% Based Defense

The NBA has some extremely talented scorers and great offense is going to score on great defense.  A popular saying right now seems to be "good D, better O."  There's several reason why you don't see shutouts in basketball, but the biggest reason is probably individual offensive skill levels are so high its impossible to get defensive stops 100% of the time.  So what should defenses do?  My answer is guard what is most likely to happen or take away their favorite/best moves/plays.  Will taking away all left handed drives from a player who is left hand dominate keep them from scoring?  No, but it can limit their effectiveness.

Watching the Knicks and Mavericks game last night had me frustrated with some of the defensive decisions in late clock situations.  1st scenario Carmelo (one of the most prolific scorers in the game) has the ball one on one from the wing with about 3 seconds left.  Is Melo capable of driving all the way to the rim and scoring with 3 seconds? Absolutely, but what is most likely to happen?  My first thought was one dribble pull up or step back jumper.  I would have liked to see his defender crowd his shot pocket and play the pull up even if it means they are out of position to guard his drive.

Next scenario is end of game and Dirk has the ball in the middle of the floor inside the arc with about 3 seconds left.  Dirk is about 13th on the NBA's all time scoring list and you don't get there by only having one go to move, but what is most likely to happen in that scenario?  My thought Dirk tries to elevate without dribbling to shoot over his defender or he takes one dribble and spins into a fade away if the defender takes away his catch and shoot.  Dirk's defender was active, in a stance, giving lots of energy and ball pressure, but he's giving up 3+ inches to Dirk.  Dirk is capable of shot faking and driving in that scenario, but its not the most likely decision he will make with the game on the line.  I would have liked to see Dirk's defender get a hand up in his face as soon as he moves the ball into his shot pocket.  Active hands that stay around a 7ft shooters waste is not really going to bother his shot. 

Understand you can't take away everything and playing great players the exact same way every time is not a great recipe for success either, but play the %'s and guard what is most likely to occur or get you beat first. 

Social Media

Rick Pitino recently sounded off about social media especially twitter calling social media "poison."  All of Louisville players are banned from using twitter and specifically sending tweets.  Pitino claims his players spend four hours a day on social media.  If true that is an alarming amount of time.  There's got to be something more productive to do with that 4 hours of time.  Pitino's biggest issue with social media is its diminishing people's communication skills and worries his players won't be able to get in front of an actual human and articulate their passion for wanting a job. 

We certainly had our issues with social media this season (twitter and instagram).  Players upset and in the frustration of a moment announce via twitter they are quiting or wishing they had went to another school or giving other schools bulletin board material.  Instagram videos of players rolling in the snow with no shoes or shirt, running on iced over water and throwing snowballs at passing highway cars.  Such is the culture we are coaching in today.  We addressed social media throughout the year with our team and cautioned against some of the negative results from using twitter, but it clearly wasn't enough to avoid several in-season distractions. 

Our social media policy will be changing again next season as we hope to avoid situations that produce negative energy within our program.  Whether you use social media or not, you must have a plan in place for your team. 

Marcus Smart

Marcus Smart had the opportunity to enter the NBA draft after his Freshman year at Oklahoma State and by all predictions would have been a first round selection.  Instead he chose to come back to school for his Sophomore season and he's done so without regret.  He said you can always go back and get your degree, but once you go to the NBA you can never be a student-athlete again.  Its a refreshing point of view from a talented player who is willing to wait on the big money of the NBA to enjoy college life a little longer, but this season has been anything but a glory ride for Smart.  Oklahoma State is currently on a 7 game losing streak, Smart has been suspended 3 games for an incident with a fan where he made physical contact with the fan and he's seen his draft stock drop.  Still Smart doesn't regret his decision to stay and believes he will better as a result of going through this season and suspension. "It's brutal, just to see those guys out there struggling," he said, adding that "it's a learning lesson. It just shows you can never take this game for granted because it can be taken away from you faster than it was given to you."

Hopefully this season and most recent event will be a learning experience for Smart and others as well.  There is no place for a physical altercation between fans and players.  Having basketball taken away even for 3 games could have an incredible impact on a young man.  I look forward to following Marcus Smart's journey from here.

