Fast Five: The "Canvas Strategy" of Ryan Holiday

Ryan Holiday has written a series of valuable books, including Ego is the Enemy and The Obstacle is the Way. 

1. He describes the "canvas strategy" which includes serving as a variety of tasks as an apprentice or 'go-fer'. 

2. Holiday worked for Robert Greene who has written the bestsellers The 48 Laws of Power and Mastery. Apprenticeships were standard practice since antiquity. For example, Michaelangelo worked in sculpture from the time he was six, often ten hour days. When he had created the Pieta by age 26 and was told it was remarkable since he was so young. He answered that one might not think so if they knew he had twenty years of grueling experience. 

3. The trainee uses the 'canvas strategy' by "finding canvases" for his patron to prepare. Benjamin Franklin used it to enter the printing trade as a route to becoming a writer instead of pursuing the family business of candlemaking. As 'trainee' the student gets experience and inside access, at the expense of low wages and anonymity. But by serving the 'master' well, the student gets opportunity for advancement.  

4. Malcolm Gladwell documents the vestiges of apprenticeships in his book Outliers in his chapter 10,000 Hours. As examples, he suggests that medical, legal, musical, and chess mastery all traverse paths with 10,000 hours or more of training. We simply don't have shortcuts to mastery.

5. Very successful coaches have risen using the 'canvas strategy', including Lawrence Frank who rose to become an NBA coach after starting as a manager for Bob Knight at Indiana. Bill Belichick started as barely-paid errand boy for the Baltimore Colts' Ted Marchibroda. 

Trainees can feel unappreciated, used, and disenchanted. They can be the butt of jokes. Medical students are called "wedges" because "the wedge is man's simplest tool." But ultimately, when you clear the way for your senior, you make a life for yourself. 

Growing Greatness: Dissecting the Coach

Brook Kohlheim shared this in her coaching newsletter and here are my annotations on the article:

1. LA assistant Brian Keefe helps build PROFESSIONAL HABITS (every great pro has a series of habits that shape their professional craft).

2. Early in their career, KD, James Harden, and Russell Westbrook developed career-shaping routines. 

3. Players had specific sessions to develop specific facets of their game - shooting, ball handling, game understanding, defense. 

4. These future stars also developed their off-the-court lives. 

5. Individual work developed into team culture (OKC). 

6. The Lakers with three consecutive lottery picks - Randle, Russell, and Ingram - have copied the OKC blueprint and are coaching up their young pros both professionally and culturally. (The author doesn't elaborate, but I'd guess that media training, financial education, psychology (emotional intelligence), and cultural literacy programs would belong in the curriculum. 

Melrose-Burlington Shots from Steve Karampalas

Coach Ralph Labella and I had the chance to coach almost half the players on the Melrose High School girls team. Steve Karampalas shares some shots from recent action. Click to see the full frame. 

More from Extreme Ownership: The Enemy Gets a Vote

We all believe that we clarify and simplify our messages. Really? Here are a few quotes from Extreme Ownership, recapping the aftermath of a patrol under attack in Ramadi, Iraq.  

"Simplifying as much as possible is crucial to success. When plans and orders are too complicated, people may not understand them. And when things go wrong, and they inevitably do go wrong, complexity compounds issues that can spiral out of control into total disaster." 

"Everyone that is part of the mission must know and understand his or her role in the mission..." 

"If your team doesn't get it, you have not kept things simple and you have failed." 

"Simple: this principle isn't limited to the battlefield." 

"Remember, the enemy gets a vote." (The opposition chooses how to respond that determines how teams must modify our plans). 

As coaches, we know how we want our team to play...I'll use the example of Geno Auriemma who wants a third of offense from transition, a third from sets, and a third from threes. That's a pipe dream for me...I can cajole, pray, or hold my breath and stamp my feet but that won't get me a third of that production. 

Players need to know that we're focused on spacing, cutting, screening, and passing with the goal of attacking the paint, getting quality shots, and taking care of the ball. I don't have enough practice time to get our team to run sets adequately, and it distracts from our fundamental needs. 

