Basketball: Pick 3, Pack 3 - Specific Concepts to WIN TODAY

In their MasterClass, advertisers Jeff Goodby and Rich Silverstein advise taking three things you like and copying them and three things you dislike and fixing them. Focus on copying and editing. 

Remember the human element. People, in our case, young girls, play the game. They bring emotion - joy, anger, sadness, and fear - every time they step on the court. Be demanding without demeaning. 

Pick 3 to excel at today: 

1. Be great at spacing. "Spacing is offense and offense is spacing." - Chuck Daly 


2. Take higher quality shots. "Better ingredients, better pizza." Better shots, better scoring. You don't have to be a rocket scientist.

3. "Stops make runs." 372. Get three consecutive stops, seven times a half, two halves a game. That's at least 42 stops. Cobbling together stops extends leads and cuts deficits. 

Pack 3 to eliminate. 

1. Stop transition baskets. Guards have to get back first, with one stopping the ball and one protecting the basket. Good teams don't get beat a lot in transition. 

2. Foul for profit. Never foul jump shots, especially threes. Don't foul forced shots and reward bad offense. 

- "Show your hands." 
- "Don't body up the dribbler."
- "Elbows behind your ears (verticality)."

3. Control the blocks and elbows. Teams that allow lots of shots from the blocks and elbows survive as long in the post-season as dogs that chase cars. Pressure the passer and deny the post. Bad things happen (scoring and fouls) when allowing easy post entry. 

Summary:

- Spacing is offense.
- Better shots, better scoring.
- "Stops make runs."
- Stop transition baskets.
- "Foul for profit."
- Control the blocks and elbows. 

Lagniappe: "Coaching and developing great talent is the one thing that really lasts." - Phyllis Yale, Advisory Partner, Bain & Company 

Lagniappe 2: The most popular BBallImmersion podcast of February (WNBA Coach Mike Thibault)

"You start with offensive players over defensive players."
"Always have scorers on the floor."
"You have to have penetrators to get the ball to the perimeter." 
"We chart everything" (in shot selection)..."foot on the line shot is a terrible shot for us."
"There's a difference between being open and being seen."
"What did we do well? What didn't we?" Be honest with yourself.
"How are we going to learn most efficiently?" Players are different.
"The best coaches constantly steal from each other."
Film (brief clips) - "This is what it looked like when we played our best."
"The game is a byproduct" (of your preparation)
Longer practice isn't necessarily better practice.
Get your best players to run the team (think like coaches). 
They emphasize pick-and-roll to penetrate to get drive and dish (for 3s)




Constantly look to relocate so the ball can find you.

#1 Most Popular Podcast of February - Washington Mystics head coach & WNBA champion Mike Thibault joins the Basketball Podcast to discuss adding the 3 point shot to your offense.
Listen. Subscribe. Review and Give #thebasketballpodcast a shout out!https://t.co/BqHGKosC5o pic.twitter.com/8Kzh4NHEhn

— Chris Oliver (@BBallImmersion) February 28, 2020

Lagniappe 3: Pieces from the Playbook 

23 Bury Screen-the-screener

Basketball: What Defines You? Be Amazing with Escape Velocity

Stand out. Make everyone remember you. Let your play reveal your character; don't be a character. 

Define your role - effort, skill, and persistence. Most players at EVERY level are role players. Win your role. 

It won't always go your way. In his MasterClass, RuPaul shares that many people trap themselves in anger, cynicism, and bitterness, unable to move forward to a state of joy. When life doesn't go well, they remain in a vortex of misery. Exceptional performers escape the negative; they find escape velocity. 

What is your job? Scorer, stopper, screener, passer? If you're on the bench, study the opposing team and the individual players. Do they emphasize dribble penetration, pass and cut, the screen game, perimeter shooting? If they press, is it man or zone and where are the openings? Be ready for your time.

Be amazing in preparation, at practice, on the bench, as a teammate. 

Be That Girl. 

