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Friday, August 1, 2025

Strategic Basketball Notekeeping


Notebooks Are Underrated. Here's Why.

Clayton Christensen, one of the most influential thinkers in business and innovation, had a habit that set him apart—even among Harvard Business School students. As John Coleman recalls in Critical Thinking Starts with Careful Questioning, Christensen kept a notebook to record the best questions his classmates asked. He didn’t just admire them—he studied them. At home, he’d reflect on why a particular question cut deeper or revealed more than others.

His habit wasn't about collecting answers. It was about improving the way he thought.

Coleman shares a few practices that sharpen critical thinking:

  • Hold your hypotheses loosely

  • Embrace the discomfort of not knowing

  • Listen more than you talk

  • Ask open-ended questions (avoid yes/no)

  • Consider the counterintuitive (don’t jump to conclusions)

  • Sit with a problem longer

  • Ask tough follow-ups

He closes with a reminder that’s both simple and profound:

“Learn to formulate and ask questions, rather than simply answering them.”

This approach to thoughtful inquiry is a cornerstone of how high achievers learn, lead, and solve problems.

Quick Note-Taking Hacks

Notebooks don’t have to be leather-bound and old-school—though they can be. Here are a few quick ways to capture what matters:

  1. Use a smartphone notes app

  2. Take a photo or screenshot

  3. Copy a URL and email it to yourself

  4. Send yourself a short text with keywords

Why It Matters

High performers almost always track ideas, questions, and insights. What separates the great from the average isn’t just hard work—it’s structured thinking. They have systems to gather, sort, and share information effectively.

One of the emerging superpowers of artificial intelligence is helping us develop those systems—making us faster, clearer, and more organized in how we handle information.

Coaching begins with preparation, attention to detail, and sharing clear, impactful information. Start with a notebook. Physical or digital, it’s still one of the smartest tools you can carry.

Lagniappe. Let your best players know that you will coach them hard because that helps both them and their teammates. 

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Thursday, July 31, 2025

Basketball Coaching - Are You Preparing for Coaching Interviews?

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Wednesday, July 30, 2025

Is There an Alternative to Expensive Travel Basketball?


Youth sports has become big business. The last number I saw was $40 billion dollars.

Are you getting your money's worth? Is the quality of the basketball coming out of these programs better? Has youth sports "priced out" a lot of families who just can't pay that freight? 

What are the costs? 

  • Registration fees
  • Participation fees (program fees, gym time, officials)
  • Uniforms and sneakers 
  • Tournament fees (spectator fees)
  • Travel 
  • Hotel and food expenses
  • Sports club membership (e.g. YMCA)
  • Sport specific and/or position specific camps (e.g. point guard or setter camp)
  • Athletic training/strength and conditioning (optional?)
  • Sport specific coaching/private skill training (optional)
  • Additional health costs (everyone gets injured)
  • Hidden food costs (fueling the machine)
  • Missed work (especially for self-employed)
What are the benefits? 

  • "As little as four hours of exercise a week may reduce a teenage girl’s risk of breast cancer by up to 60%; breast cancer is a disease that afflicts one out of every eight American women. (Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 1994)
  • Forty percent of women over the age of 50 suffers from osteoporosis (brittle bones). (Osteoporosis, 1996) None of us should want our daughters to repeat the experiences of generations of women—our mothers and grandmothers—who were not permitted to play sports or encouraged to participate in weight-bearing exercises that are necessary to establishing bone mass.
  • Girls and women who play sports have higher levels of confidence and self-esteem and lower levels of depression."
Youth sports are a "pyramid scheme" where some at the top benefit with success, recognition, athletic scholarships, even NIL money? All are powerful incentives to reach for the 'brass ring'. Realize that "many are called and few are chosen." 

Parents willingly sacrifice "time and treasure" with no guarantees of 'return on investment'. The fees alone for joining club teams can run in the thousands of dollars and generally do not include travel expenses. 


