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Thursday, February 6, 2025

Basketball - Win More Consistently


There's no secret sauce to consistent winning. Some habits and qualities belong to winners. Specifics matter. 

Sixty years of playing, watching, coaching, and writing about basketball inform questions and answers.

1) More offense or more defense? Life is about balance. Nobody wins 0-0 so teams need to score. Play only one end of the floor and lose by being outscored. Sometimes "you gotta have a bucket" and others "you gotta get a stop." Keep a list of best plays and a reserve defensive action (e.g. trapping) that you don't use a lot. 

2) How do you score more? The quickest path is better shot selection. Shot charts and game video show who's been naughty or nice. 

The next is fewer turnovers. Third is better rebounding. Fourth is attacking the basket, drawing fouls, and converting free throws. You know these as the Four Factors. Track and share team turnovers, rebounds, and free throw percentage.  

3) How do you stop giving games away? Play harder for longer. Focus. Practice 'close and late' situations to improve basketball decision making. 

4) How do you "win" late? Practice special situations including BOB, SLOB, ATOs, and free throw offense and defense. List best actions on your play sheet. 

5) How do you make clutch free throws? We practiced "harassment free throws," four sets of ten each practice where the shooter's partner could say or do anything except physically interfere with the shot.

6) How do you win 'tempo'? Practice offensive and defensive delay. Leading, shorten the game with delay offense with the potential to score a layup. If you have an excellent offensive player, Four Corners with a ballhandler in the middle works. Defensive delay (steal, trap, or foul) is even more challenging. 

7) How do you deploy timeouts? There's no 'right' answer. Dean Smith believed in saving three timeouts for the final four minutes if possible. Sometimes it's not possible as it's needed to stop momentum, get a substitution, or stop for game management instruction.  

8) What's the best way to get players accustomed to pressure? Coach Knight preached advantage-disadvantage. Make the teams uneven in practice, add constraints (e.g. no dribbling), and have five play against seven. 

9) How can we use positive psychology? Train players in mindfulness. Dot B. Stop and take a breath. Speak greatness as in, "we got this" or "isn't this great to be playing in this big game." Composed coaches help calm players. 

10) What do the best coaches do especially well? They practice with high tempo and high efficiency. Prepare to the minute. Whether it's Geno Auriemma, Bill Belichick, or Brad Stevens, they get the most from both time and their players. 

Lagniappe. Conflicts and performance. 

Lagniappe 2. The ball is a magnet. Offense has to resist the pull and maintain spacing.  

Lagniappe 3. Life expects us to make the next right play.  

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