Basketball: Reset Button. We All Need to Hit It Sometimes

What can go wrong will. Coaches call timeouts but we seldom hit the RESET button. Why would we? 

A myriad of life stressors appear.

The Holmes Social Readjustment Rating Scale shares a hierarchy, led by loss, relationships, injuries, work, and social changes. Money (being fired at work) in 8th place is lower than one might think. The first three are spousal death, divorce, and separation. People need people. 

Coaches are more than amateur psychologists. We manage an almost infinite number of crises, writ large and small. How we do so figures into how people judge us. 

What belongs in our basketball "stressor scale?"

1. Personal problems. Coaches and players aren't immune to any of the above. We and our players have family, work, and school issues. Family illness is particularly disruptive. We faced a tragedy from which no basketball recovery was possible and that made all other problems feel small. Grief counseling goes only so far. 

2. Relationship failures. Coach-player, coach-coach, player-player. There are minor disagreements and fallouts that lead to dismissals and transfers. Transfers aren't always about relationships but players seeking educational opportunity, more competition, or different coaching. But they leave a mark. 

2a.Girl-boy drama. One high school girl "stole" a teammate's boyfriend. Ka-boom, a first round playoff exit for a highly ranked program.

3. Injury. Basketball is much of some players' identities. Prolonged absence can be psychologically harmful. Time usually hits the reset button. 

4. Losses come in many forms. We lose a big game, endure losing streaks, being cut (fired), or reduced in status (benched). GLOBAL PANDEMIC has surely struck hard wiping out seasons. 

Most resets involve 1) tactical changes, 2) personnel and role adjustments, and 3) effort-consistency. Young players may not know what it takes to win. Others see basketball as an activity not a priority. That doesn't make them wrong. 

5. Jealousy. Teenagers exhibit a lot of self-indulgent/egocentric behaviors that can manifest as intense rivalries. I've heard parents counseling players to get their touches or their shots. That's the opposite of Jay Bilas' Toughness counsel we teach, "it's not your shot, it's our shot." 

5a.Parents. I've discussed the Prime Directive where conflicts arise out of parental love. You've all heard the story of the Texas Cheerleader mother. "By hiring someone to kill 38-year-old Verna Heath and her 13-year-old daughter, Amber, she would assure her own daughter, Shanna, of a place on the cheerleading squad at Channelview High School."

 

6. Academics. They cut both ways. Some teams lose good players. We've been blessed to have many superior students. That creates good issues as players might need to be excused from practice for extra study. I can't tell players that family and school are their first priorities and then make basketball first. 

7. Illness. Because basketball is a sprinting sport, asthma and respiratory illness show up on a regular basis. COVID-19 literally wiped out our season before it started. Substance abuse, including alcohol is a nightmare every coach dreads and eventually experiences.  

8. Politics. In many communities, one or two sports rule the roost. I've seen situations where the rise of basketball bruised egos at the community level. Carl Pierson's The Politics of Coaching explores the many ways sports go south. When I played, the cutting of a local politician's son led to an internal investigation examining the role of sports (participation versus winning) within the community. Three years earlier, when the school won a State football championship, it was all about winning. 

9. Multitasking. Many coaches and players balance sport, work, and education. 

"I think we should vote again." 

10.Recognition. Both coaches and players can find credit hard to take, another good problem. 

Every problem doesn't have a solution. In Madeleine Blois' In These Girls Hope Is a Muscle, the two stars resolve the rivalry. That doesn't always happen. 

Some relationships fracture and split teams. In higher level of women's basketball, trust is an even bigger issue with player lack of trust in the coaching staff. In some college programs sexual orientation becomes an issue resulting in factions within teams.  

Finding balance between staying the course and hitting the reset button will always be an issue. 

Lagniappe. Two of many hints from great Canadian coach Dave Smart:

• The “cutter” in your offense should be your weakest long shooter, they can help you by attacking inside (cutting in from the ballside wing, the top, or the weakside 45 angle).
• As a player, you always need to be a threat – ask “how am I helping the team” – if you are short, and don’t shoot well, then you better learn to cut hard while you work on shooting and/or growing.

Basketball: "Whatever It Takes." Do Ten Jobs That Must Be Done

"Whatever it takes." We've all heard that. What is the the hard road? 

Live an honorable life. Seven-time Super Bowl Champion Tom Brady follows principles in don Miguel Ruiz's book The Four Agreements. They include:

• Be impeccable with your word
• Don’t take anything personally 
• Don’t make assumptions
• Always do your best.