Summary: 

- Stand out. 
- Star in your role.
- Escape anger, bitterness, and cynicism. 
- Study your opponent to do your job well. 
- Be an amazing teammate. 
Lagniappe: Fence series (BOBs) 

The key is for the 5 to read her defender. 

Always remember that the screener is the second cutter. 

Lagniappe 2: Don't settle for mediocre shots. Shot quality leads to score quantity. 

Coach Don Meyer used to say to watch the quality of shot attempts during first stage of game. That will often indicate who is going to win.

— Jerry Meyer (@jerrymeyer247) January 21, 2020

Lagniappe 3: Tattoo Wisdom

Sommelier Richard Betts is a tattoo fanatic, including the letter B. It doesn't stand for Betts. It reminds him, "Be kind, be thoughtful, don't be a jerk."

Lagniappe 4: Chess lesson from Garry Kasparov (MasterClass)

Do you have a trick up your sleeve for the endgame?

UCLA cut into middle PnR ! 

Basketball: Playoff Mentality, Rule Number 6, and Playbook Leftovers

The playoffs are coming. What limits us in the regular season ends us in the postseason. We've improved because we're doing more of what we do well (offensive rebounding) and less of what we don't (pressing allowing layups, getting beaten off the dribble). We have to rein in lower quality shots - out of range, out of rhythm, forced shots.

Understand what opponents want to do. If we can't stop it, limit it. 
- Take away layups, uncontested threes, bad fouls yielding free throws. 
- Take care of the ball against pressure. Turnovers kill offense. 

Have better quality offensive possessions. Be hard to play against.
- "Movement kills defenses." "The ball is a camera." "Fall in love with easy shots."  
- Quality shots are beautiful. "It's not your shot, it's our shot." 
- Emphasize hard to defend actions - pick-and-roll, pass-and-cut, mismatches.
- Take advantage of special situations (BOBs and SLOBs)

Practice what you believe in. Ball movement beats pressure. Too many players don't see while dribbling. Practice "advantage-disadvantage" (5 vs 7) with no dribbling. Force cut and pass basketball. 

Summary:

- Edit out what isn't working.
- Take away opponent "go to" actions. 
- Value the ball. 
- "Fall in love with easy shots."
- Practice core values. 

Lagniappe: Rule Number 6

His aide screamed, "Rule Number 6" calming down the Prime Minister. His colleague asked, "What's Rule Number 6?" "Don't take yourself so g__damn seriously." "And what are the other rules?" "There aren't any." (adapted from Zander and Zander, The Art of Possibility)




Lagniappe 2: Don't make assumptions. 

Lagniappe 3: Dusting off the playbook 

Iverson cut backscreen

Wing ball screen with weak side action

We run numerous SLOB actions off the zipper cut. Get everyone involved. 

Basketball: Control Ego and Serve the Team

"Whom the gods would destroy, they first raise up." 

Ego is the enemy. Some say, "the greater the player, the greater the insecurity." 



Blind ambition ruined Icarus. Selfishness defeats teams from within. Ego stops the ball and fuels "my turn" shots. Robert Knox writes, "But the gods do not like real heroes — that is, they do not like seeing mortals become too ‘god-like.’ Ask Achilles."

Performance enhancing drug (PED) suspensions are up in the NBA. That's ego talking. With the dollars at stake, it's no wonder. Chuck Daly's "48 minutes, 48 shots, and 48 million" maxim has staying power. 

Control your ego. A varsity player had thirty points near the end of the third quarter, taking his second foul shot. The coach signaled that he was subbing him out. For his shot, the player took a 'soccer throw-in' shot off the backboard and walked off the court. What message does that send to the coach, teammates, and fans? "I am bigger than the game." You are not. 

"Only the penitent man shall pass." A player would not pass. His coach set up a practice play with the player as the inbounder. He then told his teammates to leave the floor. "Now play." He made his point. 

Athletes need a healthy ego. You can only be as good as you believe you are. But serve your teammates. In Leaders Eat Last, Simon Sinek writes, “The true price of leadership is the willingness to place the needs of others above your own. Great leaders truly care about those they are privileged to lead and understand that the true cost of the leadership privilege comes at the expense of self-interest.”

