John Wooden's views on today's game

98 year old John Wooden shares his take on the game of today and of yesterday:

And I like the game now, but I don't like the game as much. I have never cared for the showmanship, and I think there is too much showmanship in the game today. While I think the players today are just unbelievable — their athleticism — I don't think team play is as good as it used to be.

Refreshing Story----Pat Knight calls on boy to make a point

From ESPN.com news services

LUBBOCK, Texas -- Texas Tech Red Raiders coach Pat Knight grew tired of watching his team miss shots that even a child could make. So he found one to illustrate his frustration.

While the Red Raiders (10-4) were busy botching about 15 layups against Stephen F. Austin on Thursday, Knight scoured the stands and invited a youngster to join the team huddle.

Knight asked the boy whether he could make layups. The boy said he could. "I was just tired of having 18- or 21-year-olds miss layups that a 12-year-old could hit, so I brought a 12-year-old in to let them know that he could hit layups," Knight said. "He's 12 and he can hit layups, so why can't you when you're 18 to 21?" The psychological maneuver evidentally worked. A layup by Mike Singletary with 8:44 remaining in the game put Texas Tech up 52-36, and Stephen F. Austin (7-4) couldn't cobble together a comeback. The Red Raiders beat the Lumberjacks 69-55.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

DUKE--Please Stand Up and Take Responsibility for Rules Violation

You've got to be kidding me!
This appeared in yesterday's USA Today Sports Page:

"Duke will report a violation by associate head coach Chris Collins, who attended a high school basketball tournament against NCAA rules. Colline attended the tournament Friday, the final day of the Dec. 25-26 recruiting dead period, during which college coaches are prohibited from attending high school game.

Jon Jackson, Duke's associate athletics director, said Collins was not aware of the dead period.

There is NO excuse for this kind of negligence. How does this happen?
1. Arrogance
2. Rules Oversight
3. Lack of Institutional Control
4. Stupidity
5. All of the above

Great Lesson in Humility, Encouragement, and Servant Hood!

This is one of the great stories that I've read in 2008.
An impressive lesson in encouragement, humility, and servant hood!

It should give us all plenty to think about:

CLICK HERE for STORY

From ABC News and ESPN

Knight Says Kids Love to Play Offense

This comes from Duane Silver's excellent newsletter. To subscribe, email Duane at duane@coachsilver.com.

Here is Coach Knight's take on player's preference of offense over defense. Unfortunately, it is defense that wins. Our job as coaches to get them to COMPETE on the defensive end!

"I talked to my dad about it, and realized the first thing kids want to do is play OFFENSE," Pat Knight said. "Defense is hardest thing to get across to them. It's got to become urgent for them. You've got to hammer it into them every day."

CoachRB.com
Coaching the Coach

Free Throw Shooting Success

This come from Brian McCormick and The Cross Over Movement.
Brian is the author of Cross Over: The New Model of Youth Basketball Development, 3rd Edition

A reader emailed this week and asked the reasons for elite players missing so many free throws. The reader asked because his alma mater struggles with its free throw performance, which he does not understand.
I think elite players struggle from the free throw line for three reasons:

1. Skill

2. Approach

3. Attention



I wrote about the flaws in Dwight Howard’s shooting mechanics a couple weeks ago and have written about Tim Duncan’s problems on my blogs for several years. Obviously, players like Shaq have sub-par shooting skills which hinder their free throw performance.



Very few players – even those who we consider to be good shooters – have technically perfect shots which are 100% repeatable. The players who do – Jason Kapono, Steve Nash, Jose Calderon, Ray Allen, etc. – are the ones who shoot 90% + from the free throw line every year. Those in the 70-80% range often have slight technical deficiencies which lead to inaccuracies. They shoot pretty well because they shoot so many shots and their shots are highly repeatable, but the slight flaws contribute to missed shots.



Beyond the actual skill of shooting – which is a book in and of itself – many players miss because of their approach. The approach encompasses three things: (1) practice approach; (2) mental approach; and (3) physical approach.