Defensively, we're about denying easy baskets, pressuring the ball, helping, discipline to avoid fouling (a critical area), and competing on the boards. I can't even emphasize contesting shots without getting even more fouls now...

But can our players explain these priorities and gradually improve execution? Or it's just talk. I'll get some additional feedback today. 

BOB 14 Low Series

Simplicity. Clarity. Depth. Those are words I would like associated with my teaching. We're not there. 

Nonetheless, I'll share what I'd to put in. 

1) First responsibility. Inbound the ball safely. 
2) Maintain spacing. 
3) Player and ball movement. 
4) Mostly off ball screening to create separation and/or mismatches. 
5) Some of the actions can be run against zone as high defenders have to relocate. 

Basic screen for elbow shot. In practice, we get a lot of rotation from x3 (3's defender), opening up corner shot. 

Staggered screen with option for ball screen. USAWNT ran something analagous from high 1-4 to get screen-and-roll option for 4. 

1 screens 4, great mismatch opportunity. 

You've all seen this. I call it "America's Play" series. 

Can run with or without diagonals. Flexible. Can use into ball reversal screen for 1 or run 3 through into isolation for 4. 

Think broadly and a lot of "BOB" actions can be run from 'inverted' classic 1-4 sets. 

Ball Pressure

Simplify a part of defensive thinking as maintaining and enhancing BALL PRESSURE. 

With individual assignment defense, ball pressure starts everything. Pressure means pressure. "Head on the ball", "don't back down", and "crawl up into them" are just a few exhortations. Your job is to turn the dribbler in the backcourt and "force to tape" in the forecourt. If you can't touch the dribbler, you're too far away. If the dribbler picks up the ball, immediately surround the pivot foot to reduce ballhandler options, exposing her to more pivot, pass, and time pressure.

I spent much of my junior year chasing around this jackrabbit of a teammate in practice who could really dribble. Think Rocky and the chicken. But it paid off the next season. 

Closeouts? Recover into ball pressure. Trapping? Intensify ball pressure.

Ball pressure allows more defensive flexibility. You can choose a more "Pack line" defensive approach with more help, denial off the ball, or front the post - but without ball pressure nothing will work. Great zone defense looks like great man defense on the ball. Great man defense uses some zone principles away from the ball.

It begins with mindset. "I pressure the ball." Avoid negative thinking. "What happens if I get beaten off the dribble or after a pass?" You have to 'trust the protection', but embrace that you are responsible for the coverage. If you get beat, you're a cornerback; turn and sprint. "Basketball is not a running game, it is a sprinting game." 

What about fouling? Aggressive play demands intelligent play. Move your feet; show your hands. Most fouls reflect poor technique rather than aggression.

Urge players to "be hard to play against." You must play fearless defense. Tell them, "you can always improve" and "ask yourself what am I doing to improve?" Defense starts with ball pressure. 

Fast Five: Wisdom from Arnold

Be eclectic. Draw from the rich resources all around us. 

In his foreword to Tim Ferriss' Tools of Titans (Tim describes this as recipes for high performance), Arnold Schwarzenegger shares timeless wisdom. 

1. "I am not a self-made man. I got a lot of help...My life was built on a foundation of parents, coaches, and teachers; of kind souls who lent couches or gym back rooms where I could sleep; of mentors who shared wisdom and advice."

2. "To accept that mantle discounts every person and every piece of advice that got me here. And it gives the wrong impression-that you can do it alone." 

3. "I have never been shy about seeking wisdom from others to pour fuel on my fire." 

4. "Whether it's a morning routine or a philosophy or training tip, or just motivation to get through your day,  there isn't a person on this planet who doesn't benefit from a little outside help." 

5. "The worst thing that you can do is think that you know enough. Never stop learning. Ever." 

Good Optics, Bad Optics

Voltaire's message from Dr. Pangloss in the French philosophical novel Candide...

We have an obligation to our team to become a better version of ourselves. Because most communication is non-verbal, we message others constantly, regardless of our intent. What messages do we send? What are our windows to the soul?

