Arkansas Little Rock - Collaboration!

Last week, UALR was in Dallas to play SMU. Our head coach here at UD, Jarred Samples, is good friends with UALR DBO, Chris Lowry (bottom right picture). My good friend, Joe Golding (bottom left), is on the UALR staff as well. They needed a place to practice and we gladly offered our facility.

Being that SMU runs the Princeton offense and our first opponent, Southwestern, also runs Princeton, it was a perfect situation for Coach Samples and I to pick the brains of Steve Shields and Joe Kleine as well as our friends on how to stop it. Needless to say, it was a lot of fun to share ideas and hold a mini-clinic of sorts.

Obviously we were all on the same page when it came to not letting them beat us on backdoor layups. Coach Samples and I had talked about using the terminology "Gap it up". Essentially we wanted our players to clog up the gaps between the offensive players. I liked Coach Shields' terminology of "Loosen up". He wanted his players, especially on any screening action, to give the cutter's defender room to go under the screens.

Coach Kleine talked about playing "Below the line". Not just below the passing lane, but below the imaginary line that runs parallel with the baseline and midcourt line through the offensive player. Almost like being in a help position the entire possession: butt to baseline, seeing both ball and man. This gives the defender the advantage of already beating the cutter to the basket.

Coach Golding and I talked about ball pressure. Sure, we wanted our players to loosen up and get below the line, but only far enough where they could quickly apply tremendous pressure once their man caught the ball. We didn't want the ball handler to be able to see the entire floor and pick us apart. I teach our players the "Where the ball is, a hand is" in any on ball defensive situation. Coach Golding's terminology was "Get under him" as they wanted their players to get low and into the offensive player's body.

By loosening up and playing below the line, cutters are now forced to run through the defender. This alters their path and essentially jams up the continuity and timing. This is simply playing percentages. Both staffs were in agreement that we were not going to get beat on open layups. If they were going to beat us, it was going to be on contested perimeter jumpers.

Just for the record, we both won our first games. We only gave up 1 backdoor layup.

Another teaching point I took away from Coach Shields is jump stopping on screens. His players jump stop hard on all of their screens. He drills it where the players' almost drive the bottom of their feet through the floor and make a loud thud. Due to the fact we got called for a ton of illegal screens in our scrimmage, we instituted the jump stop screen. Our terminology is "Hear the feet". The cutter or ball handler can't come off the screen until they hear the screener's feet.

Principles & Laws of Learning

This post is one of those unexpected and unplanned joys. I was looking through some old notes trying to find some inspiration and creative ways to get my post player to stay in a defensive stance. Just like "mystery money", you know... that $5 bill you find in the pocket of your pants before you throw it in the washer, I was excited to find this brilliant piece from Fred Litzenberger.

PRINCIPLES AND LAWS OF LEARNING

1. We learn better when we are "ready to learn". Have an open mind. Have the "will or desire to learn". Recognize a problem and see the need to learn.

2. We learn better when the subject is presented: in small bitesize doses and in logical order.

3. We learn better when we: Go from simple to complex. Don't move on until it becomes a habit. Hear the same terminology every time.

4. We learn by doing - Learn technique first then add speed and quickness. First in practice. Then in game situations (Drills must be game-like). Mental learning helps physical learning - Understand the subject.

5. We can only develop skill through perfect practice. Perfect repetitions. Helps when you learn it right the first time. Fixes your learning.

6. We learn better and fast when: We have some success (Build success into all drills). We feel good about ourselves (Which comes from success). We feel we are learning something that will help us.

7. We retain our learning better when: It has time to "soak in" / it becomes habit. We can see some success.

8. You can evaluate progress (skills) when: Everyone is taught the same technique (With some allowance for individual ability). The teaching is in a logical progression.

Terminology

Friends in basketball, I once again apologize for not posting last week. We were on the road, my laptop battery was dead, and I left my charger at home. Doesn't mean I couldn't post another day of the week, but I like to reserve Wednesdays for right now as a posting day. The day before the first game of the week is a great time to reflect on what I feel is important in my own philosophy and to share with you.

That stated, I don't remember where I was reading about the use of terminology in the past week, but this past weekend it really hit home. One of our young, less experienced assistant coaches had the responsibility of scouting and doing walk-through on one of our opponents. During the course of the walk-through, he used terminology that was inconsistent with terminology used in our program as well as just flat out incorrect terminology. I could sense that this young coach was losing the team; slowly but surely. The team was trying hard to listen, but I could see that this coach was losing credibility with every misspoken word. Without any fanfare or drama, I quickly alerted this young coach to his mistake.

So my best suggestion is to meet as a staff, especially early in the season, and determine what terminology the staff will be using. Come up with a glossary of terms that will be frequently used in teaching your own team. Case in point: some coaches prefer the term "pick-the-picker"while others prefer "screen-the-screener". Both have the same meaning, but can lead to confusion when one member of the staff uses the former and another member of the staff uses the latter.

It is also important to define other terminology. One of the big mistakes this young coach made last week with our team was that he was calling a stagger screen on the baseline, a "double ball screen." The players KNEW it wasn't even a ball screen, but the coach continued to use the term. Because of this coach's inexperience, he was nervous and just picked a random term. When I notified him, he was embarrassed, but realized his mistake and remembered our terminology.

Some things to think about when putting your glossary together:

Keep it consistent. Once you choose your terminology, stick with it. Don't deviate. You don't want to confuse your players.

Keep it simple. Don't over complicate it. Stick to simple words; the fewer syllables, the better.

Define areas of the court. As with the "screen" or "pick" situation above, determine what you and your staff will call parts of the floor. Is it the "key", the "lane", or the "paint"? Is it the "hash mark" or the "28-foot line"?

Share your glossary with your players. Make sure that they know what it is you are trying to communicate.

These are only a few ideas. I challenge you to think about the terminology you wish to use with your players and staff.