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Monday, October 17, 2022

Dozen Demands for Players

Pat Summitt had her "Definite Dozen." Have your own.

1. Make teammates better. Raise people up. Talk people up. Be specific. "I love how you block out" or "you always look for the open player." 

2. Share. Teams have shared vision, shared sacrifice, and shared outcomes. "Win win together; we lose together." Make the experience about something greater than ourself. 

3. Impact winning. Impact winning through preparation, practice, supporting the team, and playing time when available. 

4. Win in space. "Basketball is a game of separation." We get separation with or without the ball, and help teammates get separation by spacing, cutting, screening, and passing. 

5. Draw 2. Good offensive players get advantage, draw help, and find an open player. 

6. Stop separation. Good defenders stop ball penetration and penetrating passes to players without the ball. They 'shrink space' with their ability to help and to recover. 

7. Take quality shots. "Get more and better shots" by knowing what a good shot is for you and every teammate. Better shot selection is a rapid road to improvement. 

8. Make good decisions. Coach Knight reminds everyone that basketball is a game of mistakes. Many of those are mental as the mental to physical is four to one.  

9. Be an explosive athlete. "Movement kills defense." Become the best athlete you can to be able to contribute the most you can. 

10. Be coachable. Listen to the coach. Show that you listen by asking timely questions. 

11. Be positive. Positivity is contagious, like winning attitudes.  

12. Communicate. "Silent teams lose." Communication keeps you focused and helps energize teammates.

Lagniappe. Find what's holding you back. It might not be lack of knowledge but the inexperience or anxiety limiting it's use.  

Lagniappe 2. This is too complicated for us to use. But you might. 

Lagniappe 3. Practice, practice, practice...and add defense. 

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