We should be conscious of our messages. This isn't easy, even for advanced practitioners.

Nobody is in complete control all the time.

Good optics...








Bad optics. 

Great coaches can 'lose it'. 







With so much transparency (a cellphone camera everywhere) and attention to every behavioral faux pas, let's pay attention to optics. We all make mistakes, but we can work to reduce them, just as we teach our players to do so. 

There's pushback against 'political correctness'. Emotion won't be leaving sport anytime soon. But as Ryan Holiday reminds us in The Obstacle is the Way, there are perceptions and our responses. We choose how we view the world and how we act. 

Learning from Failure

Losing a basketball game isn't death...it just hurts. To chronicle suffering, the psychiatrist Viktor Frankl wrote the important book, Man's Search for Meaning, describing years surviving Nazi death camps and coping with intense suffering and death. I think it should be mandatory reading for every high school student, because it reveals the duality of suffering and hope. 

Ideally we learn without failing or from others' failure, but that's unrealistic...because of our humanity.


This is not what a post-game handshake should look like. 

Coach Bob Knight reminds us, "basketball is a game of failure." You might go three for ten in baseball and be an All-Star, but that's untrue for basketball. Failure include the tangible - missed shots, turnovers, (often) fouls, and many types of defensive mistakes. But it also includes immeasurables...failures of alertness, awareness, communication, effort, and energy. Reducing mistakes is fundamental to success. "Do more of what is working and less of what is not." 

What is our mission? We could define our "mission" as 'winning basketball games' but less narrowly 'playing better basketball' and helping young people grow. I've seen a few exceptional teams with poor cultures...therein the exception. We can achieve our mission without winning...although winning is a lot more fun. No matter how hard we try, adversity is a loyal companion. 

How we do our business reflects our perceptions, actions, and our persistence. There will always be critics who brand individuals or teams as losers. We can listen to those voices or control our narrative and attitude. Good coaching helps players find solutions. 

A challenge can inspire fear or excitement. Which do you choose? Slogans without action are hollow. But adversity maintains our humility and reminds us that we're on the wrong path, that changes are needed. 

Talent is never enough. But persistence counts. Respect flows to the teams that 'bring the fight' no matter the situation. As Kevin Eastman says, "are you going to give up and give in or get up and get in?" 

We want to maximize the number and quality of offensive possessions and minimize the quality of our opponents' possessions. We must study what errors prevent us from scoring and permit our opponents to do so. 

I've highlighted areas that deserve attention for us now that impede our competitiveness. 

Offensive failure

Offensive foul (no points and foul accumulation) 
Turnover into opponent points (types and frequency of turnovers)
Turnover without opponent points
Shot clock violation 
Poor quality shot (shot charts, assists - reflect both movement and passing)
Missed foul shots
Missed good shot 
Lack of offensive rebounds

Defensive failure

Three point shot allowed with foul

Two point shot allowed with foul

Easy basket (transition, layup, offensive rebound)
Uncontested made shot

Made foul shots (with or without excessive fouling)
Lack of ball pressure, help, and recovery
Allowing penetration 

Can You Improve Your Court Vision? VDE

"Sometimes you can observe a lot by just watching." - Yogi Berra  

Preach VDE...vision, decision, execution. If you can't see it, there's no decision. When you decide wrong, execution approaches impossible. 

Bill Bradley worked on improving his peripheral vision...seeing what is there but 'unseen'. 

Awareness matters. Knowing what to look for increases your vision. If a defender is playing 'high', you and your teammate should be looking for backcuts. If a defender plays low, then seek front (face) cuts. If your defender is a head turner, then find them losing vision. If you intend to cut, know that the passer can see you. 


"Eyes up." My assistant, Victoria, regularly reminds players to keep their eyes up. As a young player, I put masking tape on the bottom of my eyeglasses. 

Remind players to watch more than the ball when they're watching a game. Watch how individual players and teams get (and deny) separation (with or without the ball). 

Many of us are "visual learners", so we can combine instruction with images and also walk-throughs. 

Vision sometimes starts with "chunking" information. 




