Saturday, March 19, 2022

Basketball: Clinical Pearls Plus Words from Chris Oliver and Frank Martin

"Good artists borrow; great artists steal." - Picasso

On "rounds" in the hospital, senior attending share clinical pearls. "We can measure micrograms but we can't measure kilograms." Daily weights are a big thing with heart and kidney failure fluid balances. 

People denigrate "pearl clutching." Big mistake.

A medical student said I told him, "learn five things a day and soon it adds up." Keep working at it. Clinical pearls for a Saturday; they're yours? I steal from everyone. 

"After your parents, the backboard is your best friend." Too many youngsters leave points on the table by not using the glass and the square. It's scientifically proven. 

"What is your (NBA) skill?" - Charles Barkley   Find a skill to get you on the floor and keep you on the floor. Few players excel at everything but some are so exceptional at a few things that they carve out careers. The Celtics' Grant Williams is one of those '3 and D' guys.

"Have a system that works for you. Don't work for the system." - Don Meyer   Coach Meyer kept multiple notebooks - basketball, general information, an appreciation notebook for his wife. Steve Kerr collected knowledge during his broadcasting career that was "game ready" when transitioning to coaching.

"Develop keystone habits." - James Clear  Keystone habits help us build other habits and consistency. Kevin Eastman reads at least two hours a day. That gives him a leg up. Whether it's yoga, exercise, mindfulness, video study...build strong habits. "We make our habits and our habits make us."

"Losers cut corners." - Don Meyer   Gregg Popovich says it another way, "pound the rock." Keep pounding until it breaks. We do what we don't want to do now so that someday we can do what we want. The best player I've coached lives by "don't cheat the drill." 

"Be a problem solver." How can we reduce turnovers, get better shots, cut down fouls? Coach Lane pounded into us, "the ball is gold." Take care of the basketball. 

"It's not your shot, it's our shot." - Jay Bilas   Remind players to 'fall in love with easy shots'. ROB - range, open, balance. "Get 7s," those high quality shots everyone wants. No 'shot turnovers' or MY TURN shots. 

"Scoreboard not scorebook." Lexington had won consecutive Division 1 State Championships. We hadn't beaten them in forever. We went into their gym and turned it to silence with an 18 point win. I got two points on two shots and held their All-State guard to ten points. Few things rival decisive road wins against top teams. 

"Make positive plays." Every positive play won't show up in the scorebook. Deflections, great screens, forcing a turnover, blocking out, denying a cutter, and many more 'small plays' change games. Coach Wooden said this, "little things make big things happen." 

"Defensive rebounding is a team skill." - Jerry Krause  You know the drill. Coach shoots and five guys block out. ONE TIME in a game, an opponent took a shot that missed and bounced in the middle of the lane because everyone blocked out. 

"Assists maximize happiness." Assists make the passer, scorer, and coaches happy. Pete Carril reminds us, "the quality of the pass leads to the quality of the shot." I started one of my daughters (who ended up over 5'11") as a point guard because I wanted her to become an IMPACT PASSER. She was the second best passer on her high school team after Shey Peddy, a future A-10 MVP and WNBA player. 

Lagniappe. Becoming comfortable in games requires discomfort at practice. "Make practice hard so that games are easier." 

Lagniappe 2. Earning the title of "Coach" is special. It's a term of endearment for me. I don't call someone "Coach" lightly.  

Lagniappe 3. SLOB  BOX Loop 



 




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