When frustration strikes, remind ourselves about #4 above. 

"Hit the books." Few disciplines allow advancement without study and learning. Precious few young players have the size, athleticism, and skill to inform a professional sports career. Learn how to learn. Study more effectively. Have a fallback plan. 

Find mentors. I saw a young patient recently embarking on a career as an electrician, now an apprentice. He works with a dozen journeymen and more senior electricians and understands adding value. I gave him a piece of paper with the words, "Mentoring is the only shortcut to excellence." If not today, someday you will be a mentor. 

Build your body. Improve strength and conditioning to become "bigger, faster, stronger." Part of basketball is finding ways to wear down opponents, to play harder for longer than opponents. Like Pete Carril, I believe in conditioning within drills and scrimmaging, not in breaking out conditioning separately.  

Innovate. Freddie Roach's coaching career dwarfed his fighting career. He encouraged fluidity and innovation in young fighters, turning a lightweight into a world champion (Manny Pacquiao). Box. Dance. 

Become a cleaner. Devote part of your workout to 'game winners' your 'go to' and 'counter' moves for crunch time. Work with live defense whenever possible to prove their effectiveness. 

Track your workouts. Pick (activities). Stick (with them). Check (record). Great habits are made not born. "Don't miss twice." 

Watch video and watch some more. Study exceptional players and coaches. Examine the fine details. How did they get separation to create edges? 

Discover the exceptional footwork and quickness of a Hall of Famer. 

Train your brain. Mindfulness lowers stress hormones. It improves sleep. It adds brain density in the learning and memory centers. It attenuates brain density in the amygdala, the stress center of the brain. Champions like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Shaq did it. LeBron James does. 

Lead. You ARE a role model. Everyone from veterans to young players can model excellence. 

Summary:

• Live honorably
• Study
• Find mentors
• Build your body
• Innovate
• Become a cleaner
• Track your workouts
• Watch the details on video
• Train your brain
• Lead

Lagniappe. In your organization, how do performance and trust relate? 

Be the leader everyone wants on the team. 

From Simon Sinek

Lagniappe 2. Second chance. Review the "Slappin' Glass" video on GET action.

Basketball: The Best Advice

The exhausted medical student had just finished his exams and celebrated with a couple of beers. Walking home, he rested against a tree. He felt a warm liquid dripping down his leg and saw a dog relieving himself. "How did you know I was a medical student?" 

What’s the best advice you ever got? Compile an inspiration list. Dubner advises people to "Go Big" in life. Here are ideas:

1. Have a "Jar of Awesome." Every day has a highlight. 

2. Keep a success journal. "Great success begins with small ones." 

3. Maintain a "commonplace book." 

4. Develop a mental "highlight reel" as part of your psychological armor. 

5. Have a list of inspirational quotes and stories for reference.

6. Keep a drill book (I use Google Drive for spreadsheets).

7. Keep a copy of "life hacks."

8. Have an "advice" journal. 

9. Find a way to store and catalog ideas. 

10. Store inspiring scenes. 

11. Be more positive.

12. "Share something great." 

13. "You can't do size (trading) at highs." - A caution from Investment maven Tom DeMark

14. Become a storyteller. Inform others of where things went well and poorly. 

All of which brings me to the second best advice I got, from Dr. Ann Knowlton, when I was a medical student. "You need to speak up more so others will know what you know." The best advice. My parents suggested I ask this girl Ellen out. We've been married for forty-one years. 

Lagniappe. Eastman Drills. We like "Force to Tape." 

Promoting Your Success as a Player, "Make the Teacher Care."

“If you can’t appreciate what you’ve got, you’d better get what you can appreciate.”
― George Bernard Shaw, Pygmalion

Success follows players in a variety of flavors - family, academic, athletic, happiness, fame, money.

As coaches, we help take players where they cannot go alone... personal development, skill, game knowledge, letters of recommendation, job placement, winning teams, scholarships, and more. 

Rick Pitino triggers a range of emotions, but his book title, Success is a Choice deserves mention. “Lying makes a problem part of the future; truth makes a problem part of the past.” Be honest with yourself and with others about yourself. Make your story great but real.

Make your coach want to help you. Robert Cialdini's classic book, Influence, includes "liking" as one of his six core principles. Why go out of your way to be unlikeable? 

If you earn a mediocre grade without studying, that seldom inspires the teacher to invest time and redouble effort on your behalf. Make the teacher care. 