The sports season is the tip of the iceberg. The skill building, film study, strength and conditioning, resilience training, and everything else that happens occurs below the waterline. 

Play a lot. What alternatives would be possible? My high school coach told us to "play a lot." In the summer, that included "Summer League" games and going to the park to "run" often against older competition. Old guys can teach you a lot. 

Safety. Safety concerns changed the landscape, especially for younger players and girls. Players are sometimes called "car athletes" because they play when they get a ride. Awareness of heat safety matters. 

Camp driveway. Players can work a lot on their own but the best practice occurs with offense, defense, decision-making, and competition. 

Skill training sessions. Once we offered twice weekly outdoor voluntary sessions (June-September) with skill building and team building exercises. The best players took advantage of those opportunities. 

ChatGPT shares excellent ideas to reduce expenses: 

Youth sports, especially club and travel teams, have become cost-prohibitive for many families. While getting lots of reps and strong competition is key to development, there are practical ways to keep costs down without sacrificing growth. Here are some alternatives and strategies:

1. Play Local, Compete Smart

  • Join Local Leagues: Many YMCAs, park districts, and community centers run quality leagues at a fraction of AAU prices.

  • Limit Travel Tournaments: Choose a few high-value tournaments each season rather than traveling every weekend. Stay regional when possible.

2. Build a “Pod” or Training Group

  • Create a Training Circle: Gather a consistent group of 4–8 players and a coach or trainer to practice regularly. Split court rental and coaching costs.

  • Skill-Sharing Model: Rotate among parent-coaches with basketball experience. One handles shooting, another defense, etc. Collaboration saves money and adds variety.

3. Emphasize Skill Development Over Exposure (Early On)

  • Private or Small-Group Skills Training: One or two sessions a week focused on ball handling, footwork, and shooting can yield better returns than games.

  • Invest in Tools: A hoop at home, cones, resistance bands, or a membership to a local gym can be lower-cost and more effective long-term.

4. Use Open Gyms and Free Play

  • Find Open Gyms: Many schools and rec centers offer free or low-cost open gym hours. Playing pickup builds creativity and toughness.

  • Encourage Self-Directed Practice: Shooting and ball-handling can be improved daily at a local court—free and valuable.

5. Partner with a School Program

  • School Team Alignment: Encourage your child’s school coach to offer off-season skill sessions or summer leagues, which are often cheaper and more community-based.

6. Get Creative with Travel

  • Carpool and Share Lodging: Coordinate with other families to reduce hotel and gas costs.

  • Host Local Events: Help your local club host a tournament—this can earn revenue and reduce the need to travel.

7. Consider Multi-Sport or Seasonal Focus

  • Play Other Sports in Offseason: Basketball IQ and athleticism often improve when kids play other sports. It’s cost-saving and developmentally sound.

  • Basketball in Bursts: Instead of year-round basketball, do focused 3-month skill blocks followed by a break or change in sport.

8. Scholarships or Financial Aid

  • Ask About Financial Help: Many clubs offer discounts, payment plans, or scholarships—but you have to ask.

  • Volunteer in Exchange: Offer to help with team management, coaching, or fundraising in return for reduced fees.

9. Don’t Chase the Big Name Club

  • Find the Right Fit: A lesser-known club with strong coaches and a good culture can be more beneficial than a “brand name” team with less personal attention.

10. Use Video and Tech Instead of Exposure Tournaments

  • Film Games or Workouts: A good highlight reel + strong in-game clips matters more than attending expensive “exposure” events.

  • Free Online Tools: Tools like Hudl, YouTube, and social media can help players get seen without constant travel.

Lagniappe. I love practice. 

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Tuesday, July 29, 2025

Analyzing the Basketball Murder Books

"The design of a murder book was consistent across all department homicide squads. It was divided into twenty-six sections—crime scene reports, lab reports, photos, witness statements, and so on. The first section was always the chronological record." From Dark Sacred Night by Michael Connelly 

"Yes. I learn what you think is important, how you put things together, make conclusions. You remember you told me once that all the answers are usually in the murder book. We just don’t see them." - from “The Crossing “ by Michael Connelly

What belongs and what organization should our “basketball murder books” have?

