Hey BBaller!
I often get asked how much time should athletes spend practicing their skills. The answers is as always "It Depends!" How old, how experienced, how committed, how much time available, what else is going on in their life, on and on and on...
But, what I have to talk about today is something everyone can do regardless of their situation.
One of the most important skills for all players to be good at is handling the basketball. If you can't dribble or handle the ball well you can't make plays easily. So I believe every player needs to put time into dribbling the ball. here is a short routine that everyone can do.
Basically you can fill in the template how you want.
1. warm up with hand to hand stationary ball handling drills- 2-3minutes- you only need to do 3-5 exercises. listed are 5
-ball slaps
-figure 8
-spider
-circles
-between leg flip and catch
2. Stationary dribbling- Always pound the ball on these drills. Choose 6 drills and work at each one for 15 seconds and do 1-2 sets of each on both hands.
-right and left hand pound
-crossover pound
-right and left windshield wiper pound
-front to back push pull pound
-1,2 and 1,2,3 combinations pounds
-Two ball alternate pound
3. Moving dribbling- keep pounding the ball and move up and down the court. 2 sets up and back
-Crossovers
-3 point line dribble- shuffle sideways while dribbling the ball hard around the 3 point line
-Spin dribble
-1,2 combinations- this can be crossovers, around the back, through the legs...
-Pull back and change direction
-2 ball dribbling
4. Position specific- Choose 2-3 drills that you would use in your position and dribble hard to the rim: do each one 5 times.
-Square up and come out of triple threat and attack defender. can use a chair or cone
-Get to the rim with only a couple dribbles.
Ok. This routine can be modified to fit your needs. But you should include all 4 areas.
1. hand to hand
2. stationary dribble
3. moving dribble
4. position specific
Do this each day and you will be a great ball handler. Try to get in done in 20 minutes. By taking little rest you will build endurance and be able to play all day without needing a SUB!
Play hard,
Lee
PS: If you like the information you have been receiving please pass this on to a friend that also would like it. Send them to www.BasketballSpeedInsiders.com so they can get all the benefits as well.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Ready To Shoot?
Wow! Is March Madness awesome or what!
There have been so many fantastic games already. I love it. What about Siena and Cleveland State. How about the Lady Vols going down early. Does the Uconn basketball factory look unbeatable? These games are great to watch.
You know what I like to do? This is the coach in me. I like to watch what goes on away from the ball. It is fun to watch how defenders are playing off the ball and how offensive players move without the ball. My tip this week is about just that- moving without the ball and being ready to pull the trigger and shoot when receiving the ball.
If you watch good players at any level, they are always prepared to catch and shoot. That is what makes them a threat. But what you have to take note of is how a good off the ball offensive player moves and gets set to receive a pass- especially off penetration.
A great drill to work on it to have a ball handler penetrate to the hoop and kick out to open wing, key, and corner players. The purpose of the off the ball player is to make an open lane for the ball handler to kick to. So as the penetration occurs the off player need to slide to an open lane so his or her help defender can't recover as easy. Once the ball is in the air on the pass the player needs to have the feet set and hands ready to catch and shoot. Obviously it needs to be a good shot but that is why they are sliding to open space....to get a good shot.
Here is the set up of a drill: Have a 3 on 3 situation. A point guard and right and left wing. The point guard trys to beat the defender to the hoop. the wing defenders must help and recover. The offensive wings must slide to the open spot to receive a kick out pass. The wing players can start in the deep corner and slide up or start higher on the wing and slide down as penetration occurs. The goal is to get open by creating an open passing lane.
To advance the drill have the first wing to catch a pass shot fake and penetrate drawing the defense from the weak side wing. The offensive second offensive wing now must slide to the open spot and catch and shoot. The coach must really push the defenders to hustle otherwise the offensive player will get lazy and not be prepared to shoot early on. The defenders must always close out and challenge.