What do coaches remember about players? We remember high performance and  intangibles like punctuality, attitude, discipline, effort, energy, and teamwork are indelible. 

Lauren was the first at VOLUNTARY workouts and the last to leave. Tell her something once and she was on it. She carried the laminated handout of Coach Wooden's "Pyramid of Success" to school in her gym bag every day. I wrote an unsolicited letter to our Congresswoman in support of getting her a Congressional nomination to the Naval Academy. She graduates from Annapolis in a few months and I'll be almost as proud as her parents. 

Victoria (a.k.a. V-Rex) was the most intense, emotional player I've coached. She was an outstanding multi-sport athlete, an All-State volleyball player. Her favorite sport... Football. 

It's impossible not to root for that type of student-athlete. Offer to write letters of recommendation and follow through. Victoria starts veterinary school in the fall. The V-Rex will become Doctor V-Rex for me. 

Cecilia is the most skilled player for her age that I have coached. She rarely missed a voluntary workout and says "yes" to every opportunity to improve. She is an elite student averaging over 20 points, 13 rebounds, and 4.5 blocks per game playing in a good private school league. She is shooting over 76 percent on over a hundred free throws this season and is 8/21 (38%) on threes in her past five games. And she's a six-foot tall freshman. 

One hot Sunday night, I introduced her to reverse layups from the baseline. She struggled. The following Sunday, she showed how she had nearly mastered the skill. She repped "box drills" tirelessly and studies video to correct mistakes. She dropped me a line yesterday after I sent her the UCLA-Memphis Walton clip, "Thanks Coach! The Bill Walton highlights were really fun to watch!"

Samantha carried her notebook to every practice...and profited from it. She recorded her successes and areas for improvement, tracked her progress over years while building skills and sculpting her body. As a sophomore, she led the local high school team deep into the postseason then transferred to a private school where she won a state title. She has four D1 offers (at last count) and will be an impact player at the next level. 

Summary: (Advice for everyone)

Make the coach care about your special journey. It's a superpower.

Have a roadmap to destiny, like the "Pyramid of Success."

Bring intensity to practice, games, and academics.

Build skills and say 'yes' to chances to improve. 

Use technology, from video to notebooks to build understanding. 

We're blessed to be part of a student-athlete's journey. Don't take that for granted. We participate in changing lives by adding value and reminding players, "I believe in you." 

Lagniappe. From Adam Spinella, Daily ATO, "Iverson Rip." 

Basketball: Excellence Equations, Escaping the Center of Gravity, Plus Celtics Actions

Learn across disciplines. We've discussed the Newtonian achievement equation: 

Achievement =  Skill x Time

Other physics concepts are elusive. Gravity is an irresistible force. Is there a natural pull toward excellence or mediocrity? 

Excellence requires attaining escape velocity from the distractions that defeat us. And escape requires direction and fuel. 

The non-intuitive formula for escape velocity is proportional to a gravitational constant and mass and inversely proportional to the distance from the center of the mass. 

How could that ever translate to basketball? We can simplify by thinking MASS as distractions, mediocrity, or mistakes and RADIUS is the potency of our habits or routine. Many distractions (Internet, socialization, goofing off) or mistakes provide a high escape velocity. If we have great ROUTINE (habits) we reduce the escape velocity. The best HABITS would reinforce a positive routine and reduce the MASS of distractions! 

Examine three players who used this formula to achieve greatness.

Michael Jordan told North Carolina assistant coach Roy Williams that he would work as hard as any player ever had to be the best Tarheel ever. Williams responded that he had to work HARDER than anyone had to become the best. 

Bill Walton was a free spirit at UCLA. But Coach John Wooden explained that Walton never tired of repeating what was necessary to achieve elite footwork that propelled him to a magnificent college career. 

A banker's son, Bill Bradley wasn't the most elite athlete. But at age twelve he embarked on full time training, three hours daily and eight hours on Saturday to hone his basketball skills. The Princeton phenom led his team to the Final Four, set a scoring record in the NCAA consolation game, won an NBA Championship with the Knicks, and became a Rhodes Scholar and US Senator. 

Develop the routine to overcome escape velocity if you thirst for greatness. 

Lagniappe. SLOB. The Celtics are notorious for ball reversal off SLOBs. Not always. 

Lagniappe 2. BOB. Celtics "Diamond, Double Backscreen). The Celtics set a pair of backscreens leading to a dunk off defensive confusion. 