Introduction. The goal of the digital record is to establish an updatable history of our season. Review creates chances to learn and improve.

Chronological record. Start with tryouts and proceed through team selection, practice, and individual game reports.

Major suspects. What teams, styles of play, and individuals both others and ours caused GBH (grievous basketball harm).

Lesser suspects. Additional factors impact results - team depth, assistant coaches, managers, administrators.

Offense. Where do our points arise or not arise? Are we struggling against pressure, man, zone defenses? How is our spacing, cutting and passing, shot selection? Are we turning the ball over too much? Do we get to the line and convert? 

Defense. How much resistance are we putting up? How is our transition D, ball pressure, denial, limiting penetration, challenging shots, controlling the boards? Do we communicate well, some, or poorly? Are we fouling for profit or our demise? 

Conversion. How well do we go from offense to defense and defense to offense?

Forensics and Analytics. What is the relative balance of the Four Factors - effective field goal percentage, turnovers, rebounding, and free throws. SPCA (shooting, protecting the ball, crash, and attacking to get fouled). 

Crime scene Photos and Video. Still pictures and video allow us to ask, "what did you see" and "what did you do?"

Witness statements. Observers often don't see accurately or the same thing. Parents' eyes and coaches' eyes see through different lenses both focus and color. Assistants sometimes point out vital findings that we didn't see. Ignore the noise of media and fans. 

Summary. Analogy is a valuable tool. "Victory has a thousand fathers and defeat is an orphan." The capacity to self-reflection, see objectively, trend accurately, and make corrections has a name - coaching. 

Lagniappe. Don't be provincial. Ideas from around the world can help. 

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Monday, July 28, 2025

Basketball - "We've Always Done It That Way"

"We've always done it that way" symbolizes entrenched "thinking" and opposes progress. 

Some examples: 

  • random practice versus blocked practice 
  • "skeleton offense" 
  • basketball conditioning with distance running 
  • shooting without pressure
  • Brian McCormick's "fake fundamentals." 

Random versus Blocked practice

"Blocked practice (practicing the same skill under the same conditions) leads to more rapid gains in performance but limited transfer when variability is introduced." Layup lines do not simulate chasedown layups in pressure situations. 

Example: shooting free throws is an important skill. Seldom does a player shoot more than three consecutively. Often players shoot when fatigued or under pressure. Interspersing free throw practice amidst conditioning activities or shooting with movement creates variability and "game conditions."

Skeleton Offense

Coaches sometimes introduce offense without defense. They run players through patterns without defensive disruption. Adding defense requires good spacing, setting up and cutting urgently, and on-time, on-target passing. Finding balance, efficiency, and competition are a constant challenge. 

Small-sided games (SSGs) get more touches, allows for constraints, and provides defense and competition. 

Conditioning

After a disheartening loss in 1971, we spent an entire practice running. Laps and sprints. It was punitive without benefit. Conditioning wasn't the problem. A better team took us apart. In the immortal words of Director Ron Howard, "What idiot directed that scene?" 

Condition with a basketball. Every coach has combination drills. Here's one of my favorites.


Emphasize sprinting to the ball, calling out the receiver's name, and crisp passing. Five minutes of action means nearly continuous running. 

Shooting without Pressure

We've all coached players who can knock down shots in 'catch and shoot' drills in practice but can't score with a defender in the same area code. Add constraints like defense, time pressure, or performance pressure. For example, with "Bill Bradley/Beat the Pro" players get one point for a make and the Pro gets 3 for your miss. You have to make 11 before missing three. A harder version is make 15 before missing two. 

