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Sunday, March 30, 2025

SMART Offseason Basketball Ideas

You know SMART when you see it. Specific - Measurable - Achievable - Realistic - Timely.

Discover ideas that could work for your program. 

1) Don't make it about the time; make it about the work. Time alone isn't enough. Push yourself. 

2) Be a tracker. Track your workouts and your personal bests. If you're taking 100 free throws a day, monitor results. Someday you can make 100 in a row. 

3) Build basketball IQ. Study top players, coaches, and use video to monitor your progress. Cellphone video is a good starting place for your personal play. Playing a lot helps, too. 

4) Have a written plan addressing skill, strategy, physicality, and psychology. 

5) Work out with a teammate. In "Above the Line," Urban Meyer shares how he demanded top 10 percent players workout with another player to drag them into the top 10 percent. 

6) Use constraints. Force yourself to build your non-dominant hand. Make a shooting drill more competitive with time pressure or goal-elevated. "Beat the Pro" or "Bill Bradley" requires you to make 11 (by one) before your imaginary opponent scores 12 (by three points for your miss). You can raise the standards. 

7) Make it competitive. Working against defense and fatigue (run sprints and do pushups between shooting drills) builds realistic competition. 

8) Build resilience. Mindfulness, sports psychology study, visualization all have potential benefits. 

9) Become more athletic. Reward yourself more strength, endurance, and quickness. Leave your comfort zone  

10) Increase your range. There's no shortcut to repetitions. Another benefit of working with a partner is having a rebounder. 

Bonus: work on your lexicon of basketball team-specific terminology and share it with your team. 

It's your choice. 

Lagniappe. The game is the game. 

Lagniappe 2. "Nobody cares." Separate important from fluff. 

Lagniappe 3. Everybody runs Zoom (downscreen, DHO).  


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