Chess masters see patterns, information arranged in familiar chunks. Players combine VDE to create high quality chances. 



Ideas become possibilities and then actions. Some elite programs use IntelliGym to enhance players' cognitive performance. The technology is similar to Asteroids. 





Vision can turn into deception with misdirection. 

Advanced technology and a strong will to improve can result in measurable enhancement of cognitive basketball performance. VDE. 

Crazy Eights Shooting Drill

I'm going to try a new drill I devised at our next practice. I'm calling it "Crazy 8s" because you need eight hoops to win. 

We have four baskets and everyone will rotate to shoot both elbows and corners. You shoot, rebound, and make a good pass to the line you came from. This demands some conditioning. My biggest concern is that it will take too long for anyone to make eight shots. 

Popovich Quotes

"Good artists borrow; great artists steal." - Picasso

Consensus says Gregg Popovich is the best coach in the NBA. He relates to players and establishes a culture of TEAM. What does he say? I'm stealing Pop quotes today. 

"You're in charge of yourself. There are always things you can do better."

“You have to make shots to win basketball games and we didn't do that. You also have to get back on defense, so it was a double-whammy.”

"In today's world, if you don't win the whole thing, whether it's football or basketball, or this and that, people have a tendency to paint you as a loser or act like you just robbed the cookie jar. Well that's baloney.

"It didn't happen for us, but is everything going to go your way in life? You think you're on the Earth and everything you want to happen to you is going to happen to you positively? The measure of who we are is how we react to something that doesn't go our way."

“We suck on 'D. Both individually and team-wise, we suck. We're pretty consistent that way. I don't know if I have an answer to that. If I did, we wouldn't suck quite so bad.” (Our job is to find solutions and Popovich is accountable.)

“I asked them if it wasn't too much trouble, if I wasn't being too pushy, if they could execute what we were trying to do. And if it didn't make them too angry, if they also wanted to play some defense on the other end, that would be great.” (In the middle of a recent game, I told the bench, "wow, that's the first bad shot we've taken." Do you understand what I'm saying?" Two girls piped up, "sarcasm". That's why you have to love coaching young kids.)

"Basketball is a pretty simple game. What wins is consistency and competitiveness."

"I can't make every decision for you. I don't have 14 timeouts. You guys got to get together and talk..."(this reflects his military background and decentralized command structure) 

Fast Five: Double Bonus, Ten Shooting Videos for your New Year

Shooting is the most important and worst taught skill in basketball. Today's share includes some of my favorite shooting videos. 


1. It doesn't matter how you shoot if you can't release quickly. 




2. Getting separation is fundamental. Guys like Redick don't "free shoot". They practice with intent. Redick practices mentally 'reading the defense' off 'floppy' action. Curl, bump to the corner, and multiple shot situations (catch-and-shoot, catch into one-dribble shot). 


3. You cannot make shots with your elbow pointed to the corner. Elbow 'under the ball'. 


4. Load and fire. The longer you hold, the lower the percentage. 



5. Steve Nash was one of the few "180 Shooters". He shares a twenty minute workout. 

6. Paul Pierce wing series. At least develop a "Go to" and "counter" move. 




7. Dennis Stanton with shooting off the catch and dribble. One-two or hop? He's a one-two guy.




8. The hop versus the one-two. Do you retrain a 'good shooter' or everyone? 

9. Pistol Pete Maravich shooting video. How can you not watch this? Mechanics, psychology, and application. A great way to start your hoop New Year right. 



10. "The bank is always open." This video disproves the claim that Zach Randolph never goes to his right. In a post-factual world, people hate science. Science proves using the backboard increases shooting percentage...which is why I teach players to use the window. 

Zone Offense Thoughts from Del Harris

Del Harris has shared a lot of great information over time, information that deserves dissemination. Coach Harris believes that good defenses will quickly adjust to a few set patterns. He advocates principled learning to develop intelligent freelance in his Coaching Basketball's Zone Offense (1976). I borrow heavily from his chapter on general approach. 