(1) Practice Approach: Everyone has a different free throw practice philosophy, but I don’t know that any method has proven successful. Shooting free throws in practice is different than in a game, even though they are the exact same skill. The difference, of course, is mental. Coaches try to make players tired before shooting free throws or attach a consequence to a missed free throw, but these approaches are ineffective in terms of helping a player make a free throw in the game because neither approach attacks the true issue. Players may miss because they are fatigued, but is the miss because they are too tired to shoot the free throw correctly or because the fatigue affects their approach to the free throw?

(2) Mental Approach: Players who shoot high percentages embrace free throws; players who struggle fear free throws. Many players concentrate on the wrong thought when they shoot a free throw: “I hope I don’t miss.” Furthermore, because we remember images and emotions, we remember the agonizing miss more than the standard make because of the emotions. If we make 9/10 in a game, but the one miss could have sealed a victory, we remember the miss because of the emotions involved. Next time we shoot a free throw, we hope to avoid the same situation, rather than remembering that we shot 90%. It changes our mental approach.

(3) Physical Approach: Many players do something at the free throw line which negatively affects their free throw performance. A routine is a positive physical approach which can enhance one’s free throw performance. However, some players stare at the basket for several seconds; some freeze in the middle of their shooting rhythm; some start their shot from the left side of their body; some bend their knees to different depths each time. To shoot a high percentage at the free throw line, you need to eliminate things that can go wrong. Many kids bend their knees to initiate their shooting motion; however, when they are fatigued, they forget or their knee bend is not to the same depth as normal. Therefore, I encourage players to set before their routine so they bend to a consistent depth each time. I also want the last action of their routine – the last dribble, spinning the ball – to be with their shooting hand so their shooting hand stays on the same side of their body and they bring their off-hand to the ball, rather than the player bringing his shooting hand to the ball across his body. I also encourage players to take a deep breath through their nose to relax and slow their heart rate. By correcting these minor physical mistakes, players eliminate many of the things that can go wrong in their shot, which gives them a better chance to make the shot.



As players learn to shoot free throws, they need to direct their attention appropriately. In games, free throws often occur after an emotional experience – hard foul, a missed shot, late game, etc. As players approach the free throw line, they need their attention focused properly. If they think about the missed shot, the hard foul, the next play, the last time they missed a free throw or anything else, they contribute to sub-optimal shooting performance. Coaches and parents often exacerbate the situation by yelling at the player to bend his knees or focus or follow-through, so his attention shifts from his target to his knees or his follow-through: he tries to think his way through his shot rather than allowing his body to work.



To improve his shooting, a player needs to quiet his mind. One way is to create a trigger word and concentrate on the word. The goal is to stop the internal dialogue and focus your concentration on the target and allowing your body to move without over-thinking the process.



To learn one’s shooting technique initially, or when trying to change one’s technique, a player must think about his technique. However, once he has automated his technique, thinking about the technique gets in the way of perfect execution. I miss shots when I practice because I am tinkering with my shot or thinking about the way that a client shoots and trying to reconcile something or learn something in order to help a player. My thinking gets in the way of my execution and my shooting success. When I quiet my mind and allow my technique to take over, I shoot well and make a bunch of shots in a row.



The same happens to players. When they think about a previous shot or their coach’s advice or something else, they lose their focus on the shot.



These three things – skill, approach and attention – work together and complement each other. When a player develops the proper technique, his confidence improves and he has the right mental approach. The right skill and mental approach leads to the player directing his attention properly. When a player approaches the free throw with confidence and a consistent approach; quiets his mind and focuses on the task; and shoots with good technique, he shoots successfully.

To join Brian's excellent Newsletter email him at: hard2guardinc@yahoo.com
WEBSITE information: www.180shooter.com or http://hi5hoopschool.tripod.com

TOUGHNESS WINS

By Larry Ronglien, Assistant coach, University of Wisconsin-Stout.

Over the 32 years I have coached basketball I have been frequently asked about the qualities that differentiate winning teams and losing teams and winning people from people who are going to struggle on and off the floor.