Sports gods humble us with inconsistency, illness, and injury. Those who constantly feed their ego end up with the stock trader's breakfast, "egg on the face." 

"But I have to be myself." Does your ego subvert team culture? Intended or not, we project an image. Authentic selfishness and immaturity fail. "Change comes from within." 

Summary:

- Ego is the enemy.
- Selfishness defeats teams from within.
- Ego stops the ball and fuels 'my turn' shots.
- Control your ego.
- Place the needs of others above your own. 

Lagniappe: 

Brian Scalabrine on defensive centers..."The game is changing. It's not just about blocking shots. How do you contain the ball? Can you close out on shooters?"

Lagniappe 2: The past is the past. 

What are you more committed to, the future or the past? What matters most is what you do next.

“Honor the past, respect the present, and believe in the future.”

— Geno Auriemma pic.twitter.com/dzOfxKj1mq

— Basketball Psychology (@BallisPsych) February 21, 2020

Lagniappe 3: Looking through the playbook 

14 high, empty the side, give and go. If the pass isn't there, clear through and isolate. 

Make switching defenses pay with the 15 high-low action. 

Basketball: As in Chess, Improve the Position

“Outcomes are about what you get. Processes are about what you do. Identity is about what you believe.” - James Clear, Atomic Habits

Learn across domains and steal concepts. As in chess, how can we improve our position (what does my team need now)? There is value in controlling the middle of the court/board. 

Unlike in chess, both sides don't start with equal armies. The humble pawns (white to play) can power endgame attacks. Advancing the c5 white pawn (first on the left) reveals a discovered mate with a long-range attack by the bishop (a3). 

Individual progress. Reposition our players (e.g. skill, spacing) to develop more powerful attacks. Coaches vary from novices to Grandmasters in our ability to deploy our armies.

Teamwork. An individual can attack multiple defensive pieces (Draw 2). 

This is not so different from attacking into gaps and creating attacks on multiple fronts. 

Chess masters understand the geometry of the board. They find ways to use pieces to both attack and defend. 

Teams can empty a side and then create a mismatch with a small screening for a big. 

Strong team find ways to enhance their positions, like slipping or rejecting screens in the PnR. Ball reversal and paint touches similarly help teams create advantage. 

Chunking. Chessmasters "chunk" the board to see possibilities arising out of sets. 

Left, bishop (a4) captures pawn c6, attacking the king (check) and rook, gaining material. 

Right, bishop (b3) moves to d5 square, attacking both rooks on the diagonal. Either rook can relocate (e.g. a8 to e8) but black trades a more valuable piece. 

Simple "spread" formations (50, 5 out, spread, etc.) generate myriads of hard-to -guard possibilities (PnR, off-ball screens, back cuts). 

A "four out" alignment morphs into a high ball screen with one side of the "board" open. Material advantage arises in basketball from philosophy (unequal playing time), mismatches in size, athleticism, or skill, and foul trouble. 

Studying chess might help our creativity and vision of bigger picture actions. Do well what we do a lot and leverage hard to defend actions (pick-and-roll, mismatches, backcuts). 

Summary: 

-What does our team need now?
-Constantly work on player development.
-Help players understand the power of teamwork.
-Draw 2 (defenders).
-"Chunking" helps players expand offensive possibilities.
-Do well what we do a lot.
-Leverage hard to defend actions.

Lagniappe: Chris Oliver of Bballimmersion shows how "great offense is multiple actions" in a game winner SLOB. 

Yes poor defense is always complicite in a play's success...but here is a simple last second sideline inbound play that could work at most levels...modification if have time, and don't have players that could throw the pass, is pass to the corner cut first. pic.twitter.com/NZCOAxxQiX

— Chris Oliver (@BBallImmersion) February 24, 2020

#Basketball #Coaching Escaping Life in Denial About Where Points Arise

"You can't fool children, dogs, and basketball players." - Kevin Eastman

Everything changes. We choose whether we change with the world. Realize and refine new paradigms.