This drill is great for the off players to learn how to find open space but still make great passing angles, it is a good drill for you players penetrating to learn to pass accurately on a kick out, and it makes your defenders learn to help and recover and use proper close-out technique.
Give this drill a try and see how well your players spot up and fire.
Play Hard,
Lee
PS: To learn more about some great drills and skills to improve your basketball players check out www.BasketballSpeedInsiders.com
There have been so many fantastic games already. I love it. What about Siena and Cleveland State. How about the Lady Vols going down early. Does the Uconn basketball factory look unbeatable? These games are great to watch.
You know what I like to do? This is the coach in me. I like to watch what goes on away from the ball. It is fun to watch how defenders are playing off the ball and how offensive players move without the ball. My tip this week is about just that- moving without the ball and being ready to pull the trigger and shoot when receiving the ball.
If you watch good players at any level, they are always prepared to catch and shoot. That is what makes them a threat. But what you have to take note of is how a good off the ball offensive player moves and gets set to receive a pass- especially off penetration.
A great drill to work on it to have a ball handler penetrate to the hoop and kick out to open wing, key, and corner players. The purpose of the off the ball player is to make an open lane for the ball handler to kick to. So as the penetration occurs the off player need to slide to an open lane so his or her help defender can't recover as easy. Once the ball is in the air on the pass the player needs to have the feet set and hands ready to catch and shoot. Obviously it needs to be a good shot but that is why they are sliding to open space....to get a good shot.
Here is the set up of a drill: Have a 3 on 3 situation. A point guard and right and left wing. The point guard trys to beat the defender to the hoop. the wing defenders must help and recover. The offensive wings must slide to the open spot to receive a kick out pass. The wing players can start in the deep corner and slide up or start higher on the wing and slide down as penetration occurs. The goal is to get open by creating an open passing lane.
To advance the drill have the first wing to catch a pass shot fake and penetrate drawing the defense from the weak side wing. The offensive second offensive wing now must slide to the open spot and catch and shoot. The coach must really push the defenders to hustle otherwise the offensive player will get lazy and not be prepared to shoot early on. The defenders must always close out and challenge.
This drill is great for the off players to learn how to find open space but still make great passing angles, it is a good drill for you players penetrating to learn to pass accurately on a kick out, and it makes your defenders learn to help and recover and use proper close-out technique.
Give this drill a try and see how well your players spot up and fire.
Play Hard,
Lee
PS: To learn more about some great drills and skills to improve your basketball players check out www.BasketballSpeedInsiders.com
Monday, March 16, 2009
Mr. Basketball Not Too Fundamental
I recently went to watch a regional game between 2 teams that met last year in the regional. The same team won as last year, but this years game was a barn burner overtime win.
The best player on the winning team is being considered for Mr. Basketball here in Indiana. Don't know if he will win it, but he is talented. Personally, I feel he needs to improve his lateral quickness and change of direction ability (of course this is coming from the Speed Guy:) He has good strength and shoots the ball fairly well- very streaky though. Aside from this, he is a super high school player.
The one thing that bothered me with him is his lack of true fundamental play. I preach all the time about getting into a good athletic triple threat position when guarded closely. I watched him time after time stand too tall and not have the ball in an aggressive position to blow past, pull up, or make a quick pass.
He went to his right 90 percent of the time when making an offensive move out his poor triple threat position. If he would have been more patient, used the jab series, and read the defense, he could have left the defender in the dust time after time. I also think he lacked confidence in his left-hand dribble and that contributed to his decision to go right (need to fix this problem asap!)
Weekly Tip Is My Solution For This Talented Player:
Tons of offensive move work!!!
I would have him going skeleton, versus one-on-one, two-on-two, offensive moves all day long. I would have him catching the ball off screens, cuts, and skip passes I would have him learning to be aggressive with the ball and his moves all the time. I would teach him to read the defense and use the jab series. He would also learn to pause and explode as he lulls the defense to sleep. He is long and strong, and I would use this ability.
