Basketball Scholarships – The Numbers Game (Part 2 of 7 Part Series)

June 21, 2014 By basketballtrainer

The Defnitive Guide To Your College Bsketball Dream

In part 2 of this 7 part series, we will discuss academic and athletic scholarship options and will begin to look at the best ways to package yourself as a basketball recruit.

In Part I of Chasing the Full Ride – A Definitive Guide to Your College Basketball Dream we discussed how few basketball recruits earn a full ride. However, a high percentage of prospects fulfill their dream to play at the next level by qualifying for academic scholarships, federal educational grants and loans as well as partial athletic scholarships. This process becomes The Numbers Game at all levels of college basketball recruiting.

Academic Scholarships For Basketball Players

Academic Scholarhips For Basketball Players “Do your homework!” is a common school night phrase in households worldwide for students growing up. Prospects would be wise to listen to this advice. In fact, “there is 22 times more academic aid available (each year) than athletic scholarships.”[1] The more intelligent the recruits the easier the sell to a college coach. The recruit will qualify for more academic scholarship money which will cost the college coach less in his or her athletic scholarship budget. In addition, athletes that can get it done in the classroom provide less stress for the college coach monitoring a roster of 15-20. Numbers come into play for families which are looking for the best financial package. Academic scholarship requirements vary with each institution of higher learning but common requirements to earn an academic scholarship or merit scholarship typically require students to graduate in the top five to ten percent of their class. Students that bring more to the table then just their book smarts, will be more apt to earn an academic scholarship. According to scholarships.com, “… while all academic scholarships are merit scholarships, not all merit scholarships are academic scholarships.” The reality is that student-athletes have “ … an even better chance if you’re heavily involved in extracurricular activities.”[2] Colleges and University admissions departments want well rounded students on their campus. They want students that will not only earn high grades but students that will bring something else to their campus community. They want musicians, actors, debaters, politicians, writers, and they want athletes! The more you can do, the more you will get! Well rounded students win in The Numbers Game.

FAFSA And Basketball Players

Financial Aid For Basketball Players Additionally, prospects that do well in The Numbers Game often take advantage of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, better known as FAFSA, which is a form that can be prepared annually for United States students looking for financial assistance for undergraduate and post-graduate studies within their country. The application awards aid of a given student based on Expected Family Contribution (EFC) which is determined by household size, income, number of students from household in college and assets.[3] The U.S. Department of Education begins accepting applications January 1 of each year and prospective students are encouraged to apply quickly to ensure that they will get as much aid as possible. FAFSA will open the door to nine federal student-aid programs, 605 state aid programs and most of the institutional aid available from a school of the student’s choice.[4] From a basketball coach’s perspective at a non-NCAA-D1 school, a student who receives a substantial FAFSA aid package will not tax the athletic scholarship budget as much as a FAFSA non-qualifier. For example, as of the 2014-2015 Award year, a student who receives a Pell Grant maximum amount, will get $5,645 towards their education. The Pell is awarded to students with a low EFC. This can then be packaged with academic and athletic scholarships creating a great financial package for prospective students before even considering available loans. These Numbers become very appealing to college coaches and to the prospects.