Brian McCormick’s “Fake Fundamentals” – Examples

  1. Three-Man Weave

  2. Defensive Slide Drills Without a Ball or Offensive Player

  3. Shell Drill Without Live Play

  4. Laps and Lines in Practice

  5. Closeouts with Choppy Steps

  6. Form Shooting with No Defense or Movement

  7. Passing Drills Without Decision-Making

  8. Suicides or “Conditioning” Without a Ball

  9. Pivoting Drills Without Pressure

  10. Stationary Ball-Handling Drills

  11. Layup Lines as a Warm-Up

  12. Box-Out Drills Without Live Rebounding

McCormick challenges these drills because they often lack context, decision-making, and transfer to real game situations. Many coaches do not agree. Make your own decisions. 

Lagniappe. Analytics can support our coaching decisions. Apply analytics with goals of raising points/possession. 

Lagniappe 2. Art imitates life in this quote from "The Burning Room" from Michael Connelly. 

"He firmly believed and it had been his repeated experience that the answers to most cases are hidden in the details." Lawyers say that when you have the facts on your side, argue the facts. And when you don't argue the law. Get the details on your side in coaching - skill development, basketball IQ, strength and conditioning, resilience. 

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Sunday, July 27, 2025

Basketball Losses - Proximate and Underlying Causes

Assigning blame for losses is popular. In a game with 150 possessions, convenience finds a late shot or failed blockout "easy" causes for a late loss.

Distinguish root (underlying) causes from immediate causes. Until we address the underlying causes, many ways to lose appear. 

We replay the final possessions or minutes and find scapegoats. What are the core causes? 

  • Management (player acquisition, program development)
  • Talent (nobody wins big without talent)
  • Coaching (player development, strategy, game management)
  • "Connection" (the parts may not fit together well)
  • Resilience (mental toughness, experience) 
  • Randomness (luck, health, a call - block or charge)

We need diagnoses upon which to apply treatment. I saw a team lose 50-49 despite shooting 22/45 from the line and committing 25 turnovers. Sometimes the answers are easy. 

Ask some of the following:

- How can I teach better?

- What can I simplify?

- Have I given and taken enough feedback?

- During practice are we prioritizing our strengths and working to limit our weaknesses?

- Are we practicing situations (BOB, SLOB, ATO, offensive and defensive delay games) pivotal to winning close games?

- Will analytics (e.g. the Four Factors) reveal something I'm missing?

- Can I get honest, objective advice from a trusted colleague?

Lagniappe: ChatGPT (AI) gives an interpretation of proximate and underlying causes. 

The proximate cause and underlying cause of basketball losses refer to different levels of explanation, much like the difference between symptoms and root causes in medicine.

🟢 Proximate Cause

  • Definition: The immediate or surface-level reason for a loss.

  • Examples:

    • Missed free throws in the final minutes

    • Turnovers in crunch time

    • Poor shooting percentage

    • Failure to execute a final play

    • Defensive breakdown on a last-second possession

These are what happened during the game to result in the loss.

🔴 Underlying Cause

  • Definition: The deeper, systemic issues that lead to the proximate cause.

  • Examples:

    • Lack of mental toughness or late-game composure

    • Inadequate practice of end-of-game situations

    • Poor conditioning or fatigue affecting execution

    • Team culture that tolerates low accountability

    • Inconsistent coaching messages or strategy confusion

These are why it happened—the foundational or structural issues that contributed to the outcome.

🏀 Basketball Analogy

Proximate Cause: We lost because we gave up a wide-open 3 in the final seconds.
Underlying Cause: We don’t communicate well on switches because we don’t consistently practice closeouts and late-game defense under pressure.

Coaching Application

  • Address proximate causes to improve execution.

  • Solve underlying causes to improve culture, preparation, and consistency.

Both matter—but only fixing proximate causes is like applying a Band-Aid without treating the infection. Strong teams address both.

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Saturday, July 26, 2025

Basketball - Reasons Not to Love Coaching

"Invert, always invert." - Mathematician Carl Jacobi 

A post about reasons to love coaching merits a rebuttal. A senior Army physician once asked, "Why are you a doctor, EGO or MONEY?" I said, "Sir, I never had any money and the Navy won't change that."