I would like to see him learn to put the defense on its heels rather than just settling for one option.
He needs to learn to beat his defender and immediately read the next level defenders and make quick decisions. He is a good passer, but could do a better job reading.
Finally, I would make him learn to shoot the pull-up jumper from 10-15 feet. If he can beat his man, pull up and not force the drive when it is not there, he will be tough to stop.
I happen to be using this talented high school player as an example, but this is the case for most players these days. Teach them to be fundamental with the ball in their hand and so many more options will open up.
Play Hard,
Lee
PS: Hurry, before the day is over go to www.SportsSpeedEtc.com and buy Basketball Speed 2. It will show you how to be super quick with the ball in your hands. You are going to love the drills to improve speed and quickness!
The best player on the winning team is being considered for Mr. Basketball here in Indiana. Don't know if he will win it, but he is talented. Personally, I feel he needs to improve his lateral quickness and change of direction ability (of course this is coming from the Speed Guy:) He has good strength and shoots the ball fairly well- very streaky though. Aside from this, he is a super high school player.
The one thing that bothered me with him is his lack of true fundamental play. I preach all the time about getting into a good athletic triple threat position when guarded closely. I watched him time after time stand too tall and not have the ball in an aggressive position to blow past, pull up, or make a quick pass.
He went to his right 90 percent of the time when making an offensive move out his poor triple threat position. If he would have been more patient, used the jab series, and read the defense, he could have left the defender in the dust time after time. I also think he lacked confidence in his left-hand dribble and that contributed to his decision to go right (need to fix this problem asap!)
Weekly Tip Is My Solution For This Talented Player:
Tons of offensive move work!!!
I would have him going skeleton, versus one-on-one, two-on-two, offensive moves all day long. I would have him catching the ball off screens, cuts, and skip passes I would have him learning to be aggressive with the ball and his moves all the time. I would teach him to read the defense and use the jab series. He would also learn to pause and explode as he lulls the defense to sleep. He is long and strong, and I would use this ability.
I would like to see him learn to put the defense on its heels rather than just settling for one option.
He needs to learn to beat his defender and immediately read the next level defenders and make quick decisions. He is a good passer, but could do a better job reading.
Finally, I would make him learn to shoot the pull-up jumper from 10-15 feet. If he can beat his man, pull up and not force the drive when it is not there, he will be tough to stop.
I happen to be using this talented high school player as an example, but this is the case for most players these days. Teach them to be fundamental with the ball in their hand and so many more options will open up.
Play Hard,
Lee
PS: Hurry, before the day is over go to www.SportsSpeedEtc.com and buy Basketball Speed 2. It will show you how to be super quick with the ball in your hands. You are going to love the drills to improve speed and quickness!
Monday, March 9, 2009
Make em Guard You!
Regardless of if you are playing against man to man or any type of zone the goal of the offensive player is to get at least one more defender to guard you.
When I coached a varsity team in NY they were a group of tough-minded players that would do anything I asked. I gave them freedom to play the game using their talents but it had to be within the concepts I wanted. One of the things I preached every day in practice was to attack the defense. This opened up shooters and penetration lanes for other players. I one player who hit 71 3 pointers because of this attacking approach.
What we tried to do is beat the man on the ball and cause the help defender to commit. We then can kick out to the open man. In a zone this is a great approach because there is always a seam.
Here is the weekly basketball tip: two-on-two decision making
Purpose: To get the offensive player to force the defense to commit defensively. This drill also works on the off the ball defenders ability to recover and close out.
Drill: Have the offensive team start in different spots on the floor (point, wing, corner...) the teammate of the offensive player is always one pass away but with good separation to bring his or her defender away from the ball. The goal is to drive toward the teammates side but to keep the defense honest the ball handler can beat the defender away from help every now and again.
