Why Basketball Trainers Love NBA All-Star Lamarcus Aldridge

After a long night of basketball training, three basketball trainers got together for a discussion of NBA playoffs.  One player rose to the top of the discussion.  University of Texas alumnus Lamarcus Aldridge is one of the premier power forwards in the NBA today.  He is the best player on a playoff team in the tough Western Conference, and he is living up to his potential as the Number 2 pick of the 2006 NBA draft.  Lamarcus is a player who was recognized for his ability as a high school All American, but didn’t come into the NBA with as much fanfare as some of the other current stars in the league.  Over time, Lamarcus has developed and refined his game to become exactly the type of player that basketball trainers and coaches love.  Here is why we love Lamarcus Aldridge.

Basketball Trainers Love Consistency

Basketball trainers love Lamarcus’ consistency.  In the 2013-2014 NBA season, Lamarcus averaged 23.2 points and 11.1 rebounds.  He had the celebrated “20-10” season (points and rebounds).  20-10 is a benchmark for elite big men.  It means that they are handling their business in both the scoring and rebounding departments on a consistent basis.  As a former power forward, I can tell you that it takes great effort to consistently score and rebound as those elite levels.  Do you know how many players averaged 20-10 during the 2013-2014 NBA season?  Only 4.  The other players were Kevin Love, Demarcus Cousins and Al Jefferson.  That’s pretty good company.  Lamarcus’ teammates could count on his production every night, as he only scored in single digits once during the season, and that was in a blowout win for his team.  Lamarcus shows great leadership by producing at high levels for his team night in and night out.

Basketball Trainers Love Guys Who Take Their Skills To Work

Basketball trainers love that Lamarcus goes to work.  If you’ve played basketball in various leagues and gyms around your city, you’ve undoubtedly heard the expression “go to work” when a certain player gets the ball.  The phrase “go to work” refers to asserting yourself to score!  Your teammate tells you to go to work when he knows you have the talent to score and he wants you to go do it.  Believe it or not, a lot of good players don’t possess the ability to score 1-on-1 when the defense KNOWS they are trying to score.  Some players pick their spots and shoot when they’re open and some players require on-ball or off-ball screens to get them in a position to score.  It’s a great luxury for a team to have a guy who can consistently get his own shot when his team needs a bucket.  Lamarcus didn’t always show this ability.  He used to be a player that seemed not to want the responsibility to score on-call.  But now, as a more mature player, Lamarcus can score when needed.  It takes a lot of skill, mental toughness and leadership to consistently be the guy your team looks for to score, and to deliver.  We appreciate players who are confident and skilled enough to go to work on a consistent basis.

Versatility In Skill Development

We love the fact that Lamarcus Aldridge is versatile and mature.  Versatility means the ability to do multiple things.  As it relates to basketball, we are usually talking about offensive skills.  Maturity refers to making smart decisions.  We also are normally talking about offense but in this case it applies to defense as well.  Lamarcus is a player who can score in the post, who can score on jump shots, and can even shoot the 3 point shot.  When he came into the league, however, he was known more as a jump shooter.  Some considered him a little soft, but none could deny his skills.  Versatile forwards like Kevin Garnett, who Lamarcus admired growing up, influenced up-and-coming big men to do more than just use their size in the post.  Today, you see some big players who take this too far, and do everything EXCEPT for post-up.  As Lamarcus has matured, he has learned to harness his versatile skillset and now he truly does take what the defense gives him. When he has shorter or weaker opponents, he takes them into the post, using his strong frame to get high percentage looks at the basket.  When he has slower or larger opponents, he still utilizes his deft jumpshot.  On defense, Lamarcus has learned to use his physicality and length to bother opponents, and he will even take charges from time to time.  When you watch Lamarcus Aldridge, you are watching a player who is getting the most out of his all-around talent on both ends of the floor.

Individual Skills With Team Mindset

One of the biggest reasons trainers love Lamarcus Aldridge is because he’s a star who is also a team player.  You know as well as I do it is not a given that a star will be a team player.  A lot of times stars can believe in themselves so much or believe in their teammates so little that they are always demanding the ball and belittling teammates for making mistakes.  You see none of that with Lamarcus.  Lamarcus is a willing screen-setter for his talented wing teammates, and he keeps an even-keel attitude on the basketball court whether he or his teammates aren’t playing well.  By all accounts he seems like a guy players love to play with.  Lamarcus plays with All Star point guard Damian Lillard, who is a 21 point per game scorer himself, and the two have good on-court chemistry.  There is no Shaq and Kobe feud in the Blazers lock room.  Lamarcus has done a good job of balancing high individual production with a team-first attitude and a positive relationship with teammates.  You gotta love it, and we do.