Why Coaching Basketball and Being a Federal Reserve Governor Are Alike

Use analogies across disciplines. 

Coaches are economists. Economics informs allocation of limited resources. The dual mandates of the Federal Reserve are to 1) maximize employment (have a robust economy) and 2) maintain acceptable inflation (price stability). 

The Federal Reserve has a variety of "levers" to achieve policy goals including interest rate policy, purchasing government debt, the "repo" market, and jawboning the markets. 

Coaches who were economics majors included Bill Belichick, Steve Kerr, Brad Stevens, and Taylor Jenkins (Grizzlies). 

Youth basketball coaches 1) seek a robust team (teach players individual and team skills) and 2) to get everyone involved (dampen the complaint department). 

What policy "levers" do youth basketball coaches have in our arsenal? 

• Clear basketball philosophy. The initial meeting with families and players and later communications (progress reports) share guidelines and expectations.
• Tone. Do we radiate energy and positivity or something else? 
• Practice repetitions. Have clear goals for shots and repetitions that each player gets in drills and scrimmages. 
• Minutes. Playing time balances "everyone is equal" and recognition that skill and commitment differs. Just as students have "gifted and talented" tracks, the best players earn extra opportunity. 
• Recognition. Praise not only the dominant players and scorers, but players who add value that wasn't always visible in the boxscore. 
• Awards. We deemphasized the MVP approach. Players voted for the "best teammate." In one of Kevin Sivils' books, he remarked how he gave out the TEAM award, a model for us. 

Limfac (limiting factors) build dissatisfaction.

• Practice time. When we attend school, it's the daily classwork and homework that make the student, not just test scores. Yet in basketball, some view tests (games) as the primary goal. I don't see it that way. My goal is getting players ready for competition at the next levels. 
• Individual instruction. I twice-weekly conducted offseason workouts (weather permitting) for years. The players who participated, did the hard work, separated themselves from their peers. They got more details, reps, and coaching. Having assistants becomes a "force multiplier" for instruction and I'm grateful to them over the years. 
• Roles. Kevin Eastman reminds us, "you earn your paycheck." Your role expands with your production and production expands your role. 

What brutal facts face the youth coach? The biggest reality is cognitive bias, that is "endowment bias." We see a coffee mug on a counter and assign a value to it. Then, we are told that it is our coffee mug to sell. Our ownership of the mug revalues it to a higher level. The same principle applies to our children, our hometown professional sports stars. We struggle with that reality. 

I can't emphasize Chuck Daly's "48" enough, that players want 48 million, 48 minutes, 48 shots. Rescale it to youth basketball and it's economics - recognition, minutes, and role. 

Lagniappe (extras). Set Play. SLOB pass away, backscreen, handoff (from Adam Spinella)

Drill. They called it Ohio State. It's mini-Argentina drill. 

Basketball: What Makes a Uniform Special? Plus Bird's Greatest Game

Controversy reigns around uniforms, logos, and symbols. I don't want to discuss logos, but the uniform itself. 

Today's lightweight, comfortable, wickable fabrics are close to perfect. 

Style is a matter of choice; teams rotate jerseys to sell merchandise. 

The Heat's pink and blue jersey surely catches our eyes. It's not the only color-rich jersey.

Bob McAdoo styled in these Braves duds. 

The contemporary Jazz unis reflect their name. 

The Cavs (2005-2010) burgundy stripes were an eye catcher. 

The Warriors' "City" uniform seems "busy" but flashy. 

The Rockets red with yellow trim uniform passes the "classic" muster.

The same goes for the Bad Boys Blue. 

And who could forget the Nets "Stars and Stripes" jersey? 

Moreover, three uniforms of winners captured the imagination of many, the Bulls' Road Red, Celtics Green, and Lakers "Showtime Gold."

Classic will always be in the eye of the fan. 

What's your favorite? 

Lagniappe. First, Bird footwork...eight seconds. 

Bird's "Greatest game" beats the Rockets. 