Let's list some possible frustrations

  • Work-life balance
  • Player commitment
  • Player obstinacy (rare)
  • Misaligned interests 
  • Parents (occasional)
  • Money (it costs parents too much)
Coaching well consumes time. Family time competes with coaching time. If coaching is not our primary job, then it squeezes time further. 

Player commitment varies. Everyone deserves coaching. In the Harry Bosch vein, "Everybody counts or nobody counts." It can be frustrating to have 'hobbyists' who aren't as committed as others. 

Frank insubordination is rare. What makes it worse is that participation is voluntary. If a player doesn't want to be part of the program and chooses to do her own thing, why are they around? Invariably, it's a matter of maturity.

Misaligned interests. No scouts are coming to middle school tryouts, middle school practices, or games. The player consumed by numbers who puts the scorebook before the scoreboard doesn't make much sense. There are stories about players berated by parents because they didn't shoot enough or score enough. That's on the parents. 

"Snowplow parents." I rarely saw it. Advocate for your child's attention, playtime, respect. If you don't who will? Every child is a special person. Few children will be special players. Literally, no child with difficult parental input ever became all-league or above. 

Money. Over half a century ago, the cost of youth basketball and camps was reasonable. It's gotten crazy as the explosion of youth sports offerings drives the industry into the tens of billions. I was fortunate to be able to volunteer, sponsor tournament fees, and cater an end-of-season gathering. Still, participation fees for kids ran over $400 a year (gym time, league fees, officiating fees). Total that across multiple leagues, multiple sports, and multiple children and parents are paying thousands annually. 

With city budgets strained amidst inflation across numerous domains and tax overrides voted on regularly, the system feels unsustainable. 

Despite the issues, I always felt it was worth it, regardless of the wins and losses. 

Lagniappe. Discipline defines destiny. 

Lagniappe 2. Winning long-term starts with a commitment to win daily.  

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Friday, July 25, 2025

Overcoming Musical Chairs in Basketball

"Our defaults work off deeply ingrained biological tendencies—our tendencies for self-preservation, for recognizing and maintaining social hierarchies, and for defending ourselves and our territory." - "Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results" by Shane Parrish

Let's take a 'hypothetical' situation. A hypothetical is an imagined situation not necessarily true.

Presume there are three similarly skilled guards with the necessary skills - offensive, defensive, basketball IQ. Realistically, two ascend the "depth chart," and the third initially has a smaller role. 

You may have played the game "musical chairs," where the music stops and everyone scrambles for a seat. And each round, one chair gets removed. That's the lineup "numbers game." 

Similarly, the Red Sox have a group of capable outfielders - Abreu, Rafaela, Anthony, Duran, Refsnyder, Yoshida. Depth is great but teams have three outfield slots and the DH. Everyone will not be happy and ownership doesn't want to pay big money for hypothetical production.

The "numbers crunch" challenges coaches and players. Different factors play into it - ego, emotion, the "social" situation, inertia. 

  • Everyone needs to be valued (ego demands).
  • Being left out can create dissent, frustration, anger.
  • Comfort picks the status quo if possible.
  • How is the team reacting to the decision? 
Across the wide world of sport, what happens? Some players put the team first and keep working. Some players redouble their efforts, knowing that playing time is 'dynamic' and depends on performance. Some players rebel and become a distraction. Some quit. 

Coach Sonny Lane used to say, "It's not who starts that matters, it's who finishes." 
  • Earn the trust of your coach and the chance at minutes, role, and crunch time. 
  • Control what you can control - attitude, choices, effort. 
  • Be a great teammate. 
It is hard not to have what you want. If it's important to you, keep grinding. You will always get an opportunity. It's up to you to make the most of it. 

Lagniappe. Don't memorize a dozen zoom (downscreen DHO) actions. Visualize the possibilities and create. 

 Lagniappe 2. Ask players what your club's points of emphasis are. 

Lagniappe 3. What puts you ahead of the coaching game?  