Partial Athletic Scholarships For Basketball Players

Partial Basketball Scholarships As discussed in Part I, NCAA D1 schools are the only programs that offer exclusive full rides. However, there are very few available in a given recruiting year. Although NCAA D2 can offer full ride athletic scholarships, it is not the norm and very often, coaches will try to maximize their athletic scholarship money by recruiting prospects that are able to draw from other resources such as merit scholarships and/or a substantial FAFSA package. All NCAA D2 sports are considered “equivalency” sports, which means that the NCAA restricts the total financial aid that a school can offer in a given sport such as basketball to the equivalent of a set number of full scholarships.^{^[5]} These programs have a total of 10 athletic scholarships available in men’s and women’s basketball while NCAA D3 programs do not offer athletic money. The problem is some institutions and in some cases entire conferences choose not to offer the full allotment granted by the NCAA. In addition, Coaches simply don’t have many scholarships available in a given year and will often look to offer partial scholarships to try to get as many players as possible. They may sometimes pitch a “pay two, earn two” situation to prospects in which they receive no athletic scholarship money their first two years but if they remain in the program, get an athletic scholarship their last two years. D2 coaches do try to land the big fish but most full rides at the D2 level are reserved for NCAA D1 transfers who can come in and make an immediate impact in the win column. In NAIA D1, basketball is sponsored by just over 100 men’s and women’s programs with each team offering a maximum of 11 athletic scholarships. In NAIA D2, there are nearly 150 men’s and women’s teams with each program equipped with the equivalent of six scholarships. NAIA coaches operate very similar to NCAA D2 coaches offering full rides to mainly NCAA D1 transfers while looking to fill their rosters utilizing partial scholarships, especially at the NAIA D2 level where they only have a maximum of six full scholarships. The best bet in The Numbers Game of College Basketball Recruiting is for prospects to seek out merit scholarships, apply for FAFSA January 1st while continuing to hone their skills in hopes of earning the best possible athletic scholarship, which most of the time is a partial deal.

The Full Package Basketball Player

The Full Package Basketball Player In conclusion, The Number Game in College Basketball Recruiting is one in which the most attractive prospects have the full package of academics, financial need and value to a given roster. A basketball prospect who excels in the classroom and on the court and takes advantage of financial assistance through FAFSA will be ahead in The Numbers Game. Their scholastic achievement, athletic success and use of financial resources will make them an easy pick for coaches searching for the most bang for their buck in the ultra-competitive recruiting war. While FAFSA cannot be controlled, the first two areas can and should be addressed as soon as possible in a prospects’ dream to play college basketball. Additional intangibles which win out win all the above factors in The Numbers Game are equal become, character, ability to Lead as well as versatility on and off the court.

Notes on Basketball Scholarships – The Numbers Game

There are alternative to four-year institutions for basketball prospects and many players choose to spend one to two years at NJCAA (junior colleges – 15 full ride scholarships in D1, D2 offers tuition and books while athletes have to pay for room and board, D3 varies) and increasing popular, although potentially very expensive, Preparatory (“Prep”) programs ($40,000 on average – scholarships vary) International Student Options A major roadblock in the international recruiting game is the fact that these prospects don’t qualify for FAFSA. They must pull from their own possible federal funding (Canada has a program) or they are forced to finance their education by other means when they are not offered the coveted full ride. [1] 8 Facts About College Athletics and Scholarships: What Every High School Athlete Needs to Know http://pathwaypr.com/8-facts-about-college-athletics-and-scholarships-what-every-high-school-athlete-needs-to-know [2] Academic Scholarships and Merit Scholarships https://www.scholarships.com/financial-aid/college-scholarships/scholarships-by-type/academic-scholarships-and-merit-scholarships/ [3] FAFSA http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FAFSA [4] FAFSA http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FAFSA [5] Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Division_II_%28NCAA%29

Basketball Training Tips Revealed by Champion San Antonio Spurs

June 19, 2014 By basketballtrainer

What Basketball Training Can We Learn From The Spurs?

The San Antonio Spurs just shook up the basketball world. They defeated the 2-time defending champion Miami Heat 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals. Not only did they win, but they dominated their opposition. They won all four of their games in the series by at least 15 points. While many were ready to witness Lebron James have a signature Finals series and secure his third straight title, the Spurs took hold of the series early and put on a beautiful display of team basketball. They performed very impressively and put the basketball world on notice. Youth basketball players should take note of the valuable lessons they taught us. Here are three things youth basketball players can learn from the 2014 San Antonio Spurs.