1. Fundamental excellence matters. Regardless of strategy, competent passing and shooting impact the results. Zone defenses have intrinsic weaknesses (e.g. rebounding assignments). We emphasize the "two second rule"; don't hold the ball more than two seconds. I am the first to acknowledge that our players (8th grade girls) don't 'see' these evolutions yet. "What is not learned hasn't been taught." 

2. Transition creates opportunity (numbers) and takes advantage of defensive mistakes including poor defensive transition.

3. Passing with patience. Ball movement creates defensive mistakes (effort, distortion of the zone). Cutting demands player rotation. 

We've gone away from set plays because of poor execution, but this reliably got mid-range shots for our 5 when we ran it properly. 

4. Spacing to open the lane for both passing and driving. 

Fool's gold to be 'closer' to the basket initially and compromise passing lanes. 

5. Penetration (multiple means - passing, dribbling, dribble/relocation).

If the defense allows direct passes into the high or low post, take advantage, but it has to be done safely. 

Driving into the gaps may bring multiple defenders to the ball and can create fouls. 

Dribble 'relocation' facilitates passing. 

6. High and low post combinations when available. 

7. Inside game when personnel permits. We are quite limited by size, so creating posting opportunities is less of a priority other than moving the ball through the post. 

8. Man principles, including screening, give and go. 

For experienced coaches, this is elementary. But our players mostly don't have the VDE (vision-decision-execution) inputs down. "The more we give, the more we get."

Fast Five: Leadership, It's About the Details

"How you do something is how you do everything." 

The Cavaliers beat the Celtics Thursday night. But, truthfully, the Celtics beat themselves defensively. Coach Brad Stevens wasn't in the mood to discuss 'spirited comebacks' not when his team had allowed 100 points through three quarters. "We weren't connected on defense at all." 

Let's reiterate some key points from Extreme Ownership. I won't 'sell' that basketball (a game) has any meaningful relationship to war. That's silly and disproportionate. But leadership matters in any team activity. 

1. "There can be no leadership when there is no team."

Leaders are either effective or ineffective. Committed leaders align team members to get optimal performance. Weak leaders end up with dysfunctional teams. They live in the blame, complain, and defend space. 

2. "There are no bad teams; there are only bad leaders." 

The authors describe a BUD/S (basic underwater demolition/SEAL) class where one boat (Boat II) consistently wins and another (Boat VI) finishes last. The instructors decide to switch the boat leaders, believing the Boat VI leader feels 'victimized' and limited by his perception of a "bad team". The next boat race (a grueling test in the harsh surf) with new leadership, Boat VI wins, narrowly defeating Boat II. New leadership turns around the program on Boat VI and the culture of teamwork on Boat II still allows for high performance. 

3. "The leader is truly and ultimately responsible for everything."

Leaders find solutions. The first part of the book emphasizes the core elements to success - the proper mindset, the process of execution, and sustainability. The authors use scrubbed battlefield stories (e.g. a traumatic friendly fire catastrophe) and business examples (an executive unwilling to commit to ownership and results) as typical situations where decisions determined destiny. 

4. "It's not what you preach, it's what you tolerate." 

Few of us face regular life or death situations where minutes matter. But we oversee preparation (practice) and operations (games) where engagement, effort, and execution do impact our 'mission'. Everyone (including we coaches) errs. But are we accepting repeated mistakes - traveling, allowing front cuts, poor shot selection - or are we intervening? If you're a player, have you given your best? If you're making mistakes, what are you doing to stop committing the same ones?

5. "Leadership doesn't just flow down the chain of command, but up as well. We have to own everything in our world." 

Attention to detail often flows through miscommunication. "What was my assignment?" As the coach, I am responsible if one player is repeatedly beaten in transition or if another is routinely out of position on an inbounds play. I need to give and receive feedback, and double and triple check player understanding. I cannot allow an environment where ignorance or ambiguity exists. 

We continually fail to run this play wrong. The 1s, 2s, and 5s are doing their job. The 4 doesn't cut or the 3 doesn't deliver the pass. But it's open and it's on me to make it work.