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Thursday, July 24, 2025

Basketball - Would a Bosch "Crime Analysis" Collage Help?

Michael Connelly's grizzled detective, Harry Bosch, studies a case laying out photographs on a table. Solve puzzles by assembling the pieces. Use the "big picture" and the granular details. 

It might not seem "efficient" as film study, yet it calls attention to the action/inaction of everyone on the floor. 

Here are a few screenshots from the Celtics-Knicks, Game 5, a.k.a. "the Kornet Game." 

Every game "sums" individual possessions. Most focus on "end of game" actions, but winning individual possessions gets underrated and undertaught in my opinion. 


Half-court action, at first glance an isolation with Brown against a smaller, defensively challenged Brunson. Kornet is in the "dunker" and Horford spaced in the corner. 


Brunson in position to take away the middle, Brown not 'threatened'. 


KAT has no "line of sight" for Kornet. He doesn't appear to be able to limit a Kornet cut. Will Kornet cut to the low block? He could also screen for several players. He's not a shooter, so relocating may not move KAT, aside from avoiding a defensive three seconds call. 


Pritchard and White space high.

What happens? Brown gets into the paint, uses a "Euro step" and "draws two." As KAT leaves Kornet, Brown delivers a 'wraparound' and Kornet gets an easy two. "Great offense is multiple actions." 


Lagniappe. Winning on the road...good suggestions at home, too.  

Lagniappe 2. Breaking down 'types' of possessions.  

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Wednesday, July 23, 2025

Standards

What are our standards? How consistently do we maintain them? 

When Nick Saban was a boy, he worked with his father at the family's service station. He washed cars. His father inspected the finished job and if there was one spot or streak, his father made him to the job over. There was one standard. 

"What are you selling today?" Model excellence. 

Shane Parrish addresses standards in Clear Thinking. "But average standards aren’t going to get you where you want to go. Standards become habits, and habits become outcomes."

Sean Miller shares standards (harsh language). 

49ers coach Bill Walsh preached standards in his "Standard of Performance" and his exceptional book, The Score Takes Care of Itself.

Via ChatGPT:

Bill Walsh's philosophy on standards in The Score Takes Care of Itself centers on the idea that success is a byproduct of relentlessly high personal and organizational standards—not a pursuit of the scoreboard.

Here are the key principles he emphasizes:

1. The Standard of Performance

Walsh’s central concept is what he called the “Standard of Performance.” This is a detailed blueprint for behavior, attitude, and execution, applied consistently across every person and role in the organization—from secretaries to quarterbacks.

“The culture precedes positive results. It doesn’t get tacked on as an afterthought on the way to the victory stand.”

He believed you win by doing things right, not by obsessing over winning.

2. Details Create Discipline

Walsh insisted on mastery of the small things—punctuality, communication, dress code, preparation, body language. These weren’t superficial; they were manifestations of excellence and pride. Standards lived in the details.

“Excellence is a habit, not a one-time act.”

3. Leaders Set the Standard—Then Model It

Walsh made clear that standards start at the top. The leader must define and consistently embody the behaviors they expect, even when no one is watching.

“You must be the first to demonstrate the discipline you expect from others.”

4. Standards Before Outcomes

He often reiterated that focusing on execution—on your role, on alignment, on timing—leads to outcomes. But chasing outcomes directly, without standards, collapses under pressure.

“When you have the right culture, the right behaviors, the right standards—the score takes care of itself.”

5. Accountability Without Drama

Walsh did not tolerate mediocrity. If someone wasn’t meeting the standard, it was addressed—firmly, clearly, and professionally. It wasn’t personal, but it was non-negotiable.

Some people say that it's tough to play for coaches with exacting standards - Walsh, Belichick, Lombardi. It's the opposite. Coaches without standards don't commit to attention to detail, to relentless preparation, to relying on each other to execute. Once coaches let things slip, the end is coming. 

Lagniappe. Long and unforgettable message from Coach Saban 

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Tuesday, July 22, 2025

Basketball- “It’s What They Know”

Applying the process depends not on coaching knowledge. “It’s what the players know.” Pete Newell’s message to coaches, Help players "see the game." 