Train For Well Rounded Skills

In Game 4, a 21 point win for the Spurs, 13 Spurs got into the game and all 13 of them scored points. Eight of those players played more than 15 minutes in the game. The team’s leading scorer was Kawhi Leonard, who finished with 20 points. Kawhi scored in various ways; he scored driving to the rim, shooting the 3, shooting free throws, and he also scored on a ferocious putback dunk that was the highlight of the game. He scored off the catch and shoot, and he also scored making quick drives to the basket off the catch. The Spurs feature players that are well-rounded and who don’t need to dominate the basketball to be effective. Kawhi is a perfect example of that. Kawhi is not a heavily featured offensive player on his team, yet he was his team’s leading scorer in arguably the biggest game of the season to that point. He followed his Game 4 performance with a strong Game 5 and took home the Finals MVP award. After the series coach Gregg Popovich said that he didn’t draw up one single play for Kawhi in the series. That’s incredible. Being a well-rounded individual with the ability to score quickly in various ways, Kawhi was able to have a major offensive impact without disrupting the flow of the game for his team. That is because he’s a well-rounded player, and that’s huge. Young players should take note.

Train To Be Coachable

Coach Gregg Popovich famously enjoys a great relationship with his star player Tim Duncan. That relationship is great because Tim allows himself to be coached hard. In a league where players drive game attendance and TV viewership, players can easily become bigger than the coach. But Tim decided to remain coachable despite his status early on in his career. How does that affect the team today? Well coachability has a trickle down effect. Since Tim is coachable, everybody else essentially has to be, and in fact they are. In Game 3 of the Finals Boris Diaw elevated to starter status and year-long starter Tiago Splitter was relegated to the bench. Boris had a great impact on games 3 and 4 and the Spurs won by an average of 20 points in those two games. Tiago took the lineup change in stride and still provided positive minutes off the bench. Fan favorite Manu Ginobili, a probable Basketball Hall of Fame inductee when he retires, continues to come off the bench for the Spurs. Despite being an NBA All Star and All NBA performer in his career, Manu continues to do what his coach asks of him even though it doesn’t make sense to some observers. Manu has remained steadfast in being a quality sixth man for the San Antonio Spurs, and he came up big in the Finals, capping off the series with 19 big points in the series-clinching win. What is the payoff to this team-wide coachability? Well in 2014 it resulted in the best regular season record in the NBA, a second straight trip to the NBA Finals for the first time in Spurs history, and an NBA championship. When players put their individual desires behind what their coach asks of them, the payoff can be greater in the end. It pays to be coachable.

Train To Be Fearless

After a disappointing end to the 2013 season, the Spurs’ 2014 outlook was unclear. Could a team lead by aging players get back to the Finals and possibly win a championship? Could the Spurs defeat a healthy Oklahoma City Thunder team in the playoffs, a team they were able to avoid in the playoffs the year before? Could anyone or any team contend with Lebron James and the Miami Heat as they looked to win their third straight NBA championship? Well, the answer given by a lot of outside observers was no. The Spurs were not the overwhelming favorites to make the Finals out of the West, let alone to win it all. But the Spurs remained fearless as they always have been. They’ve never been concerned about winning the perception battle, but they have always focused on the game between the lines. And it has paid off for them. Youth basketball players should follow that lead and never let the status or rankings of opposing players and teams determine their own fate. Players should always remain fearless when facing stiff competition because the reality is that no team is unbeatable. For that reason it pays to be fearless. The Spurs show us where that attitude can lead.

Congratulations to the San Antonio Spurs on winning another NBA championship. Thank you for showing us what a team of well-rounded, fearless team players can do. Young players, take note!

Basketball Breakfast To Jumpstart Performance

June 17, 2014 By basketballtrainer

4 Tips for Eating Breakfast like a Basketball Champion

Basketball players have all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. As we sleep, our bodies use up most of what we consumed the day before, so after not eating for 6-12 hours overnight – it’s easy to understand why the foods that we choose to eat first thing upon rising are key to overall healthy nutrition and lifestyle. Given that modern day basketball often includes extreme training and as many as 4 -5 tournament games in a day, it is critical that we embrace the importance of enhancing performance and health via nutrition.