Where do points come from? UCONN women's team looks to score a third in transition, a third from sets, and a third from three-point shots. Three-point shooting and its complement (effective field goal percentage) often define destiny. 

Basketball's tectonic shift devalues the midrange shot.  

The game becomes layups, threes, and free throws. 

Here's a recent shot chart of the Bucks from February 8th. Over 40 percent of their shots are threes which boosted their EFG% (Image from basketball-reference.com) Also, see how assist volume tracked with EFG% explosion. 

In the NBA, offensive rating is the biggest predictor of reaching the playoffs. 

Updated analysis (I don't understand the math) argues that EFG%, Turnovers, Offensive rebounding, and Free throws matter, but in different percentages. 

"The coefficients returned for each variable, interpreted as the weights assigned, provide some interesting conclusions. The most important is that they confirm Oliver’s hierarchy. However, they do not fit to the 40/25/20/15 theory. In fact, they seem to be closer to something like 43/39/10/8 as underlined by the t Stat value of each variable. Thus being said, importance of turnover rate has increased by 56% while offensive rebound rate and free throw rate have decreased by 100% approximately. It is also interesting that offence has a greater impact then defense."

Princeton and Iowa are both top 15 women's college teams - and met earlier this season. About 30 percent of Princeton's shots were 3s and almost 45 percent of Iowa's... https://goprincetontigers.com/sports/womens-basketball/stats/2019-20/iowa/boxscore/16306

I'm not saying the midrange game is extinct, just to be viewed in context of what IS. 
When players I'm coaching now go to college, I'm guessing that 40 percent of shots (maybe more) will be threes. If they want to play, they must expand their range. 

Yet at the NBA level, the highest percentage shot (points-per-possession) is scoring off the pass and cut. Only two teams (ATL, PHI) score as much as 1.00 points/possession off postups. Only one team (HOU - Harden, 1.04) scores over 1.00 points/possession on isolations. As time passes and defenses find better ways to defend threes, that may open up even more pass and cut basketball "outside in" play. 

Lagniappe: Defending the pick-and-roll is always a challenge, moreso with variations

Rubio, Booker, and Ayton involved in any pick-and-roll action is the Suns' halfcourt offense at its best. Whether it's the Spain PnR play from last night or any of these other plays.

1 elite playmaker. 2 elite finishers. 1 elite shooter.

How do you even try to guard it? pic.twitter.com/j3zsYSa5qL

— Wam Wooper (@scooperhoops) February 23, 2020

Basketball: Leveraging Greatness - The Rice and the Chessboard

Seek exceptional. Don't confuse good with great.

Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez reminded Joe Posnanski about the story of the rice and the chessboard. A king refused a man the right to marry his daughter but offered anything else. "The man pulled out a chessboard and said, “Then all I want is this. Give me one grain of rice for the first square on the board, then double it for every square after that — one piece of rice for the first square, two for the second, four for the third, eight for the fourth until the end of the board.”" You know how this ends...that is more than all the rice in the world. 

Greatness comes from leveraging the exceptional and repeating it over and over and over, pitch by pitch, possession by possession. Pedro Martinez had three outstanding pitches and off-the-chart heart. "El corazón de un león...the heart of a lion. 

Not every player wants greatness. Tim S. Grover distilled it in Relentless, "Decide. Commit. Act. Succeed. Repeat." Few in any profession pay that price. 

What’s your most important concern? At the highest level of sport, winning is everything. But even there, wants differ. Owners expect profits; players value play (minutes), pay, and prestige. Many coaches seek upward mobility. But do you want success or need it? Are you building your body, your skills, your knowledge while your competitors are eating bon-bons? 

Be great in your job. What's your job? Scorer, facilitator, rebounder, practice player?  What are your today plan, the unrequired work separating ordinary from extraordinary? Grover writes, “The drive to close the gap between near-perfect and perfect is the difference between great and unstoppable.”

Coach Bob Knight said, "just because I want you on the floor doesn't mean I want you to shoot." Is it enough to be on the floor or do you need more, enough that sacrifice and suffering the pain of discipline is all that satisfies you?

