Rebound To Win

With March Madness in Full Swing and the Final Four Basketball Championship soon approaching, I wanted to put out a post that speaks to my passion for basketball.  My love for the game started over 17 years ago and one skill that always stuck with me is Rebounding.  I was taught by my first coach, that no matter how tall or small you might be, ANYBODY can rebound.  So I set my mind to rebound as a player.

A rebound is what we call a missed shot.  So after every missed shot, there is a rebound that players battle to get to.  I learned quickly, that by keeping my eyes on the ball, I was able to see the rebound quickly and get to it before anyone else.  I was taught by my coach in high school to assume every shot is a miss - so pursue the basketball expecting to get the rebound.  This strategy stuck with me even into coaching.  As a coach, I studied some of the best teams in the country - Tennessee's dynasty with Pat Summit was a great rebounding team.  UConn's dynasty under Geno Auriemma is still a great rebounding team.  These are just two of my favorite programs to study and watch play because they rebound so well.  I began to develop my rebounding philosophy and teach the craft in much greater detail.  These are the steps and techniques that can help any team improve by Rebounding to Win:

1. See the man and the ball at the same time!  
2. Say "SHOT" on every shot to remind your body and your teammates.
3. Box out by putting your body on your opponent's body with two hands high in the air.
4. Pursue the ball with two hands and two feet (Explode up and Land on Balance).
5. Finish it by chinning it strong with elbows out.  

These five basic steps will lead to better rebounding.  We would practice rebounding everyday, during every drill.  As sure as shots are going up, rebounds are coming down.  We need to train our body to get to every rebound first.  Our goal was - no rebounds hit the ground!  If it does, we are not working!

To wrap up, I want to incorporate these same techniques into every day life because I believe that sports are a great way to teach life skills.  Lets say you take a "shot" which will simulate going to work, or maybe start a new job, take a test at school, or practice learning a new instrument.  In every thing we do, we may or may not succeed in it.  Let's say you go to work and get hit with a new project that seems overwhelming and you are off to a rocky start.  So in this situation, you can't just give up, walk away and give it to someone else to do.  You have to "Rebound" the missed assignment.  Let's break it down:

1. See your daily routine and your new project at the same time.
2. Say "I can do this" to remind yourself that you were given the task, because you can do it!
3. Box out any doubt in your mind that could prevent you from getting it right this time.
4. Pursue the project with confidence and commitment that you will succeed.
5. Finish it by reviewing and asking for help if you need it.

We all "MISS" sometimes in life, but don't give up and just walk away from what was meant for you!  Reevaluate your positioning, stance and timing then go back after it with these simple steps.  I hope you all continue to persevere on in life and remember to Rebound to Win!

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The Art Of Defense On The Court

 In the game of basketball, the game between two opponents is and forever will be about who outscores who when the game is over.  Now with that being said, both opponents need to play some DEFENSE when one is on offense trying to limit their opponent's scoring to help with being called the winner at the end of the game because they outscored the other.  Defense takes pride, commitment, technique, will, and mentality if you want to be a good defender and when watching a game, if any of these are lacking in one individual or a team, the score of a game will reflect that. 

There is an ART to playing defense that can come out to be a beautiful picture when executed the right way.  My wife and I when we ran different programs started everything we wanted to do on the basketball court behind the bases of defense.  Our motto "You can't score unless you have the ball!"  We taught our players without telling them this specifically but training their mentality first to think these three things when it comes to defense:  1. Guard the ball. 2. What's our technique? 3. What's our scheme?  

 Notice I said, Guard the ball for #1.  It's a big difference between guarding the ball and guarding your man.  Some coaches use the term, "guard your man" when trying to tell their players to guard the ball.  Players understanding concepts were very big keys for us, so we talked and taught in a way of such thing.  Guarding the ball meant to our players, that if you are guarding someone who currently has the ball, then you are guarding the ball, eyes on ball using your technique to move with the ball.  Guarding your man refers to if you are guarding some one currently without the ball.  Now #2, What's your technique, simply is the defensive techniques you teach in whatever defensive scheme you are running from one possession to the next. For example, if you are defending the ball at the top of the key in a man defense, are you forcing the ball handler left or right sideline to baseline?  #3, What's your scheme, simply means what kind of defense we are playing during one possession or another and the actions we are doing out of them.  For example, in a 2-3 zone defense are we trapping in the corners or just playing an area?  All of these things would help us paint the picture for our players so they can display the artwork on the court. 

For coaches out there, I want to give some tips you can use with your team to prepare them to make some great DEFENSIVE ART on the court:

1. Make sure your players are conditioned to play the style of defense you want to play.  They are not going to play 40 min of press defense if they are only conditioned to play 2-3 zone all game.

2. Make sure your players understand the style, concepts, techniques, and the schemes in the defenses you want to run in the game.  Remember, a player's understanding is not just from them saying they understand but also showing they do.

3. Make your defensive practices become a mentality for your players so it becomes their habitat.

These tips along with a lot of other things my wife and I implemented within our programs helped us produce some great DEFENSIVE ART that led to a lot of success and I hope some of these things can help you as well.

 

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