If the competing teams are close in talent, because athletic talent will usually win out, the decider in games is often what I call the toughness factor.

There are three elements that make up toughness in my coaching philosophy.

The first is PHYSICAL toughness. Basketball has become more physical over the past 10 years. Bigger, stronger, more athletically developed players have led to a game for the similarly strong. Kids are going to get knocked to the floor, hit in the face going for a rebound, run into strong bodied screens and meet body to body contact when going for a loose ball. Can a kid handle the physicality of the game today? How will they respond when banged to the floor? I had a player who suffered a broken nose in a high school summer game a few years back. There was blood everywhere. But, once the blood was stopped, he demanded to get back in there—in a summer game. Needless to say this kid was a champion both as a basketball player and a developing adult.

The second element of toughness is MENTAL toughness. The game today presents so many opportunities to give in. Individually you can miss your first three shots in a game. You can miss free throws that hurt the team. You can seemingly do nothing right in the eyes of the referees. But, winners persist and play through. There are so many set backs out there, and kids need to learn to keep going. As a coach you influence this by your attitude. Do you lose control when things don’t go the team’s way? Or do you take what happens, keep coaching and pushing your team forward?

Several years ago we had a game against a perennially strong team in our gym. It was senior night for us and we were a definite underdog, despite having a team that was playing well at the end of the season. We were tied at the end of the 3^rd quarter, but our opponent had a player who was a Division I recruit and he picked his team up with a 9 for 9 from the field show in the 4^th quarter. I would say 8 of his shots were tough shots and he made them all. My team was becoming frustrated because this kid was not missing despite have an excellent athlete guarding him. We allowed our frustration to carry over into our offensive play and faltered in a big way, losing by 11. Despite it being the final game of the regular season we talked afterward about the mental toughness challenges situations like that can present. Our team was able to play very well in the regional that year, winning two by more than 30 and then losing to the eventual state champs by 5.

The third element of toughness is EMOTIONAL toughness. In many ways this is closely related to mental toughness. But, there are highs and lows throughout a season, good practices and bad practices. There are often injuries to manage, slight or severe. In Minnesota we deal with cold weather. Sometimes when you are practicing late it would be nice just to stay home and not go out one more time when it is below zero. Coaches yell at players and point out errors in their game or mistakes made both in practice and games. Bus rides are long. Kids have much homework to do to be ready for class the next day. And often the kids have girl friends wanting more of their time. It all takes its toll. Kids have to work though it all to get what they want—a successful and fun season, one that can be remembered. Being emotionally tough gets kids through all of the stuff that makes up a season. I had a player a few years back that was our schools last 500 point in one season scorer. We had a game against one of our rivals on the road on a Friday night in front of a large crowd. He had had a poor first half and started the second half in the same way. Finally I had seen enough after he missed two block outs on free throws with about 14 minutes to play. I just took him out and didn’t put him back in, despite the score being about a 10 point difference. After the game he approached me about his benching and asked what the plan was for the next game. I told him that for him, his personal plan would be determined by his energy and effort in the next game, we were playing the next day, and if he was lazy again he could sit some more. He gave me a blank stare , hopped on the bus and went home.

The next day he was off to a much better game and with six to go and us up 1 I asked if he was up to the task? Standing with me at a free throw, he looked at me and said, that crap from last night isn’t going to happen again. I’m ready. He proceeded to score 10 points in the final six minutes including a stolen ball for a dunk as we won going away. Our best player had shown the emotional toughness we expect from our guys.

I think it is important that we coach all of these areas. They need to be pointed out frequently. We need to praise kids when they show the toughness and talk about it when collectively the team doesn’t. Some seasons it seems things are destined to go wrong, but usually it means the squad is underdeveloped in terms of toughness. Once enough kids reach a threshold of toughness in these three areas winning can begin to occur.

Larry Ronglien, 31 year Minnesota high school coach, now assistant coach, University of Wisconsin-Stout.

email: lronglien@goldengate.net