PEACELOVEBASKETBALL: The Importance of a Practice Plan
When I was head coach I always had a practice plan. I had an overall plan for the season and then I had a detailed practice plans for each day. A practice plan is a must as it keeps you organized, keeps practice on schedule and allows you to look back and see what you have covered so that you are prepared as games start and the season progresses.
Get Organized And Stay On Schedule
Before the season starts, look over your master plan for the year. This overall plan should build upon the previous season’s strengths and your evaluation of incoming players. At our high school we had ten days of practice before our first game (three of which were tryouts). My master plan included a schedule of what I needed, and wanted, to get done before that first game, and then I built daily practice plans from there.
When you have practices scheduled out by the minute, you don’t waste time.
When I was coaching, our girls were expected to get to practice and warm up before our start time. And then when our practice was scheduled to start, we started. We often did a few drills that warmed the players up a little more (always using a basketball) and then got to work. Go into every practice with a detailed plan for the day so that you can take advantage of every second on the court.
Gym time is precious. Use it.
With your master schedule in mind, you know what offenses, defenses, inbounds plays, presses and press breakers you’ll be running, now look at what drills will prepare your players to run these with success. Each year I pulled out a giant folder that held drills that I had used over the years, and ones that I found online or picked up […]
PEACELOVEBASKETBALL: Enhance Your Coaching With Quotes
“There is not limit to the goals you can attain, the success you can achieve –
your possibilities are as endless as your dreams.” – D. Crowe
This quote by D. Crowe is one of my favorites. I first read it when I was in middle school, and since then, it has kept me looking into the future and dreaming. As a coach, I posted it on locker room walls and on journals, and shared it with many athletes because I believe it. And I hoped that with my support, the players would too.
A positive quote sends a message to your athletes that you believe in them. According to Dr. Jonathan Fader, a licensed performance and clinical psychologist, when a quote, or saying, conveys to a person they can achieve what they want to achieve, the quote can give the person the incentive to try. When a coach believes in a player, and enhances that belief with quotes, it can be a powerful part of a coach’s routine.
Also, a quote or saying can be used as a team’s theme, which makes the perfect framework for the season.
Start The Season With A Quote
I started every season with a quote or theme that I emphasized throughout the year. In my first year as a varsity coach, I started with one simple word, Believe. I talked to the team about believing in themselves and one another. I reminded the athletes that they were the start of something big at our high school. We were building a program, and to do that, the they needed to believe in the vision.
I gave the players ribbons with the word Believe on them, […]
3 Ways To Encourage Teamwork From The Sidelines (For Parents & Fans)
Sometimes as a parent, or fan, it can be difficult to be on the sidelines. But it can also be a lot of fun and you can help the team. The next time you are at a game, have a great time by supporting the entire team and encouraging teamwork. Here are three easy things that you can do to help create a positive team atmosphere from the sidelines.
Support The Entire Team
When it comes time to cheer during a game remember that your child (or the child who you are watching), is not the only player on the court or playing field. Depending on the sport, there are several more players out there so make sure to cheer for them too. Encourage teamwork by being a team player yourself.
Make the extra effort to learn the names of all the players on your child’s team. Cheering for everyone can make a huge difference for the young athletes themselves and the team dynamics. If parents work to broaden their thinking, and cheer for all of the players, they will see that their support can affect the team and strengthen team mentality.
Cheer For Teamwork and Skills, Not Just Scoring
If a player hears several parents congratulate them on a nice assist, they will feel good about it and be inspired to help their teammates with more assists. If a player hears clapping and cheering after they play tough defense or get a steal, they will be encouraged to work on all parts of their game.
Some parents only cheer when points are scored, but there is a lot that happens, before and after points are scored, that is worth cheering for. The next time that you are cheering at your child’s game think about all of the things that happen on the court or playing […]
PEACELOVEBASKETBALL: How to Make the Fast Break Second Nature
Pushing the ball up the court is second nature for me. It was drilled into my head as a high school and college player, and I did my best to instill the same fast break mindset into the players that I coached. A run-the-ball mentality doesn’t happen over night, but by using drills that focus on the fast break, and consistent encouragement, your team can learn to move with ease into transition offense.
