Just Keep Working

What do you do when it appears you are not going to reach your goals? Just keep working!!

Frank Kaminsky is the star of Wisconsin's Final Four team. It would be easy to look at him, and think he is good because he is 7'0".  But he is a great story about the value of perseverance

Frank entered Lisle Benet closer to six foot than seven foot. He started out playing some point guard. According to Bo Ryan, Frank had trouble even getting on the court for his AAU team between his sophomore and junior year. 

In this day of McDonald's All-Americans, ESPN Top 100 recruits, and Rivals,com evaluations. Frank did not show up on their lists after his junior year. He received offers from Bradley, Illinois State, Southern Illinois, Northern Illinois, DePaul, Northwestern, and Wisconsin. He chose to sign with Wisconsin. (Note he was not offered by Illinois.)

Accountability

Often coaches walk a fine line between trying to make their players accountable for their actions and performance, and of making them "over-accountable" for their actions and performance.

Bob Knight always said the greatest motivator was the bench. And coaches often use the bench to get a point across to their players. When a player makes a mistake or error in a game, a coach can make a point by taking them out. Sometimes the player is brought over and is given a chance to "reflect" on their play. Other times, the coach may bring them out to give them quick instruction and send them back into the game.

Dick Bennett- Defensive Philosophy

Dick Bennett was next to Bob Knight, the most sought out teacher of man to man defense principles and techniques in the 1980's. Anyone who coached man to man defense used the Dick Bennett, "On the line, up the line," mantra if they taught man to man.

As a man to man coach, I was excited when he was hired at U of Wisconsin, and even more excited to go to a practice in his first fall in the early 1990's. I was shocked when he was not teaching his aggressive, denial man to man defense.

When an assistant was asked what was going on, he said that Bennett felt they did not have the athletes to do the aggressive man to man, and compete in the Big Ten. "We are just trying to keep the ball in front of us and make them shoot from outside.

That was combined with Bennett's "sureness" offensive drills where they worked 3 on 0, 5 on 0, 3 on 3 and 5 on 5 with the entire emphasis to not make any pass that was not a sure pass. It was clear Bennett's philosophy was to simply not make mistakes. Today you see this same philosophy in his son and in Bo Ryan.

Here is a description from Sports Illustrated about the change in Dick Bennett's philosophy...

The Bennett's- Foundation for Success

Tony Bennett is having great success at Virginia, he is using the same five concepts that his father used for the foundation of his program. When Virginia beat Syracuse during the regular season, after the game the reporter asked, "What is your team's greatest strength?" With a tear going down his cheek, Tony said, "Humility." It is no accident he chose humility, it is part of his and his father's basic philosophy!

“I concluded some time ago that a major part of success of a team, or of an individual, has a great deal to do with the intangible qualities possessed. The real key is in how a person see himself (humility), how he feels about what he does (passion), how he works with others (unity), how he makes others better (servanthood), and how he deals with frustration and success, truly learning from each situations (thankfulness). I believe those concepts are the essence of a good player, team, coach, or individual in any capacity in life.” Coach Dick Bennett

Don Meyers- Drive vs Dribble

Dribbling Ideas / Live Ball Moves / Penetration Ideas

from Don Meyer

• Dribble vs. Drive. We want our players to drive, but we don’t want them to dribble for no particular reason.
• We always ask our ball-handlers: “If the ball had eyes, would it be able to see when you had it?”
• On all dribbling drills (and as a general rule of thumb): Start slow, get a rhythm, go fast enough to make a mistake.
• Versus pressure in the full court, we teach our players to attack the defense at a 45 degree angle–very hard to guard.
• A good player needs no more than 1 or 2 dribbles to get from the wing to the rim. In all our breakdown drills, we don’t allow our players to use more than 2 dribbles to get to the rim, unless they are using a hesitation move, back dribble, etc. 

