Players Playbook- Have Three Things

Kenny Smith played for North Carolina and then for the Houston Rockets. Today he is a commentator for TNT. 

He described his mindset as a pro when he was first starting his career. He knew that he was not regularly going to be the big scorer for the Rockets. So he figured out that to be productive and valuable for his team, he needed to go into every game with a focus that there were three things he would bring to the team every game. 

His three things were:

1- Always pressure the ball.

2- As point guard always push the ball from free throw line to free throw line as fast as he could.

3- When the ball went into the post, always move to open spot on the perimeter. 

His belief was that even if he was not scoring 20 point per game, if he focused on doing these three things, he would be valuable to his team.

Kenny Smith believes that every player should step on the court with three things they will always bring to their team. Each player’s “three things” may be different. For example a post player might have these three things:

1- Sprint the floor on each possession.

2- Make contact on every rebound block out.

3- Talk on every ball screen.

You want your teammates and your coaches to know that it is a given that you will always bring these things to the game. 

How do you figure out what your “three things” should be?

1) Just pick “three things”- the mind can focus on “three things.”

2) Your coach will tell you what your “three things” should be. 

3) In practice, listen to your coach…What does your coach praise players for being able to do? Your coach is telling you what the he/she thinks will be important for winning. 

4) From what the coach is telling you that he/she wants… what are three that you feel you can execute and will make a difference for your team.