A Fast Break Mentality
Make sure your players know from day one, that they are going to be a fast break team. Explain what it will take to become a great running team and the advantages they will gain from the effort they put in. How they can get easy baskets and win games.
Set the Expectation of Hustle
To be an excellent fast break team your players need a different mindset. They need to hustle throughout practice. To sprint when they meet you at the baseline for instructions, and when they line up for drills. They need to make hustling a habit. Not only will this help get them in shape, it will build their fast break mindset.
Push The Ball
We ran our transition offense up the middle of the court, but many teams run sideline breaks, they key is to move the ball up the court quickly. Normally one thinks of a fast break happening after a shot is missed, but a fast break mindset will help even after your opponent makes a shot. If your inbounder is trained to get the ball out of the net and hit a guard right away, you can often beat your opponent up the court and score before they can set up defense. Push the ball!
Start With The Rebound
You can’t run the ball if you don’t have it. Teach your players how to […]
Meet Sonya
Meet Sonya
Sonya Elliott’s memoir, Back on the Court: A Young Woman’s Triumphant Return to Life, Love & Basketball, is her story of finding hope in the wake of tragedy after she and her fiancé were hit by a train. She blogs about writing, basketball, and life and is currently working on a Young Adult Novel and a Non-Fiction Coaching book. Stories of her career as a fashion model are woven through her memoir, as both the Soloflex and Easy Spirit Shoes commercials were filmed during that time period, and this unique and intriguing business continues to be a part of her life.
Sonya played basketball at Eastern Washington University and was a starter for the Big Sky Champion team that went to the 1987 NCAA tournament. She coached for almost 25 years and was voted Seattle Times Coach of the Year, Seattle Officials Women’s Basketball Association Coach of the Year, and twice voted Metro League Coach of the Year. She loves the game of basketball and is thankful, not only for her husband and kids but for her ability to continue to get back on the court.
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PEACELOVEBASKETBALL: Parents, Please Don’t Pay Your Kids To Score Points
Parents have good intentions when they pay their children to score points. They believe it will encourage them to work hard, score more and help the team win. But is it really good for the athlete or the team?
As a coach, and a player, I have seen what paying a child to score points can do to that child and the team. And I can tell you that none of it is good.
Pressure on the Athlete
Young athletes have to learn to play under pressure, but why add to the pressure. Kids already have enough to think about when they are playing.
An athlete has to run different offenses and defenses and take care of individual responsibilities on the court or field. They often think about non-sport-related issues, like their homework, a test that they have coming the next day, or even a recruiter in the stands.
I’ve watched great players struggle […]
PEACELOVEBASKETBALL: The Importance of a Practice Plan
When I was head coach I always had a practice plan. I had an overall plan for the season and then I had a detailed practice plans for each day. A practice plan is a must as it keeps you organized, keeps practice on schedule and allows you to look back and see what you have covered so that you are prepared as games start and the season progresses.
Get Organized And Stay On Schedule
Before the season starts, look over your master plan for the year. This overall plan should build upon the previous season’s strengths and your evaluation of incoming players. At our high school we had ten days of practice before our first game (three of which were tryouts). My master plan included a schedule of what I needed, and wanted, to get done before that first game, and then I built daily practice plans from there.
When you have […]
PEACELOVEBASKETBALL: Enhance Your Coaching With Quotes
“There is not limit to the goals you can attain, the success you can achieve –
your possibilities are as endless as your dreams.” – D. Crowe
This quote by D. Crowe is one of my favorites. I first read it when I was in middle school, and since then, it has kept me looking into the future and dreaming. As a coach, I posted it on locker room walls and on journals, and shared it with many athletes because I believe it. And I hoped that with my support, the players would too.
A positive quote sends a message to your athletes that you believe in them. According to Dr. Jonathan Fader, a licensed performance and clinical psychologist, when a quote, or saying, conveys to a person they can achieve what they […]
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