Lamarcus Aldridge is a player that trainers and coaches love because of how he plays the game from night to night, and because of how he interacts with his teammates.  He is a player young stars can learn a lot from, in both his tangible skills and his intangible attitude towards the game and teammates.  We salute Lamarcus Aldridge and will be cheering him on the rest of his All Star career.  Go Big L!

By Basketball Trainer Contributor Mike Vandegarde

The Final Four, what a great weekend of basketball for anyone that wants to be a part of the action. Whether you are learning the game at an early age, a fan who just enjoys watching basketball, or you are actually playing in the Final Four itself, what a exciting sporting event to be a part of. The Final Four is the culmination of a years worth of work by college staffs, players and coaches. I think it represents everything good about the game of basketball. I have been to the Final Four for 20 years and counting, I started as a Fan 1st, then as a Coach 2nd, and even as a scout for the NBA for a few years. I wanted to share some of the great things I have learned with you about the experience.

As a fan it is the best way to have an experience that I can only describe as basketball, basketball, basketball. On Thursday everything gets going even though the games don’t start until Saturday. You can start by strolling over to the convention center and seeing all the booths where people sell everything basketball related. I even saw basketball related furniture for sale one year. Products designed to help the top basketballl trainer in your city. If being hounded by vendors isn’t your thing then you should stop by the Coaches Hotel to see Coaches from the junior college level up to the best coaches in all of college basketball talking shop and sharing thoughts about the game. I always wish I could be a fly on the wall to all the great conversations and stories the coaches have to tell. Next I suggest stopping by the FanFest and participating in or watching all the kids playing games and working on all the basketball drills the festival has to offer. Basketball courts in the convention center that have shooting and passing activities galore. You can go check out some of the stations in the FanFest that include a hand, foot, and height measurement mural of the greatest players to have ever played. It is really cool to see how you stack up against the greats. You could try out your vertical on the vertical jump machines over in the corner. It is just a huge gathering of basketball related activities for children to adults. Anyone gets to listen to some of the brightest basketball minds share their thoughts during a seminar or lecture session. After a day of basketball at the conference center, you can set your sights on the actual teams playing in the tournament the next day.

So after a good nights rest, it is Friday, a day before the first two games even tip off. I will always go over to the Arena to watch the Final Four teams practice. Then following that have an All Star game with some of the best college players in the country showing their stuff. They even have a free concert in the Arena following the game. Most fans spend the day at the arena and it is a special experience that you can only get at the Final Four.

I have failed to mention the 3 point contest for both Men’s and Women’s players and the dunk contest involving the best athletes in the college game. Those have both happened in the last few days another great event. I think even the great woman’s player Candice Parker won that dunk contest a few years back. After going to the Final Four weekend for many years as a fan, I became a Division 1 coach and things during the weekend didn’t change a whole lot.

The biggest thing in coming here this weekend as a coach was that I got to finally exhale for a few days and reflect on all the hard work our group had done throughout the season. The practices, the games, the study halls, the airplane trips, the highs, the lows, and everything that goes on during the season can be exhausting when you are almost always judged on wins and losses. I got to catch up with other friends in the business that I have not had time to call over the course of the season. Maybe even dinner and drinks with a few of my best friends from outside the coaching fraternity that have made it to town. I know some coaches even use it as a vacation for their families as they have not spent enough time with them for the last six months or so. Many others decide to talk to the NCAA executives about new ideas and possible rule changes in the coming years that should only make the game better. I will go to a few seminars and listen to some of the best coaches in the business talk about strategies and habits they use in their programs to be the best teams they can be. Maybe I will learn the secret to defeat the dreaded matchup zone or find a cure for a loss from a last second shot. Myself and all coaches from the lowest to the highest levels get to look forward to a great weekend of everything basketball, basketball, basketball.

You can go as basketball crazy as you want during a Final Four weekend. The two Semi-final games are on Saturday and the Finals are on Monday. You could never have a better trip that is all about basketball for one weekend a year then the Final Four. Like I said before, I have been both a coach, a fan and a scout during this weekend and I loved all sides. If you like basketball, and I think we all do, make sure a weekend at the Final Four is on your bucket list.