Summary: 

- Don't confuse good and great.
- Greatness leverages an edge over and over.
- Greatness begins with mindset and distinguishes itself through work. 
- Do you want success or need it? 
- Be great in YOUR job.
- Unrequired work and the pain of discipline are your constant companions.
- Doubling that grain of rice, rep by rep, possession by possession, defines legacy. 

Lagniappe: excellent overview with video examples. 



Lagniappe 2: As we rocket toward the post-season what is your best:

- ATO (after timeout play)
- Man-to-man play
- Zone offense action
- BOB - Baseline out-of-bounds play
- SLOB- Sideline out-of-bounds play

Lagniappe 3: UCONN Boomerang

Basketball: Quotes from "Atomic Habits" and a Barrel of Bonuses

"We make our habits and our habits make us." 

James Clear's Atomic Habits is outstanding. Here are a few quotes:

"Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you want to become." Are our habits consistent with our identity? 

"I'm the kind of teacher who stands up for her students." 

"There are three levels of change: outcome change, process change, and identity change. The most effective way to change your habits is to focus not on what you want to achieve, but on whom you wish to become." Who > how > what

"The primary reason the brain remembers is to better predict what will work in the future." Do more of what works and less of what doesn't.

"The human brain is a prediction machine...with enough practice, you can pick up on the cues that predict certain outcomes without thinking about it." Consider how coaches use timeouts to reframe situations.

"The first step to changing bad habits is to be on the lookout for them." Where are our investments versus expenditures of time? 

"Many people think that the lack motivation when what they really lack is clarity." 

(On craving) "This gap between your current state and your desired state provides a reason to act." Am I who I want to be? 

"The key to finding and fixing the causes of your bad habits is to reframe the associations you have about them." Is this behavior consistent with my core values?

"Every (bad) habit is just an obstacle to getting what you really want. Dieting is an obstacle to getting fit. Meditation is an obstacle to feeling calm. Journaling is an obstacle to thinking clearly." 

"What is rewarded is repeated. What is punished is avoided." 

Lagniappe: WNBA decision-making from Courtney Vandersloot

The initial spacing is a bit weird, but the follow-on action makes up for it. 

Lagniappe 2: Hesitation-crossover breakdown. 




Develop a handful of excellent moves not a truckload of mediocre ones. We can teach too many actions. Great tips on hand, foot, and head positions. Basic crossover, hesitation, and combinations may not be flashy, just filthy. 

Lagniappe 3: Lagniappe 3: Celtics SLOB with backcut on the help side. 

One of multiple options. Sometimes they run as a flare screen or a downscreen (preferred). 

Lagniappe 4: Ball handling tips (I was never great but became adequate)...

a) Practice while wearing gloves (e.g. those stretchy one-size-fits-all
b) Kyrie Irving tip - put the ball in a plastic bag! 
c) Dribble blindfolded in the basement around the furniture (don't wreck the lamps) 

Quick Hitter: NBA All-Star Game Basketball IQ Explained

Go to 5:40 of the video and watch the play develop. 

Bron breaks down every movement of the last play during the All-Star Game.

Basketball memory and IQ is on another level.

(via @melissarohlin)pic.twitter.com/0v7wBbRx86

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 20, 2020

Create defensive confusion.
The spacing is typical NBA excellence.
LBJ identifies the mismatch...game over. 

Basketball: Have the Best _______ Ever

What would it take to "have the best _________ ever?" Rosamund and Benjamin Zander raise this question in The Art of Possibility. 

Fill in the blank...best offense, defense, attitude, practice. Or substitute something in your life, best meal, best date, best marriage. What would it take? 
Your idea of "best practice" probably isn't the same as your team's, or mine. But we might agree on parts...most independent of talent!

Coaches would see enthusiasm, smell perspiration, hear squeaking sneakers and defensive talk.   

