Basketball- Talking Dogs, Bingo Coaching (B 17), and Old Man Rants

Driving a country road, a coach saw a sign "Talking Dog $25." Curious, he asks the owner, can I talk with him? He asks the dog, "can you tell me your story?" "Sure. Early on, my master learned I had the gift of speech. Naturally, he sent me to the CIA. I could go where other operators couldn't. I was legendary. But I got old, so they retired me." The coach said, "That's incredible. You're selling him for nothing? The owner said, "he's such a liar. He never did any of that."

Coach Mike Krzyzewski said, "Basketball is about making plays, not running plays."

A weekend travel tournament coach sounded as though he were running a bingo parlor, calling out plays each trip down the floor.

"B-17"

"I-10"

"O-12"

What's the developmental coach's role, teaching basketball knowledge that transfers to anything from a pickup game to advanced levels, or running play after play (mostly to set up his daughter's shots)? 

What minimum offensive curriculum belongs in a player's offensive skill portfolio? There's ample room for disagreement; figure out your core. 

Right and left handed layups (either foot from either side of the basket)

Shoot off the catch, off the shot fake. 

Shooting off the dribble (either right or left)

Attack to separate (e.g. shot fake, jab/rip into drive or shot)

Attack on the run off the catch (stampede)

Back to basket attack (faceup) with front or reverse pivot

Separation dribble continuation (speed, hesi, in-and-out), change of direction (crossover, behind the back, spin, between the legs) and combinations (e.g. hesi-cross) - good players don't need all 

Cutting 

Passing (including feeding the post)

Isolation 

Two-man-game (e.g. PnR, inside-out, give-and-go)

Small-sided games (e.g. 3 v 3 with constraints)

Specialty - negative step, lateral glide (Durant), Eurostep, sidestep 3s

Watch a lot of high school games and you'll say, "(s)he never did any of that." 

Players can excel without "flashy" games. Somewhere along the way they need high volume repetition of separation moves (with and without the ball). 

Lagniappe. "All war is based on deception." 

Shot fakes need to be utilized at all levels

It’s amazing how much players will sell out for a block or a contest

Rep them in your workouts and use them in your games

pic.twitter.com/u3DVSiojZq

— Hoop Herald (@TheHoopHerald) December 14, 2025

Lagniappe 2. Thread from Chris Oliver about better teaching. 

Sometimes when players aren’t changing, it’s because the signal isn’t loud enough.

Exaggeration cuts through the noise. Push movements past “normal,” and you instantly make the learning clearer, faster, and more memorable.

A Thread. 🧵 pic.twitter.com/yjoqavR7Ha

— Chris Oliver (@BBallImmersion) December 12, 2025