Ideally, they recognize both patterns and calls (verbiage). If the opponent is playing 2-3 zone and their coach calls "fire" or "red" or some aggressive sounding term, expect a trap and a possible four on three edge. 

1. Pressure defense. Think screens and back cuts.

2. PnR roller defender commits too high? Automatic release and slip to the basket.

3. They switch everything? Screen small on big to get size isolations or big on small to get speed mismatches.

4. Be able to win multiple ways. See below.

5. Use analogies. Speed = cavalry. Power = infantry. Perimeter shooting = artillery. 

6. Sun Tzu quote about strength from The Art of War: “in war, the way is to avoid what is strong and to strike at what is weak.”

7. Play with intensity yet under control. Mastery of others is strength. Mastery of self is true power.” – Lao Tzu"

8. Teach situational basketball, helping players understand "winning time," including using tempo (e.g. offensive and defensive delay games) to advantage. 

9. "Foul for profit," says Coach Kevin Sivils. Strategic fouling can make the difference between winning and losing if teams get bad shooters to the line. 

10.Develop role players. Have a reliable inbounder and at least two reliable rebounders. One consistent ballhandler will not defeat teams who apply pressure well. It goes without saying that everyone needs scorers, preferably at least three. 

Lagniappe. Separate and finish.  

Lagniappe 2. Not saying this is always right. Some astute players might draw fouls by raking their arms through a defender's arm. Not hating on K.  

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Monday, July 21, 2025

Fill in the Basketball Blanks

Quiz your players. Find out what they know and how they think. No multiple choice questions, no Jeopardy answers, just fill in the blanks. Don't grade on the curve. 

Add value for players. Help them find solutions.

1. Basketball is a game of _______ 

There's no unitary answer. Bob Knight said, "mistakes." Lots of other possible answers such as "separation" or "cutting and passing." Coach Wooden said, "Basketball is a game meant to be played fast." Superior talent should play fast. 

2. The quickest road to improvement is ________

"shot selection." As Newell said, "Get more and better shots than our opponents." 

3. “Fouling negates __________”

"hustle." Fouling often turns lower quality (points per possession) shots into free throws (higher percentage).

4. Turnovers kill ___________

"dreams" or "possessions." A turnover equates to a zero percent shot and often "live ball turnovers" become high points per possession for opponents. 

5. The most common cause of offense failing is ________

This depends on our team. Possible examples include "lack of hard cutting" or "turnovers" or "poor shot selection." For some, lack of offense is lack of talent. 

6. Two key elements of offensive success are paint touches and __________

"ball reversal." Movement (player and ball) kills defenses. Ball reversal can come through the paint, skip passes, or around the perimeter. Statistically paint touches and ball reversal lead to higher points per possession. 

7. Three things players want are minutes, shots, and _________

"recognition." Chuck Daly quipped, "NBA players want 48. 48 minutes, 48 shots, 48 million." 

8. “The game honors ________”

"toughness." Don't sleep on intangibles - toughness, effort, teamwork, sacrifice, attention to detail. None require exceptional size or athleticism. 

9. Never foul a ____________

"jump shot." In one NBA Summer League I watched, there were four fouls of three point shots. Meanwhile, the teams combined to shoot 26 percent from three. 

10.Three S’s kill teams - sloth, softness, and ___________

"selfishness." My favorite story about this was about a player who considered himself far above his teammates. In practice, the coach set him up to inbound the ball...and told the rest of his teammates to leave the court. "Now play." 

Lagniappe. What kind of player are you? 

Lagniappe 2. It's not just the concepts. Hard cutting and on-time, on-target passing are musts.  

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Sunday, July 20, 2025

Basketball - FI Cards, "Shaking the Tree"

"What belongs on your FI Card'?" In Michael Connelly crime novels (e.g. Bosch, The Lincoln Lawyer, Ballard), the Los Angeles PD Field Interview card was a 3" x 5" card with identifying data (name, date of birth, where stopped, why, officer) and additional comments on the back.)