The typical American breakfast usually consists of a large bowl of sugar-laden cereal with a glass of artificial orange juice or maybe a plate of syrup topped pancakes with fatty bacon. Regardless of what your breakfast plate or bowl might currently look like, the most common breakfast foods consumed today are nutritionally deficient leaving the body starving for nutrient packed foods. Regardless of how these foods may taste, the reality is that a breakfast void of nutrients does not promote a healthy metabolism or digestion and increases your chances of making poor food choices throughout the rest of the day.

It’s time to start changing our view on the most important meal of the day, so I’m going to share with you my top four tips for eating breakfast like a true basketball champion!

Start by making time – the most common hurdle to not eating a healthy breakfast every day is having enough time. Healthy eating preparation usually requires more time than convenience, processed foods, so it can be challenging when you have to be at work or school early in the morning and you want to take advantage of as much time in bed as possible. Unfortunately, this is an excuse and the decision to begin eating a wholesome breakfast each day starts with you deciding to get up 20-30 minutes earlier and making time for it. I can’t think of many wholesome, balanced breakfasts that can be made in 5 minutes or less unless you intend on continuing to grab the pop-tarts and doughnuts. The first step to eating breakfast like a champion is to set your alarm earlier and make time to fuel yourself properly in the mornings.
Pack on the lean protein – in order to build strong, lean muscles the body must have enough amino acids (building blocks of protein) from protein each day and this starts at breakfast! Rather than grabbing for the cereal bars, doughnuts and pop-tarts, start by filling your plate with high quality, lean protein choices like eggs (or egg whites if you prefer), low-sugar greek yogurt, a protein shake, black beans and turkey bacon or sausage. Increasing your protein intake in the mornings will leave you feeling full longer rather than driving up your blood sugar quickly which always leads to a mid-morning crash. When this blood sugar crash happens you’re more likely to make poor snack and lunch choices setting a bad nutritional tone for your entire day.
Complex carbs are your friend – there are currently several “diets” out there that promote a low-carb strategy to achieving the best nutrition. While eliminating your intake of simple carbohydrates like refined flours, sugars and foods is a great idea for everyone, decreasing your intake of complex carbohydrates is not a good idea. Complex carbohydrates are digested much more slowly than simple carbs, therefore their effect on the body is very different. Complex carbs don’t cause a rapid increase in blood sugar or insulin like simple carbs do and are necessary to support a healthy, efficient metabolism – especially for highly active people like athletes. Just as a car needs gas to operate, our bodies need complex carbs for energy. Be sure to add complex carbs like oatmeal (not instant), whole grain cereals (Bob’s 10-grain or Nature’s Path) and fresh veggies and fruits to your breakfast each day.
Fill up on fiber – many Americans are not getting their recommended daily amount of fiber (30g). Fiber is an essential part of balanced nutrition in that it helps the body to maintain stable blood sugar levels throughout the day and keeps the intestinal tract squeaky clean by promoting healthy bowel movements. Most complex carbs contain a good amount of fiber, but it’s always a good idea to add more to give yourself a jump start for the day on your fiber intake. Including a few tablespoons of ground flax and chia seeds are a simple way to add more fiber to your protein shakes, oatmeal and whole grain cereals. Don’t be stingy with the fiber because champions get enough fiber for breakfast!

5 Day Healthy Basketball Breakfast Plan For Champions

Now that you understand the macronutrients that should make up your breakfast, I’m going to help kick start your new regimen by providing you with five different meal examples. Feel free to mix and match all of these as you’d like, but you’ll notice that in each day I was sure to include protein, complex carbohydrates and fiber no what the combination of foods were. If you stick to this rule, you will be eating a balanced breakfast.

