Excellent teams don't give games away. Bad teams find ways to turn leads into losses. Watch film of any high school game and you'll see these 'losing plays'.
What we coaches forget is that we've been around the game for decades and these youngsters for a few years, mostly playing without intensive study.
1. "Play harder for longer."
- Failed vision, decisions, executions (bad turnovers). "Turnovers kill dreams."
- Bad transition defense with lack of sprinting, engaged conversion
- Failure to contain the ball. Defense starts with ball pressure.
2. Stop dumb fouls.
- Never foul perimeter shots.
- Stop fouling bad shots.
- "Retaliation fouls" after mental mistakes - 'doubling down'
- "Show your hands."
3. Improve shot selection.
- No "shot turnovers"
- Bilas, "It's not your shot. It's our shot."
- Too many shots for poor shooters
- Stop taking "my turn" shots. There is no my turn.
4. Play smarter.
- Talk at both ends of the floor. "Help, left." "Pick, right." ELO - early, loud, often.
- Zero missed assignments. You don't know your cover, you can't play.
- Defeat pressure defense. Pass and cut. Don't throw through hands.
5. Make absolutes meaningful.
- No middle. Force "hard twos."
- Who's back on defense? Sending two or three to the O-boards? Stop the ball, protect the basket.
- Contest all shots WITHOUT fouling. Bothering shots reduces shooting percentage, especially with less skilled players.
Summary:
- Play harder for longer
- Stop dumb fouls
- Improve shot selection (stop low quality shots)
- Play smarter
- Enforce our defensive absolutes
Lagniappe. Unreasonable to think anybody can be Kyrie, but some principals to study.
