others. They seem to love it and it works on their passing, pivoting, hand to eye coordination, speed, etc.

These are some quick steps you can take to improve your team’s play.

3 Key Observations This Season To Make Your Coaching Better

2010-01-19T19:21:00.000-08:00

After 8 practices and 3 games this season, there have been some interesting developments in youth basketball this year.

Sidenote: I coach a U-11 girls recreation league team this year. There is a 90 minute practice each week with a game on Saturday. So, you can imagine the helter skelter style of play in the 2nd half when full court pressing is allowed.

The first thing I've noticed this year is teams who play man to man defense are much more aggressive and foul less than those playing zone. I am sure this is because of the lateral foot movement required to play man to man.

You can put more pressure on the ball with man to man and be in better position to press when the opponent obtains possession of the ball. Also, we tend get garner more offensive rebounds against the zone defenses. Funny how this seems to work at all levels?

Secondly, running sophisticated plays is a waste of time. I really don't consider passing and cutting, and pick and roll plays. But I have seen teams use all types of motion where you can tell the players are thinking first instead of going with the flow.

It takes a quite a few practices to get flowing offensively. That is why playing man to man defense is your best offense. You can create more layup opportunities with steals. Overwhelmingly, the majority of shots made are within 5 feet of the basket.

Third and most important... the teams need to stick to more fundamentals. I know the time limits sometimes deter some coaches to shortchange this, but at least half of the practice or more should be devoted to fundamental drills.

I realize practicing gametime situations is important, especially when time is a major consideration, but how are the players ever going to create their own shot if they can't dribble properly?

How about creating steals without fouling when they have the defensive foot drills?

What about the ability to execute a proper bounce or chest pass? How do you learn this without repetition?

I am sure the rest of the season will reveal some more tidbits to add. Right now the above issues are most glaring.

Purpose of Youth Basketball Coaching

2009-12-02T19:52:00.000-08:00

This is where the fun begins!

You have chosen your team and it's practice time.

At the youth level, you have to be careful not to get too involved with wins and losses. Ten (10)years from now the kids won't care or remember how many games they won or lost.

They will remember whether or not it was an enjoyable experience.

They play because it's fun. If it wasn't fun, they would just quit.

You can have a team that will win consistently, but are you developing players individually?

My belief is at this stage (U-13), the coach is a teacher who needs to stick to the basics and develop the individual player. This doesn't mean they don't play to win, you teach them winning basketball by teaching them the basic fundamentals.

For example: You have the tallest player in the league, and he/she is great at grabbing rebounds and scoring off those rebounds.

The player is a center on your team, and you play the 2-1-2 zone.

During your practices, all the player does is hang out under the boards and grab rebounds. Your team wins lots of games.

But what have you fundamentally taught the player?

What happens when 2 years later the player is no longer the tallest player in the league or your team? Can he/she dribble to create their own shot? Is the player able to play man-2-man defense out on the wing?

My true basics are dribbling, defense (foot movement), passing, proper layup form, and shooting form. Then everything else falls as a sub drill of the above basics.

This especially holds true if you are coaching in a rec league. The time you have with your players is very limited, and the basics are necessary if you want you players to move up to more competitive leagues, such as select/travel, AAU, and high school.

We all like to win, but there is limit to what effect you have on a player to just play to win. Teach a player for a lifetime with the basics, and you will help create a winning player.

What to Look For When Selecting Your Team

2009-11-27T16:48:00.000-08:00

There are generally 2 ways of selecting your youth basketball team.

1) You have tryouts and choose a set number of players from those either invited to the tryouts or from an open tryout. This is mainly the select/travel teams choose their players.

2) You have an open evaluation where you normally have coaches ranking players based upon such skills as dribbling and shooting, and in some cases how they perform in a scrimmage. This method is primarily used for selecting players in a draft for house or rec leagues.

Regardless, what type of tryout you are holding, there skills you are looking for are basically the same.

When I drafted my team recently for a house league, the keys I looked for were:

1) Dribbling capabilities

This probably the most important attribute to have at the youth (13 and under) level. It allows you select who will be your guards. For me, the guards aren't necessarily the shortest players.

To me, this is more significant than shooting. If I have a player who can dribble well, especially if they a good defender, then layups or 10 foot shots will comprise most of their scoring.