The ball handler is trying to penetrate hard on his or her defender get to the hoop. The help side defender needs to decide to help all the way, hedge and get back, or stay with the his or her offensive player. The ball handler needs to be able to control the dribble when help comes and make a quick accurate pass to the teammate when defensive helps stops penetration.
This drill should be done penetrating to the right and left so the ball handlers feel comfortable making plays to both sides.
Against a zone.
Same basic rules apply. The defense will jump to the ball on the pass in a zone so the offensive player penetrating a seam wants to make the defender have to travel further and much quicker than normal. This opens up shots and penetration lanes for teammates.
This drill can be done 2-on-2, 3-on-3 or 5-on-5. The key is to perform a lot of reps so players understand timing of the play. The player penetrating can't pick his or her dribble up too soon. They must make the defense commit, or if they don't, beat em to the hoop.
So there you go. Practice this often and you will have a great strategy to get you player be more aggressive offensively.
Play Hard,
Lee
P.S. If you are a defensive player you don't want to get beat! So you need to learn the techniques that will make you a defensive stopper. Go to www.MyBasketballSpeed.com and discover strategies to make you a great defender.
P.P.S. When I was growing up playing the game the "Jab Series" was drilled into my head. I learned to beat defenders by taking advantage of what they gave me. I especially loved using the pause step. It got me a ton of shots. To learn more about the pause step go to www.SportsSpeedEtc.com and check out Basketball Speed 2
When I coached a varsity team in NY they were a group of tough-minded players that would do anything I asked. I gave them freedom to play the game using their talents but it had to be within the concepts I wanted. One of the things I preached every day in practice was to attack the defense. This opened up shooters and penetration lanes for other players. I one player who hit 71 3 pointers because of this attacking approach.
What we tried to do is beat the man on the ball and cause the help defender to commit. We then can kick out to the open man. In a zone this is a great approach because there is always a seam.
Here is the weekly basketball tip: two-on-two decision making
Purpose: To get the offensive player to force the defense to commit defensively. This drill also works on the off the ball defenders ability to recover and close out.
Drill: Have the offensive team start in different spots on the floor (point, wing, corner...) the teammate of the offensive player is always one pass away but with good separation to bring his or her defender away from the ball. The goal is to drive toward the teammates side but to keep the defense honest the ball handler can beat the defender away from help every now and again.
The ball handler is trying to penetrate hard on his or her defender get to the hoop. The help side defender needs to decide to help all the way, hedge and get back, or stay with the his or her offensive player. The ball handler needs to be able to control the dribble when help comes and make a quick accurate pass to the teammate when defensive helps stops penetration.
This drill should be done penetrating to the right and left so the ball handlers feel comfortable making plays to both sides.
Against a zone.
Same basic rules apply. The defense will jump to the ball on the pass in a zone so the offensive player penetrating a seam wants to make the defender have to travel further and much quicker than normal. This opens up shots and penetration lanes for teammates.
This drill can be done 2-on-2, 3-on-3 or 5-on-5. The key is to perform a lot of reps so players understand timing of the play. The player penetrating can't pick his or her dribble up too soon. They must make the defense commit, or if they don't, beat em to the hoop.
So there you go. Practice this often and you will have a great strategy to get you player be more aggressive offensively.
Play Hard,
Lee
P.S. If you are a defensive player you don't want to get beat! So you need to learn the techniques that will make you a defensive stopper. Go to www.MyBasketballSpeed.com and discover strategies to make you a great defender.
P.P.S. When I was growing up playing the game the "Jab Series" was drilled into my head. I learned to beat defenders by taking advantage of what they gave me. I especially loved using the pause step. It got me a ton of shots. To learn more about the pause step go to www.SportsSpeedEtc.com and check out Basketball Speed 2
Monday, March 2, 2009
How To Know What To Do???
One of the most important things for a coach and player to know is what to work on in the game of basketball. If you are a coach, you have many areas to workout including team play, individual play, conditioning, skill development and the list goes on. If you are a player, you need to become a better player. Obviously you need to learn offenses and defenses and tactics and all the rest, but if you are not a good player regarding your individual skills- forget about!