Alan Stein

Alan Stein is one of the most respected trainers right now and his opinion of players is valued all the way to the NBA.  Below is an excerpt of Stein talking about the type of questions NBA talent evaluators want answered....

Every spring I get calls from dozens of NBA personnel inquiring about potential NBA draft pics. They know I have worked with most of the prospects before at events like the Jordan Brand Classic and Nike Skills Academies.

However, you’d be surprised at the questions they actually ask me.

Nearly every single question has to do with character, attitude or work ethic.

They never ask me about their athleticism or skills.

Why? If an NBA team is going to invest millions of dollars in a player, they need to know he is of high character, has an exceptional attitude and possesses an unparalleled work ethic.

Here are the most common questions I get:

• What was your very first impression of him?
• Did you see any red flags?
• Did you enjoy being around him?
• Was he always on time?
• Was he likable?
• Was he coachable?
• Was he an energy giver?
• Did he love to play? 
• Did he love to workout?
• How was his attitude?
• How was his work ethic?
• Was he a gym rat?
• What was the best part about working with him?
• Was there anything difficult about working with him?
• Was he respectful?
• Was he self-motivated?
• Did he act entitled? 
• Was he selfish?
• Was he mature?
• Was he competitive?
• Was he a leader?

And this is my favorite question that I’ve ever been asked:

Would you let your daughter marry him?

And while these particular questions are the ones I get from NBA personnel about potential draft picks, they are also the exact same type of questions I get from college coaches when they are recruiting a high school player.

There is so much more to basketball success than shooting, passing, rebounding, defending and dribbling!

Character counts!

Next Play

I'm thinking of making this our motto next season.  "Next Play" will be a call to focus on the most important play (one upcoming) to our players. 

We don't want to let the outcome (positive or negative) affect the outcome of future possessions.  We have several players who need constant reminders after a mistake to move on and we also don't want to get caught resting or celebrating after a good play.  "Next Play" will hopefully develop mental toughness with our young team and help them focus through emotionally high and low plays to stay on an even keel and give all of their attention where it should be.

Thibodeau Grinding

Great article here: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--with-tom-thibodeau-grinding-away--bulls-even-series-with-nets-063051823.html

Talks about Thibodeau staying true to his personality despite the circumstances.  Here are a few highlites:

"Most guys, from Patrick Ewing to Yao [Ming] to [Kevin] Garnett, they want to be coached," Thibodeau told Yahoo! Sports. "They want to be pushed. In all my years in this, one thing has never changed: You win with serious, tough-minded players. That never changes. - Awesome reminder to coach your best players hard.  You can't reach your potential if your best player can't take coaching.

"That's the challenge now. Things are changing in the game. …Things are different. When you're putting a team together, I think of what [Bill] Belichick said: 'You're not collecting talent, you're building a team.' " - Winning does require your talent to be in the ball park, but seldom in the nba do you see the newly stacked team through free agency win it all in the first year.  Winning takes more than talent.  One of the biggest obstacles with many talented players is defining roles.  Everyone wants to be the go to player down the stretch.

"People always talk about going on offensive runs," Thibodeau said. "But you can go on defensive runs, too." - The quickest way to take a teams will away is to get multiple stops.  Teams aren't bothered by the other team scoring as long as they can score on the other end.  You stop the other team from scoring and watch the dissension set in.

Thibodeau couldn't stop talking about him in the hallway, about how Mohammed kept practicing hard, kept preparing, even when the minutes weren't coming this season. "And the guys who take shortcuts, who aren't ready, they fail when their opportunity comes," Thibodeau said.  - Great lesson for players of all ages.  Reminds me of an Abraham Lincoln quote: I will prepare and some day my time will come.  It would have been real easy for Mohammed to collect a check and watch Noah play 40+ minutes a night.

Willingness

"People (players) seldom do things to the best of their abilities.  They do things to the best of their willingness."

I came across this quote via twitter this morning.  Its a reminder of why constant coaching is needed to maximize potential.  Its human nature to do just enough to get back.  We have to be pushed to maximize our talents.  Don't let your players "get through" or "get by" during a drill, practice or anything else you have influence over.  Be the consistent influence they need to become their best.