Glass Cleaning

Every sport has its staple fundamentals that must be performed well to be a successful team. In the sport of football they are blocking and tackling. In softball and baseball they are fielding and throwing, and in basketball you could argue that rebounding is the most important skill a team must do well. In this week's post I want to share a tip and my thoughts on rebounding.

Weekly Basketball Tip: Superman Rebounding

Purpose: To learn to grab the ball at the highest point possible and to go get the ball aggressively.

Drill: Form a single line on the right side of the basket starting at the foul line (Can form 2 lines, one on each side if want). The lead person has the ball. He or she uses an underhand toss off the backboard and follows it in with a strong gather step preparing to jump. As the ball comes off the board jump off 2 feet and reach with extended arms and rebound the ball at the highest point. Upon landing in a great position pivot to the outside and either dribble out of the lane as the first progression or secondly have an outlet waiting to receive your pass. Teach the players to rebound and outlet the ball both from an overhead position and from a "chin the ball" position. Obviously you don't want shorter players to keep the ball overhead as it will get knocked out of the hands. The next person in line follows as soon as the first person clears.

Preform: 6-8 on each side. Mix in various outlet passes with and without defense so decision making improves.

To Rebound Or Not Rebound, That Is The Question

There is no doubt that coaches turn grey much earlier than they should when their team gets out rebounded, especially when the opponent gets offensive rebounds. I see it as several things; 1. Just like there are born tacklers in football there are born rebounders in basketball (Charles Barkley, Moses Malone, Dennis Rodman). These guys had an attitude about them that made them own the paint- they were angry when someone else tried to take what they felt they owned. 2. It is a skill and must be practiced routinely. Players must practice being in the correct position to box out and then go get the ball. This may seem simple but it isn't, especially when the offensive player being boxed out really fights hard for the ball. 3. The defensive system can set a team up for poor or good rebounding. If you play an in your face denial defense there is a good chance the opposing team will penetrate to the hoop, draw help defensive, and create a weak side rebounding opportunity. Teams that play softer off the ball tend to get into better rebounding positions. 4. You would think that teams that play packed zones would rebound better and they should but it still comes down to finding a man and getting a body on them. Most cases the zone does allow that. 5. The obvious, teams that have bigger, stronger, more aggressive players tend to be better rebounding teams.

I truly believe that rebounding has as much to do with the coaches ability to recognize his or her players natural tendencies. If the team is not big, strong, and aggressive then chances are they will not be good rebounders, unless a few players have a nose for the ball. This is when a coach needs to set the team up for rebounding success by playing a type of defense that suits them well.

When you look at all the best teams at any level they all rebound the ball well on both ends of the floor. Look at the Cleveland Cavaliers. Their team is built around great defense and rebounding. The women's team at Uconn. They use their athletes to pressure the ball but always defend the paint well with their bigs. In both of these cases, the coaches have set up the environment to be a good rebounding team.

Each day at practice, time needs to be devoted to the skill of rebounding as well as live drills with an offensive team trying to rebound versus defense and vice versa. During these drills the coaches should stop and teach when a player makes a mistake of not getting into good rebounding position. This is how players learn to consistently be in the correct position to rebound.

Hopefully your team is great at rebounding, but if they need work, keep teaching it everyday and build on the positives.

Play Hard,

Coach Taft

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