What players belong in the best practice ever? Pete Carril said:

"So much depends upon their attitudes. What kind of guys are they? Do they love to play? Do they understand what we're trying to do? Do they realize what the word 'commitment' means? Do they understand teamwork? Do they realize they have to be responsible to each other? All those things - I call them the life parts of the game - goes into it. The technical parts of the game are affected by the life parts. What kind of guy is he? Because no matter what you do, the most important thing is who's doing it. You can make almost anything work if the right guy is doing it." - October 13, 1994

What would players say makes the best practice ever? Many would say "scrimmaging," but looking back half a century, I'd argue for teamwork, execution, and selflessness.

Summary: 

- How can we have the best ________ ever? 
- Excel at the intangibles.
- Energy is irreplaceable.
- Maximize the "life parts of the game." 
- Collaboration makes greatness. 

Lagniappe: "I don't like dealing with people who are trying to impress me." - Presidential Chief of Staff Leo McGarry in The West Wing

Players don't want handling; players want respect and to be valued. Authenticity doesn't work with arrogance. 

Lagniappe 2: "I believe that SHOT is "A" in your basketball alphabet." 




"When you think SHOT, your footwork gets better." Kelbick emphasizes that shooting position is the action position.

Basketball: Fast Five - Give Me 36 Seconds

36 seconds. I have 36 seconds to capture your interest. That's the time the average reader spends on a piece. 

Want a great day? Build better habits. Invest in yourself and don't take big drawdowns or or withdrawals to self-sabotage. 

Atomic Habits figure

Good days flow from better habits. I highly recommend James Clear's "Atomic Habits."  "Win the morning" with routine (e.g. MasterClass, study, writing, reading) to climb the success pathway. Establish a great morning routine - pick an item, stick to it, and check that you're following through (PICK-STICK-CHECK). 

Learn every day. Open our eyes and ears to possibility. Don Kelbick mentioned the Shooter's Dozen. Three quickies:

-Great shooters have routines and rituals; they are not haphazard when they work out. They practice game shots from game spots at game speed.

-Great shooters are always ‘shot ready’. Their feet, hands, eyes and mind are ready to shoot. (Kelbick says his players have one decision, when not to shoot.)

-Great shooters rarely miss right or left. (The ball can't go in with east-west misses.)

Review recent research and writings. Five recent key points - 

“You have to fall in love with boredom,” writes James Clear. John Wooden wrote about Bill Walton that he never tired of working on fundamentals, especially footwork. 

"Basketball is a game of separation." 

- Get separation with and without the ball. 
- Cutting creates separation. 
- Screens create separation. 
- Speed and quickness create separation. 
- Fakes create separation. 
- Mastery of a few moves beats mediocrity of many. For example, Sabrina Ionescu has devastating hesitation moves with either hand. 

Have a shooting routine. Stephen Curry warms up with "perfect makes" in front of the rim...just inside the back volleyball line. He makes five in a row and takes a big step back, repeating four times, making twenty-five from each radian. He then repeats aligning with the wings and corners. 

Style starts with habits. Style demands study.  Know the past and the present. James Clear's Atomic Habits aligns habits with identity, working through systems to get results. Your system gets results or needs to change. 

 Habit Scoring. We can score habits as positive, negative, or neutral (+, -, =). Habits, like shot selection, can be great, poor, or so-so. Call attention to a player's habits, like their intensity during a drill. Have a coach or injured player score focus - high, low, or average on a given drill, like box drills. This could encourage better average performance or as Alan Stein, Jr. says, "average speed." 

Do the same for other habits with apps like Fabulous (image above) or track your morning routine. "Win the morning; win the day." I study (MasterClass), write (blog), read (at least a chapter), and work CME (continuing medical education) every AM. 
Lagniappe: Zone offense concepts with video examples



Lagniappe 2: @CoachCallsTime presents a 1-3-1 zone attack quick hitter

If '5' works hard BEFORE the ball goes to the corner this is a simple way to attack a 1-3-1 zone.#BasketballCoaching #YouthBasketball #HighSchoolBasketball #BasketballPlays pic.twitter.com/qUHXla6u5m

— Dan @ Coach Calls Timeout (@CoachCallsTime) February 18, 2020

Lagniappe 3: "It's what you learn after you know it all that counts." - John Wooden