To Do List for Leaders

12 SIMPLE YET SIGNIFICANT DAILY TO DO’S FOR LEADERS

1. Be the hardest worker at practice today. Without fail, one of the quickest ways to impact a team is with your own work ethic. Choose to be one of the hardest workers on your team today. Not only does it set the tone for the work ethic of your program, it is also one of the best and quickest ways to enhance your leadership credibility with your teammates and coaches.

2. Be a spark of energy and enthusiasm today. Let your passion for the sport shine through today. Spread a contagious energy and enthusiasm amongst your teammates. Think about how lucky you are to be able to play and compete. Remember back to when you were a young child and reconnect with the joy you played with back then. Make your sport fun again for yourself and your teammates.

3. Model mental toughness today. Because your teammates will look to you under pressure, adversity, and stress, be sure to model mental toughness today. Bounce back quickly after errors to show your teammates how to respond to negative situations. Maintain your poise and optimism despite any mistakes you might make so that your teammates can trust and rely on you to get them through the tough times.

4. Connect with a teammate today. Leadership is all about relationships. Invest the time to build and strengthen the relationships you have with each of your teammates. Inquire about their day, challenges, and goals. Make a special and ongoing effort to get to know every athlete on your team, not just your friends and classmates. The relationship building you do each day will pay off immeasurably down the road.

Team Glue

Often in sports we get caught up looking at stats. Alan Stein in this essay looks at the "glue" of a team....

Glue Guy or Girl

by Alan Stein

Glue is an adhesive, and according to Webster’s Dictionary, the physics definition of adhesive is “a force that exists in the area of contact between unlike bodies and that acts to unite them.”

That’s a tad too scientific for me. Let’s just say that glue holds stuff together!

Who is the glue on your team? Who holds your team together? Who keeps your team focused? Who does all of the little things in practice and in games to make your team successful?

That person is a Glue Guy (or Glue Girl)!

How do you spot a Glue Guy? They are often seen:

• Taking charges
• Diving for loose balls
• Hitting crucial free throws
• Playing tough defense
• Setting solid screens
• Boxing out on every shot
• Cheering for their teammates

A Glue Guy doesn’t care about how many points they score or how many minutes they play. All they care about is theteam winning and knowing they did everything within their role to contribute to the team’s success (regardless of how large or small that role is).

Every team needs a Glue Guy. Every team needs a player who will make all of the sacrifices necessary to hold the teamtogether. Glue Guys are even more important during the playoffs.

If your Glue Guy is also your most talented player… I am willing to bet your team will maximize their potential.

If you want your team to make a serious run at a conference or league or state championship; I suggest you either say a sincere thank you to your team’s Glue Guy; or you become one yourself.

And for those of you who have already completed your season… Glue Guys are equally important in the off-season. After all, who else will hold your team together before the first practice of next season?

Play hard. Have fun. Enjoy the jouney.

Alan Stein
Hardwood Hustle Blog
http://www.About.me/AlanStein

Building Complete Player by Alan Stein

Great essay on building your game in off-season by Alan Stein...  

Must reading for players.

Building the Complete Player

Posted on March 11, 2014 by Alan Stein • 1 Comment

I realize that a small percentage of high school programs across the country are fortunate enough to still be playing… and in the hunt for a conference, district or state championship.  For those that are, I wish you a healthy and successful end to your season. I hope you can get that ring and hang that banner!

For those of you whose season has ended, it’s time for you to begin thinking about the spring and summer.

While most of you will scoff at the notion, I highly recommend you begin your ‘off-season’ by taking a full week or two off to rest, recover and recharge. Trust me, this recovery period is essential to your long-term success.

Once your battery is fully charged, it’s time for you to start re-building yourself as the complete basketball player.

And that starts by laying a solid foundation.

You see, your athleticism is the foundation of your entire game. That is why the best players in the world are in the best shape.

IBCA All-State

Congratulations to Sabrina Clay (Jr), and Shayli Florine (Soph) on receiving Special Mention All-State from the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association.

Shayli averaged 8.2 rpg and 9.7ppg, while Sabrina averaged 8.1 rpg and 11.7ppg. It will be exciting to have both of them back next year.