Performance Rating System (Bird)

Twos - 6/14 (-4)

Threes - 2/3 (+3)

FTs - 11/12 (+10)

ORB - 2 (+4)

DRB - 9 (+9)

Asst - 12 (+36)

Steal - 3 (+6)

TO - 2 (-4)

PF - 3 (-3)

Net - plus 57 (astonishingly high in a Championship clinching game)

Performance Rating System, Finals Game 6 (2020) LBJ 

Twos 12/15 (+18)

Threes 1/5 (-12)

FTs  1/4 (-5)

ORB (+6)

DRB (+11)

Asst (+30)

Steal (+2)

Turnover (-2)

Fouls (-3) 

Net plus 45

Basketball: A Tale of Two Cities, Great to Good and Lagniappe from "Legacy" and "The Get"

What makes programs great? Jim Collins wrote the wildly successful business book Good to Great. It sold millions of copies and appears on many lists of 'must read' books. In When to Rob a Bank, Stephen Levitt notes that two of the eleven companies profiled as great (Fannie Mae and Circuit City) had dramatically fallen in price or gone bankrupt (CC). 

One of Collins's core principles is "CONFRONT BRUTAL FACTS." 

But programs decline, too. What of our local girls basketball program? From 2001 to 2010, the Melrose Lady Raiders won ten consecutive league championships, four sectional championships, and had five undefeated regular seasons. 

It hasn't been total famine since but overall a dominant team has with few exceptions fallen into the second division. What changed? 

The community hasn't changed much, although becoming one of the top ten "hottest" real estate zip codes in the US. 

Coaching changed. The immensely successful Coach Dave Brady retired from coaching. Coaching isn't everything, but Coach Brady deserved the accolades. That isn't an indictment of subsequent coaches. 

The talent pipeline changed. Many teams have infusions of talent and Melrose did. METCO is an educational opportunity program where some Boston youngsters, not just athletes, have alternatives to study in the suburbs. Students have to wake up early and go home late if they participate in extra-curricular activities. During the championship decade, Melrose had two star players from Boston, Quiana Copeland and Sheylani Peddy who were both great young ladies and terrific basketball players. Copeland played in Europe and Peddy played in the WNBA and the EuroLeague. 

That doesn't mean there aren't good local players but they're no longer surrounded by elite players. 

Basketball fell from a popularity zenith, losing some athletes to volleyball, lacrosse, and soccer as an athlete's "primary sport." Offseason basketball participation fell. 

Players chose alternative high school education. Players and families have good and personal reasons for school choice. This isn't exclusive to the girls' program or to basketball. Elite student-athletes have either enrolled at or transferred to private high schools. Currently, we have three top level players (center, forward, point guard) starring for other programs. I had the good fortune to coach all three. Few teams can lose three all-league players without consequence. 

Times change and so do teams. Nobody stays on top forever. 

Lagniappe. Learn leadership lessons.

In James Kerr's Legacy, he describes an iron-clad rule of the New Zealand All-Blacks, "No Dickheads." 

Lagniappe 2. "Get" action. With modern spread offenses, another option is the "Get" where the guard passes to a big and quickly follows the pass into a handoff. This creates defensive dilemmas within the two man game and sometimes draws help of a third player. Brilliant video from Slappin' Glass that deserves multiple watches. 

Basketball: Ten Ways to Lose

"Just skip out the back, Jack.

Make a new plan, Stan." - Paul Simon, Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover 

Players don't think first about limiting mistakes. Many see scoring as the game. Most coaches have a big picture approach - philosophy, culture, identity. Unlike poker, in basketball, you can't bluff your way to victory. With attention to detail, better teams will take advantage of us. 

Our high school coach had a detailed game plan, including three "keys to the game." If we achieved those, we had a high chance of victory. 

We need a plan to win and ways not to lose. Let's examine way ten ways to lose. 

1. Have no offensive plan. Points don't grow on trees. Where do they arise? Separation and execution... 

• Attack the basket on the drive.
• Pass and cut.
• Perimeter skill (shooting) 
• Defense into offense (transition)
• Offensive rebounding
• Set plays 

Teams with no coherent plan get fewer quality possessions leading to high percentage shots. I see high school games without one pick and roll. You don't need to run set plays every time down the floor. But most young players aren't good enough at freelance to create quality "multiple actions" most trips. 

2. Turn the ball over. Points = (possessions minus turnovers) x points per "corrected possessions." If we presume 70 possessions in a high school basketball game, efficiency falls dramatically with turnovers and ineffective shooting. I recently saw a game where one team turned the ball over thirty times. That would yield forty "corrected possessions." Most high school girls teams won't shoot more than forty percent so that yields 40 x .4 (16 hoops). And chances are if you turn the ball over thirty times, you won't be a great shooting team. If you hold your opponent under forty consistently, a turnover-prone offense might win a few games but that's tough.  