Here are some things you need to do to evaluate yourself:
1. Create a shot chart. This chart should involve shots from all areas on the court (point, wings, corners, short wing, short corner, inside the lane, and various layup shots). Now you want to give yourself roughly 3-5 days of shooting a minimum of 10-15 shots per day from all these spots. Chart how many you make. At the end of the 3-5 days look at your performance in all these areas. If you are weak in certain areas then you need to spend more time on these spots so it is no longer a weakness.
2. Dribbling chart. Create 8-10 different dribble moves that you would have to use on the court and 8-10 ball handling drills to improve your ball handling skills. Perform these drills each day for 3-5 days spending at least 1 minute on each drill. The drills that you consistently struggle with should be the ones you focus on more so they are no longer weaknesses.
3. Passing Chart. Use a partner and a wall to design passing situations from different spots on the floor (feeding the low post, wrap around passes...). Also perform passing drills where you are dribbling up court on a fast break situation. Make the passes with both the right and left hand. Also, create 8-10 passing drills where you must hit a target on the wall using both hands, right and left hands... Once again chart how you did and bring the weakness up.
4. Offensive moves. Here you will chart how well you can perform offensive moves from a triple threat position, low post area, and coming off a cut. You will want to use moves such as the jab series to the right and left, reverse pivot and face up, catching the ball off a cut using a hard swing move and driving to the hoop. Chart 8-10 different moves and once again focus on bringing up the weakness.
The reason I want you to do this over 3-5 days is because you want to see consistent results. You could have a good or bad shooting day but over 3-5 days the truth will shine through.
Once you have charted all these skills get to work on creating a workout plan where you can increase these skills.
Love to hear your feedback!
Play Hard,
Lee
PS: If you are having difficulty with offensive or defensive techniques go to http://www.sportsspeedetc.com/ and check out the Basketball Speed Series. These videos will help raise your game to new levels.
Here are some things you need to do to evaluate yourself:
1. Create a shot chart. This chart should involve shots from all areas on the court (point, wings, corners, short wing, short corner, inside the lane, and various layup shots). Now you want to give yourself roughly 3-5 days of shooting a minimum of 10-15 shots per day from all these spots. Chart how many you make. At the end of the 3-5 days look at your performance in all these areas. If you are weak in certain areas then you need to spend more time on these spots so it is no longer a weakness.
2. Dribbling chart. Create 8-10 different dribble moves that you would have to use on the court and 8-10 ball handling drills to improve your ball handling skills. Perform these drills each day for 3-5 days spending at least 1 minute on each drill. The drills that you consistently struggle with should be the ones you focus on more so they are no longer weaknesses.
3. Passing Chart. Use a partner and a wall to design passing situations from different spots on the floor (feeding the low post, wrap around passes...). Also perform passing drills where you are dribbling up court on a fast break situation. Make the passes with both the right and left hand. Also, create 8-10 passing drills where you must hit a target on the wall using both hands, right and left hands... Once again chart how you did and bring the weakness up.
4. Offensive moves. Here you will chart how well you can perform offensive moves from a triple threat position, low post area, and coming off a cut. You will want to use moves such as the jab series to the right and left, reverse pivot and face up, catching the ball off a cut using a hard swing move and driving to the hoop. Chart 8-10 different moves and once again focus on bringing up the weakness.
The reason I want you to do this over 3-5 days is because you want to see consistent results. You could have a good or bad shooting day but over 3-5 days the truth will shine through.
Once you have charted all these skills get to work on creating a workout plan where you can increase these skills.
Love to hear your feedback!
Play Hard,
Lee
PS: If you are having difficulty with offensive or defensive techniques go to http://www.sportsspeedetc.com/ and check out the Basketball Speed Series. These videos will help raise your game to new levels.
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