Connelly says LAPD called them "shake cards" with disrespect to an ACLU action referring to the stops as "shakedowns." 

From ChatGPT:

Purpose

The goal was to:

  • Build intelligence files

  • Track known or suspected gang members

  • Create a paper trail of interactions

  • Assist in later investigations (e.g., who was in the area of a crime)

"Card after card contained records of interviews with individuals who were aimlessly roaming the streets, looking for whatever grim opportunity presented itself...with no seeming plan to change their situation." - Michael Connelly in Dark Sacred Night

At basketball tryouts, players got a colored tee shirt with a number on it. That was "minimal identifying data" and evaluators made judgments without knowing names or parentage, measurables, hopes, dreams. Usually, there were three or four "evaluators." Not saying it was either a good or bad system, just limited. 

They didn't even get a 3 x 5 card...just a few notes next to their number on the sheet on a clipboard. 

For a tryout that might last 1-2 hours (if two sessions), there were no categories or metrics - offense, defense, rebounding, ball handling, etc. and no grading system, e.g. 1 to 4. 

Maybe we weren't deluding ourselves that a limited evaluation functioned like Swiss watch engineers instead of drug-addled monkeys. 

What I'd want on the back of the card:

1) One sentence statement: "This is why I want to play basketball."

2) Evaluator general impressions: High energy, athletic

3) Skill - primary skill is _________________

4) Potential role: e.g. 3&D, point guard, dominant rebounder

5) Overall impression: top 10%, 25%, 50%, bottom 50%

As an evaluator for younger U14, U12s I'm looking to make general projections. If an 11 or 12 year-old has excellent size and athleticism but limited skill, I'm intrigued. Did they hustle, did they have a presence? None are finished products. 

I knew elite physicians who filled out a 3" x 5" card on every patient they consulted upon. They were not part of the medical record. I don't know what they wrote on those cards. One of them was as kind and thoughtful as imaginable while another was a "mean buzzard" highly respected in his field. Both the MDs and the patient's care derived something from the cards. Most professionals make 'mental notes'. The act of writing things down changes the thought process. 

Lagniappe. Attitude. 

Lagniappe 2. Always interested in coaches' process: 

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Saturday, July 19, 2025

Basketball - CARD GAME "What Are We Selling Today?"

"I'm a salesman," wrote Chuck Daly in Daly Wisdom. He understood that almost everyone sells something. Teachers sell the value of learning. Doctors sell the importance of self-care and following instructions. Coaches sell our process, creating value, and the relevance of buy-in.

Imagine this. At the first meeting with parents, each brings in a card with the answer to this. "What are your expectations for your child and family from this experience?" 

Think about it from the parent perspective. 

  • "I want my child to be part of a team."
  • "I want my child to learn basketball principles."
  • "I want my child to learn how to work better with others."
  • "I want my child to learn the value of commitment, discipline, and effort."
  • "I want my child to learn how to cope with failure and success." 
What if these are the answers?
  • "I expect my child and my family to be respected."
  • "I expect my child to be a starter and contributor."
  • "I expect my child to get as many minutes and shots as the best player on the team." 
  • "I expect my child to be All-State and All-Scholastic."
  • "I expect my child to earn a college scholarship."
  • "I expect my child to play professional basketball." 
One set of "wants" is theoretically possible and one is possible but all are unlikely deliverable. 

Everyone brings "baggage" and "expectations" from and to our experiences. If we handed out and received those cards, we'd have a much better understanding of what parents want. 

Don't hand out those cards. It might have value to ask parents the rhetorical question, "what are your expectations?" 

Lagniappe. Sidelines out of bounds three. 

Lagniappe 2. "I asked, “If you could pick one trait that would predict how someone would turn out, what would it be?” “That’s easy,” he said. “How willing they are to change their mind about what they think they know.”" - "Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results" by Shane Parrish


 

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