Watch any youth game, most of the points are scored from a short distance.

2) Height

You can't teach height. Tall players are at a premium, and tall players who can dribble is even better.

Just remember, you can always teach an athletic tall player how to dribble.

3) How well they played during the scrimmage

Here you can review lots of skills at once. You can see whether the player can dribble against pressure defense, if they can pass, shoot, and most importantly, play defense.

Thankfully, the scrimmages are usually 3 x 3 where you can get a better feel for the basic skills, and they should play man-to-man defense.

4) Energy/Attitude

Does the player seem to enjoy playing? Are they coachable? Do they keep playing when things don't go their way or do they sulk?

These tips hopefully give you some idea of what you to look for when selecting your team. The next article which ties into this one will discuss the purpose of coaching.

4 Reasons Why I Continue To Harp on Playing Man-to-Man Defense

2009-11-01T20:34:00.000-08:00

Those of you who aren't familiar with my previous articles, must understand I am a youth basketball coach and gear my writings to teaching principles for ages 8-13. With this in mind, we have to appreciate the level of play and grasping of ideas from these kids.

My theory is very basic. The old KISS method. Keep It Simple Stupid. As you gain more coaching knowledge and experience, your ego tends to experiment you to experiment outside this principle.

You may ask what does this have to do with playing defense? Everything!!!

To me, teaching man-to-man defensive principles are easier to teach than zone or various gimmicky defenses you see youth teams trying to implement.

I recently read an article where the coach claims teaching man-to-man is difficult which may be true based upon his experience and methods. My experience has been it's difficult if you are impatient, but if you are patient, it's very easy to teach.

Younger kids tend to want to chase ball, and this is their naturally tendency. Watch any beginning youth team (not just in basketball), and you will see all the defenders chasing the ball. Good luck playing zone! With m2m, you want the player to defend their man and have sight of the ball at all times. This does take patience, but not as long as you may think.

There are various drills to keep players focused on this aspect of playing defense. First, I would teach them to play just their man and then teach them drills of playing man and ball. This a step by step process.

With this out the way, here are the reasons why I continue to harp on playing man-to-man defense:

1) Man to Man teams are more aggressive.

They tend to steal the ball more, rebound better, and score shooting layups ratha than jump shots.

What if you didn't have to spend so much time teaching offensive plays because your great defense led to easy scores?

When you have beginning players and limited court time, is it better teach a layup than a jump shot?

2) Better team communication.

There is more chatter amongst the players as to who you are suppose to guard. I even have players yell for help or even switch.

3) They become better defenders at other types of defenses.

If your players understand m2m principles regarding footwork, spacing, vision, etc.,. they become more adept at playing other types of defenses. To me, teaching m2m is the basic fundamental way of defending.

4) Higher level coaches prefer players who can play m2m defense.

A couple of weeks ago, I was chatting with coach from another league and he mentioned the high school coaches are questioning why very few kids are taught to play man to man. When you have players who have learned to play m2m, they are ahead of the game when it comes to playing defense. It may give the edge when competing against players for select or travel teams.

I hope this gives you some general idea of why m2m is necessary. In the next few weeks, there will be a FREE Ebook of articles from youth coaches around the country providing drills, concepts, and ideas of how to best implement m2m with your team.

Youth Basketball Practice, 3 Keys to Having a Great Practice

2009-08-23T12:56:00.000-07:00

For all coaches, especially new or inexperienced coaches, how you manage your practices will determine how much your players will pay attention, learn and implement your ideas. Youth coaches have one added issue confronting them. You will often have a player who has never played organized basketball, thus creating the need to keep things basic.

Here are 3 keys to having a great practice.

1 ) Time Management.

All coaches feel as if they don't have enough practice time. If you have a 90 minute practice, all must have an accounting of all 90 minutes. Each drill should have a set time limit as well how much time for breaks. Make sure you leave enough time at the end for scrimmages.

2) Make It Fun

Most kids at the youth level play because it's fun. It's another game to them. Others who are more serious still need coaching that holds their attention. What better way to do this than making it fun?

This begins with you. If you speak in monotones without any excitement, your team will respond accordingly. I don't mean yelling at the top of your lungs as if you are hosting one of those infomercials, but you have to be a bit animated.