3. Take bad shots. Every player should know what a quality shot is for themselves and every teammate. Eliminate shots that are not ROB (in range, open, balanced) and stop "shot turnovers." 

4. Foul. Excessive fouling increases opponent points per possession. It gets opponent into the penalty giving them more scoring chances. And it risks fouling out your better players, damaging both offense and defense. 

5. Communicate poorly. "Silent teams lose." Demand talk at practice. Talk at practice bleeds into games. Good teams develop good habits. (It's a struggle.)

6. Allow opponents to do what they do well. Make drivers shoot. Make shooters drive. Good offenses thrive without defensive pressure, against poor transition defense and against teams with poor help and rotation. "The help can never be beaten."  

7. Don't stop penetration. "Know your nos." When we allow dribble or pass penetration, bad things happen. No middle, no penetration.

8. No delay game. Good teams play to win. Bad teams find ways to lose, allowing leads to evaporate because of the inability to run clock and still find ways to develop scoring chances. 

9. Charity (stripe) problems. "Teams that can't shoot free throws, last as long as dogs that chase cars." For a team to dream of escaping the netherworld, it has to make free throws. 

10. Situational anxiety. Bad teams make poor decisions. They take inappropriate shots in key situations. Bad teams give away close games, they choke. They ignore the Lady of Victory. 

Lagniappe. To fill your bag, fill your toolbox. 

 

- The Rondo

- Punch

- Spin 

Practice one or maybe two to add new weapons to your arsenal. 

Podcast News: Chris Oliver with Dave Smart (Practice Philosophy)

Chris Oliver's basketball podcast always adds value. I condense concepts both Coach Oliver (CO) and Coach Dave Smart (DS) share. I invest an hour so you can invest less. Find ideas or inspiration to differentiate ourselves positively from others.

(DS) "It's impossible to be special...if you're not having fun." (Redefine fun)

(CO) "Fun is improving...competing...winning."

(DS) "It's a different kind of fun."

(DS) "I want them to be successful THAT MINUTE" (even though they won't)

(DS) "Today was a good step in the process, even with a lot of failure."

(CO) "Every player is in the deep end...they have to find a way to swim."

(DS) "They're thinking outside the box..." (to win the drill) 

(DS) "Not getting too high or too low..." (the hardest thing in his practices...don't be depressed at failure or complacent with success)

(DS) "The closest to evil...is selfishness..." (many young players seek exposure and achievement not winning...hard to make it about team)

(DS) "I don't want the elephant in the room." (Talk about the issue...) If the person were the best player in the room and not giving 100%, he will call him out. 

4 "Groups of players"

Talented-arrogant, Talented-not arrogant (worker), Less talented-care (key), Cuts (problem is being the teacher for the player who isn't great but thinks they are)

(DS) "Upset with indifference at practice" (expect positive and negative reinforcement of possessions) criticism is of bad decisions, bad shots, not missing a good shot

(CO) "Honest with things that matter" 

(DS) "Our guys defended every possession" (to hang in a National Championship game) that resulted in a win

(DS) Some leaders care so much about the team that others will overlook their flaws. 

(CO) "An important part of coaching is not to be reactionary." 

(DS) "I don't let my players talk to the refs..." (but protects them)

(DS) Reasons for coaching success, "teaching players to own their confidence" although they may still be uncomfortable in a situation.

(DS) How could coaches improve? "Accountability. How do you establish it?" Failure occurs because of a lack of accountability. 

(DS) "I enjoy bad practices." (Because he will find solutions - diagnose and treat.)

How much is too much interruption of practice for correction? (Nobody knows.)

He is looking for shooters to get 250 shots per player per practice, competition based. They have a shooting 'ladder.' Bad shooters get fewer shots. Accountability flows from competition. 

(DS) Competitiveness (a hard skill to incorporate late...after grade six)

(DS) (Practice) "Everybody gets the same amount of reps" (until the end of the year when some starters get LESS )..."everybody has to be respected"

(CO) "You're always able to modify intensity and duration"

(DS) Kids can play five years, players can be more advanced, and guys know their roles all year round 

(DS) "We don't spend a lot of team watching what teams run." (Works on how to defend individuals)

Lagniappe. Paul George film study. How can you be like him?

1) Elite athleticism creates an edge

2) Quick shooter

3) Active hands defensively 

Lagniappe 2. "They don't hand out Olympics medals for great training sessions." (Author argues that mindset varies between practice and competition.) He also discusses simplifying decisions.