Basketball Breakfast #1: 2-3 scrambled eggs (or egg whites), 1/2 – 1 cup oatmeal with 2 Tbsp. ground chia seeds sweetened with raw honey (add nuts or dried fruit if you’d like), pineapple slices

Breakfast #2: Omelet with your choice of veggies like spinach, onions, garlic, bell peppers, sweet potatoes, etc… 1 Ezekiel English muffin topped with raw honey and a pinch of ground chia or flax seeds, handful of blueberries

Breakfast #3: 1/2 -1 cup of black beans with sautéed asparagus, 1 large apple with peanut or almond butter

Breakfast #4: 1/2-1 cup of Bob’s Red Mill 10-grain cereal, 1 scoop of protein shake with non-dairy (flax, almond, soy, hemp, coconut) or low-fat milk add fruit of choice if desired

Breakfast #5: 1 high-fiber, low-sugar bran muffin, 1 hard-boiled egg, choice of lean turkey sausage or bacon

The keys to eating a healthy breakfast are strategy and time. Now that you understand the kinds of foods that should be filling your plates and bowls you are on your way to fueling your muscles and metabolism properly so that you can enjoy breakfast like a basketball champion!

Big Man Basketball Training – Three Training Tips For Dominance

June 16, 2014 By basketballtrainer

Big men, the game has changed for you. Twenty years ago you were relied on more heavily for offense and because of that were more celebrated by the viewing public. However coaches and basketball people still know how important you are to basketball teams. We still love you and value the things that you do. You are the defensive anchor, rim protector and possession finisher that teams still need to win games. And you can still be effective in today’s more perimeter oriented offensive attacks.

Three Tips For Big Man Basketball Training:

1. Train to Flash and Crash

If you want to keep the game easy you can think about a simple rhyme: Flash and Crash. If you’re playing in an offense that doesn’t feature getting you the ball on the low post, two great places to go get the ball are in the short corner and at the free throw line. Flashing to get the ball in these two areas gives you options as a big man. You can knock down your 15 ft jumper here. You can drive from these spots. You can even be an effective passer from these spots. From the free throw line especially you can reverse the ball to the opposite wing or look to feed a teammate close to the basket. Big men who are comfortable catching and being a scoring threat via flashing have great value, as flashing players are great at helping to beat zone defenses and getting a good look when the offense breaks down. The other part of the rhyme, crashing, is something every big man must do when a shot goes up. Although big men should look to rebound on both ends of the floor, if you can focus on “flashing” on offense and “crashing” the boards on defense you’ll be a valuable asset to your team on both ends.

2. Train On Your Two Man Basketball Game

Big man, you’re the other component in the Two Man game along with the ball handler. The Two Man game might be a part of your team offense, but if it’s not this is something else you can do to help your team when the play breaks down. The pick and roll, pick and pop, pick and slip and dribble handoff are all great options for getting someone an open look. And big men should really be familiar with executing all of these options. However you can really enhance your value if you identify which aspects of the two man game you are most comfortable with. Develop yourself as a “roller”, a “popper” or a dribble handoff threat. Big men on the college level and above usually know which of these components they’re best at and play to their strengths. You can do the same at your level.

3. Run The Floor

Do you know what running the floor means? It doesn’t just mean technically getting up and down the floor like everyone else in a jersey. Running the floor essentially means getting up the floor quickly in offensive transition, beating your man and others down to the other end. This could mean running the wing as a part of a two or three man break, or it could be mean running the pipe in a delayed break. Big men who run the floor do two very important things for their teams. One, it gives teams an opportunity to send the ball up the floor for easy scoring opportunities. As a big man you can add upwards of 4 points per game to your scoring average this way. Two, it affects the other team’s big man and overall defense. If you are constantly running in transition, you may tire the other team’s big man out as he tries to keep up with you. You may also force a lineup change. If the opposing team is not able to keep a big, plodding big man on the floor because he can’t or won’t keep up with you, how much value do you think that has for your team’s offense? If that plodding big man is a shot blocker, the impact can be huge.

Big men, if you think “flash and crash”, get comfortable with the two man game and make a habit of running the floor, you are going to make a big difference for your team. Some of these things take practice and may require you getting with someone who can teach you the finer points. But look to train and implement these basketball skills and watch your effectiveness go to another level. We can’t wait to see you dominating your basketball big man position.