What also has helped me in the past is to make each drill competitive. Divided them into 2 teams, and have each team cheer for their teammate as a criteria for extra points. The losing team runs an extra drill like suicides while the winning team watches and also cheer them the other team running the drills.

The above is a great team building exercise.

3) Keep It Simple

We all have visions of diagraming plays various defenses. Sometimes, we are our worst enemy. For time management purposes as well as keeping practice fun, we must keep it simple.
Teaching the fundamentals of dribbling, passing, defense, and shooting will take up most of your time and must be kept to as simple as possible. If your team can perform the aforementioned basics, you will have prepared them for higher level play, such as high school.

Follow these 3 keys and your practices will be a blast.

Coaching Surprises, What I Learned From My U-11 Team

2009-08-13T20:59:00.000-07:00

Last year I was coached a U-11 girls basketball team for rec league. Our games were once a week and we had one practice a week for 90 minutes.

There were 8 players on my team with 4 of them playing organized basketball for the first time. Thus, you understand how much fundamentals were a large part of practice sessions. I actually held back on what I taught them beyond the basics of dribbling, passing, defense, and shooting layups.

What I held back on was defense. Figuring it was easier to teach zone for our limited practice time, we actually became a very passive team. The reasoning being it was easier for them play an area rather than playing a man or girl even though were doing slide and other man-to-man drills.

After 4 weeks of getting blown out in a few games, and watching the girls stand around as if they were spectators, it became evident something had to change. Luckily, the girls were like a sponge when we started implementing man-to-man defense.

Wow! What a revelation! The girls, especially the new players, understood sticking your man and guarded them with fervor. We actually started winning games, which wasn't the main focus, but they added another aspect to their game that will carry them a long way in the future.

Guess what?

No matter the level of play or the limited practice time, my teams will never ( I know never say never) play zone again.

So what I really learned is that our youth can learn whatever thrown at them as long as they understand and see themselves getting better. All of our m2m drills were competitive and rewards were given to the winners of the drills.

What we actually did was make it fun! Remember, when you coach teams under 13 years of age, learning must be fun for them.

Yes, this article is primarily advertisement for m2m defense. They can learn zone in high school, but their m2m skills will allow them to play any type of defense.

Why Coach Youth Basketball

2009-08-05T21:38:00.000-07:00

If some of you are like me, you probably got started or will start to coach because you wanted to coach your child's team. A good enough reason.

Fair enough and very logical.

Then the practices begin and you realize you have to command the attention of not just one individual player, but many others as well. Upwards to 12 kids on a team. I know rec teams usually have smaller roster, probably around 6-8 on a team, but you get the idea.

To answer the question, why coach youth basketball? It boils down to a few reasons.

1) There is a need for youth coaches across the country. Every year, some leagues have to beg, plead, bribe, etc. to find adults to coach teams. Every time you assist in coaching, you are helping the community. In reality, it's an awesome way to give back to your community.

By the way, we had teenagers in one of the leagues coaching 2 teams. In some school districts, community service is a requirement for graduation. What a fun way to enjoy fulfilling a graduation requirement.

2) Because it's a fun sport to teach. Here's where you may think it's too complicated and over encompassing; however, nothing can be further from the truth. If you keep it simple and to the basics of defense, passing, shooting layups, and dribbling (not necessarily in that order), you can easily field a team.

My experience is coach equals teacher. Every level of basketball from the youth leagues, high school, college, NBA, Olympics, the coach is imparting his knowledge to his players to achieve a desired result. The results or ends differ upon the level and expectations of the coach.

Thus, the number one reason kids play this sport at is to have fun. If you make it fun, they will learn and get better, and they will want to continue playing! Wins and losses won't matter because who will remember this 10 years later?

3) An opportunity to be closer to your child. Most youth coaches are coaching teams because they have a child who is player. We all work long hours and would love to spend more time with our children. This a great opportunity to do so while also helping other kids learn in the process.

For intent and purposes, we will mainly discuss youth basketball coaching from ages 7 to 13.

You will receive a mixture of articles written by myself, guest coaches from varying levels, and also special invites to FREE teleseminars.

Hope all you get something out of the information provided and have an enjoyable experience.