|
|
Coaching
Tips What
does it mean to be a "tough" basketball player? How do you describe
a player who is TOUGH? What is the true definition of toughness on the
basketball court? It's
not just physical. Toughness has nothing to do with size, strength, or
athleticism. Toughness is a skill! A
tough basketball player does all of the important
(little things) that gives his team a much better chance to win games. A
tough player ALWAYS has a good game whether he shoots well or not. It's
possible to have a spectacular game without scoring many points. Tough
players don't focus on points--they grade their own performance by how well
they played defense and how they helped their teammates. Tough
players do ALL of the following: 1.Set good screens--put
their belt buckle on someone. Good screens help teammates get open and force
the defense to work harder and make mistakes. 2.Cut hard--tough
players set their man up. They are constantly moving and changing speeds. The
best players cut hard every time even when they know they won't be open--even
if they didn't receive the ball the last time they
were open. 3.Talk on defense--constantly
communicating. Letting teammates know where you are
and you are ready to help! 4.Jump to the ball--tough
defenders are constantly moving and adjusting. They move while the ball is in
flight. They are already in their man's bubble before he catches a pass. They
make every pass, every dribble and every shot
difficult. 5.Don't get screened--tough
players have made a decision that they will not get
screened. They refuse to be screened. They use their feet and get through
every screen attempt. 6.Get their hands up--they
discourage passes. They take away vision and get deflections by
mirroring/tracing the ball. If your hands are up, the passer won't be able to
see a momentary opening. This gives your teammates an extra second to
recover. 7.Help--they the
ball and see their man without hugging. They are jabby
and bouncy. They are ready to blitz, close out or switch. 8.Get on the floor--floor burns and bruises are part of the tough player's
uniform. 9.Close out properly--under
control. Take away the drive and shot. Catch the 1st move. The best players
close out taking away the players strong hand-force left. 10.Run the floor--(ROAR)
rebound-outlet-and-run. This will get you or a teammate an easy basket and
puts constant pressure on the defense. 11.Play hard--they
don't pace themselves. They have to come out once in
a while because they are exhausted. 12.Get to their teammates
1st--thay are the 1st to congratulate after
a charge or any hustle play and the 1st to encourage after a missed free
throw. 13.Take responsibility for
teammates--tough players expect a lot from teammates. They make sure
everyone knows what's going on. What time is practice? What are we wearing? 14.Take Charges--the
best play in basketball. 15.Get in a stance--always
in a defensive stance. Bouncy! 16.Make good passes--their
passes don't get deflected. They don't throw passes that are too late or
early. They don't throw passes that are too hard or too soft. Here's a good
rule to remember--if your teammate doesn't catch the ball, it was a bad pass.
A good pass is a pass that is caught!! 17.Focuses on defense--values
his performance by how well he defended. 18.Takes and give
criticism the right way--doesn't make excuses. Accepts
responsibility! Wants to get better and expects to be challenged. Willing to
challenge teammates by saying things their teammates might not want to hear, but need to hear. 19.Control body language--poker
face. Show confidence! Never whine, complain or hang
your head. 20.Are stong
with the ball--catch with their feet in the air--square up--triple
threat. 21.Finish traps/double
teams--they don't foul and let the opponent off the hook. They force
a turnover, steal or timeout. 22.Are alert--actively
communicating with teammates making sure everyone is on the same page. They
stop the ball. They protect the basket and the 3 point
line. 23.Know that it's not
their shot it's the teams shot--tough players don't take bad shots.
They don't worry about getting "my" shots. They work for good shots
and celebrate when "we" score. 24.Box out and try for
every rebound--put a body on someone on every possession. They circle
the wagons. They understand that defense is not complete until "we"
have the possession. FFF find-fight-fetch. 25.Look teammates and
coaches in the eye--if a coach or teammate is talking, it's
important. 26.Move on to the next
play--don't waste time or energy celebrating a good play or agonizing
over a bad one. Get the next one! 27.Are hard to play
against and easy to play with--make the opponents job extremely
difficult and make your teammates job easier. How? 28.Make every game
important--they don't categorize opponents. If we're playing, it's
important. Every game is a championship game. 29.Work to get better
every day--respond the same way whether they won or lost. They focus
on getting better the next day in practice. They hate losing,
but aren't shaken by a loss. They enjoy winning, but
are NEVER satisfied. When
I'm twice as good as I am right now, I'll only be half as good as I want to
be! References Stuff Good Players Should Know
by Dick Devezio Toughness in College Hoops by
Jay Bilas ESPN.com |