Basketball Stretching – 5 Benefits That Enhance Your Performance

June 15, 2014 By basketballtrainer

Basketball Stretching – Have You Committed Yet?

Basketball stretching is an essential component of fitness that is often undervalued by young athletes for its ability to enhance overall basketball performance. Many young players are only spending a bare minimum of about 5-10 minutes simply “going through the motions” of their stretching routine without any real commitment to achieving the benefits that stretching has to offer. Does this scenario sound familiar to you?

This lack of stretching issue isn’t a matter of ‘want to ‘in most cases, it’s simply a lack of education as to what stretching does for the body. Whether you’re a player that already enjoys spending time stretching or one that wouldn’t spend any time doing it if it weren’t for your coach or trainer requiring that you do so – my goal within this article is to teach you more about the ways that stretching can help take your basketball performance to the next level by increasing your flexibility and range of motion, reducing muscular imbalances, preventing injuries, increasing circulation in the body and strengthening the nervous system.

Increase Basketball Flexibility and Range of Motion

Flexibility comes more naturally for some people than others, however anyone can reach their full flexibility potential by increasing their average daily stretching time from 5-10 minutes to at least 30 minutes. Some people take it a step further by utilizing a yoga practice that typically lasts up to an hour. Basically, the more time you spend stretching the more flexible you will become and the better range of motion you will have in your shoulder and pelvic girdles.

An increased range of motion means a lot for a basketball player. How would you like to increase the size of your first step to the basket? What about being able to extend your reach to the goal a bit further on your layups or dunks? Or, maybe you need to lengthen your defensive shuffle strides to make you a more effective defender. Increased flexibility and range of motion can take you to the next level with your basketball game by giving you a competitive edge physically in all of those tiny ways that you need it most!

Reduce Muscular Imbalances In Basketball Bodies

Every basketball player is susceptible to muscular imbalances simply because of the nature of the game. Hours of strength training, maneuvering laterally on cuts and explosive jumping take a toll on the muscles and joints.

Muscular imbalance happens when opposing muscles in the body such as the quadriceps and hamstrings of the knee joint become out of sync due to repetitive movements or poor posture over an extended period of time. Basically, one of the opposing muscles either becomes too tight, too weak or often both causing increased tension on the joint that the imbalanced muscles surround leading to aches, pains and potentially injury.

For example, what do you guess is going to happen to the knees of a player who has been playing defense with their weight distributed too forward over their body rather than centered for years? Hopefully you get the picture here – they have developed a serious muscular imbalance between the quads and hamstrings which could lead to aching, injury prone knees even at a young age. You can be sure that this player is not going to reach their full potential athletically until they correct the muscular imbalance.

The good news is that most muscular imbalances can be alleviated and even prevented by including a quality stretching regimen into your program. If you have a knee, hip, shoulder or ankle joint that has been bothering you and don’t recall any traumatic incident that would have caused the pain, then it’s safe to assume that you are needing to spend more time stretching yourself out. Proper daily stretching will ensure that you are giving much needed attention to all of your major muscle groups to help maintain balance for healthy muscular function.

Prevent Basketball Injuries

Some of the most common basketball injuries involve the hips, knees, ankles and feet. From ligament tears in the knees, chronic ankle sprains, inflammation of the tendons in the feet and pulled hip muscles – all of these injuries can cause players to miss several games if not the rest of the season.

Quality routine stretching, before and after you exercise and play, can give you a peace of mind by knowing that you are doing the number one preventative thing to offset these most common basketball injuries. It isn’t always a guarantee because sometimes things just happen, but the facts are that the more flexible you are, the less likely you are to suffer from common basketball injuries. It’s impossible to make a difference on the court if you are always worried about injury or nursing injuries, so the best thing to do is take action to prevent them the best way possible.

Lessen Recovery Time

A strenuous basketball workout or game can really push your physical limits leaving you sore and less mobile for hours and sometimes days after.

The soreness that you feel after a limit pushing game is due to micro tears in the muscles. Once these tiny tears have occurred, the body needs to send more blood to the damaged muscles to help them begin to repair and heal. Stretching helps speed up this process by increasing circulation and blood flow; where blood travels, so do oxygen and nutrients. So, the more time you devote to stretching, the less time it will take your body to recover and be ready for the next workout, practice or game.

Strengthen the Nervous System

Daily stretching is a practice that not only benefits your muscles, but also helps to strengthen your nervous system.

The nervous system is bundled within connective tissues that run along the muscles of the body, meaning the health and function of your muscles and nerves are closely related. Proper stretching incorporates deep breathing techniques which helps balance the mind and body. When you are breathing deeply rather than shallow and rapid, your nervous system is able to relax and reset resulting in an overall strengthened system. A healthy nervous system can enhance your basketball performance by preparing you to handle and withstand stress that happens often in high pressure game situations.

As you’ve now learned, stretching is not something to be taken lightly. It is a key component of fitness that is capable of helping you improve the function of the muscles, ligaments, tendons, joints and nerves in your body which is sure to enhance your overall basketball performance. Austin basketball trainer Chris Corbett has a couple of students who are also in Austin Gymnastics programs. Their commitment to gymnastics and stretching makes them standout amongst their peers as their balance, flexibility, and core strength keeps them on their feet and flexible.

Aim to spend no less than 15 minutes during both your warm-up and cool-down before workouts, practices and games. Remember, always stretch after a brief cardio warm-up since cold muscles are more inflexible and you won’t get the results you will with already warm muscles. Get to your basketball trainer, discuss basketball stretching and enjoy the great benefits it has to offer your body and game!

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Ask The Basketball Trainer

June 6, 2014 By basketballtrainer

Ask a Basketball Trainer Part 1

We get questions from parents and players all the time regarding player development, so we thought we’d take the time to answer some of these questions publicly. Let’s go to the mailbag.

I’m concerned that my son is not using the tools and skills you are giving him in basketball training during his games. He thinks he is playing well, but from an observer’s perspective he looks no better than he did 6 months ago in games. He is simply not being aggressive enough on offense, and therefore is not making a real imprint on the game. I think you have been awesome, but is there something you can do to help him realize he needs to implement more of his new skills in the games? – Mother of 11 year old shooting guard

I think your son has really developed some good skills over the last 6 months, but of course the key is to use those skills in game action. Let’s try three things. First, I will have him do a self-evaluation survey about his performance in the games. If there is a disconnect between perception and reality, we can address it head on. Sometimes young players can mistakenly find their value in what they are merely able to do, meaning the ability to do ball handling moves, having a good general shooting stroke, etc.

However coaches and observers value players for what they are actually doing in the games. If we find a major disconnect is there, I can talk to him about being the type of player his coach will love and that his team needs. Critical feedback about his game at this age may be uncomfortable for him, but it will help him in the long run. Secondly, I’ll give him a game within the game. Since your son has become a pretty good ball handler and is depended on to make plays for his team, I’ll give him a goal of six red zone touches per game.

We’ll start at six and increase as he consistently hits that number. In this case we’ll refer to the red zone as the area inside the 3 point line. As a shooting guard he needs to utilize his footwork, ball handling ability and explosiveness to beat perimeter defenders in driving towards the basket. Holding him to a certain amount of red zone touches will force him to use what he’s learned in training. And getting inside the three point line with explosive drives is going to translate into positive things for his team, whether it’s him scoring or making a good pass to a teammate on the inside. The third thing we will implement will come from you.

We’ll have you give him an Aggressiveness grade after each game. For his position and role on his team we want him at an 8 on a scale of 1-10. If he’s not performing at an 8 on the Aggressiveness scale, he may not be giving enough value to his team for his position. If he wants to play that shooting guard position, he’s got to realize that it comes with offensive responsibility. I think if we implement these three things immediately – one thing from me, one thing from him, and one from you – we can get him on the right track towards being a more effective basketball player.