NEW Article: “Watch What You Teach!”

By Joe Haefner

Read this new article form Don Kelbick. It really challenges you to think about the way that you coach the game of basketball and how it could be affecting your team.

http://www.breakthroughbasketball.com/coaching/Watch-What-You-Teach.html

2010 Summer Workout Season

By Don Kelbick

The Summer training season is in full swing.

So far this summer we have worked with Raja Bell, Anthony King, Brian Waters with Guillermo Diaz and Denis Clemente due in shortly. Other regulars, such as Rasual Butler and Carlos Arroyo have not been in yet due to scheduling conflicts and might be in to get ready for training camp.

I am very selective with whom I work with. I work very hard and appreciate the way all these guys work.

Raja is in a free agent summer. As usual, he comes with a laundry list of things he wants to improve on. After so many years of playing with Phoenix and being a designated shooter, he wants to improve on his game off the dribble. This is a different summer for him, not only being a free agent but also because he missed most of last year with a torn tendon in his wrist. He is 100% now, in great shape. I hope he signs with someone who has a chance to win. He will be out for 3 days this week as he meets with the Lakers and the Bulls.

Anthony King is one of my favorite people. Not a big scorer in college, his offensive game had really come a long way. He played last year in Cypress where he was the 4th leading scorer and leading rebounder in the league. I think that we need to expend his game a bit. At 6’ 9” and 240 pounds he is a big undersized for his skill set. I made a small adjustment in his shot and now his range has increased dramatically. My hope is that he carries the adjustment to the foul line. Last season he shot 68% from the foul line. Based on the number of foul shots he took, if he can move his percentage up to 80%, which is not unreasonable for him, he would be first in both scoring and rebounding. He must be doing something right because he has been invited to summer workouts with the Miami Heat.

Brian Waters played at Elon College in North Carolina. He is a great athlete and really quick. He was not really a heralded player in college and I want him to be ready when someone calls to give him a chance.

Denis Clemente is coming off a great senior year at Kansas State in is currently in the summer program with the Charlotte Hornets. I hope he plays well enough to get an invite to training camp.

Guillermo Diaz played with the LA Clippers and is now making a great career in Europe. He has had opportunities to go back to the NBA but prefers the stability he has found as one of the best players in Italy.

For more information: www.DonKelbickBasketball.com

Friday, July 20, 2010

This was a pretty good week of workouts. The week started with Raja Bell missing Monday due to the fact that he was in Utah to sign his 3 year guaranteed contract. It reflects the respect NBA people have for him. While not for huge dollars, by NBA standards ($10 million), the fact that he will be 34 years old in September and all 3 years are guaranteed is very unusual for a player of his age playing his position. When he returned from Utah, his work ethic was unaffected. I will match his work ethic against anyone.

We also learned that Anthony King was named Most Valuable Player in his league in Cyprus. He had been working out with the Heat but but is now back in our workouts. He may not be able to pass up the offer that has been extended in Cyprus.

Jonathan Rodriguez has joined us. Jonathan just graduated from Campbell University. He finished his career as one of the few players in NCAA Div. I history to score 2000 points and grab 1000 rebounds. He is 6’6” and the challenge with him will be to expand his game by improving his ball handling and increasing his shooting range. At his size he will be a full time perimeter player at his next level. He will face quickness that he has not faced before. In addition, he has to be able to stretch defenses. I’ve made a small adjustment in his shot that will result in more arc, which will increase his range. It has paid immediate results. Hopefully he can carry it over to competition.

For more information: www.DonKelbickBasketball.com

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Workouts are going well. This week we were greeted with some good news.

Anthony King, who was selected as MVP of his league in Cyprus, has resigned in Cyprus. After spending some time this summer with the Heat and hoping for an NBA break, decided to accept an offer that doubles his salary. Anthony is now the highest paid player in the league.

Denis Clemente, who spent time this summer with the Charlotte Bobcats and played summer league for them, has signed a 2 year contract with Maccabi Rishon in Israel.

Workouts are going in 2 groups. My emphasis on footwork and the way the workouts are structured, allow me to work with players of different positions and ability levels at the same time. Jonathon Rodriguez has been working on increasing his arc and his footwork. He seems to be coming along. He has much better rhythm in his shot, due to the footwork and the increased arc has allowed him to stretch his range. Whether he can do it in competition remains to be seen. When confronted by stress, we invariably revert to what is comfortable for us. He needs a lot more repetitions to ingrain the changes he has made.

Anthony King is a great example of that. He has increased his range a good 5 feet and is now comfortable a big step behind the 3 point circle. His footwork has been solid since we started working 3 years ago, and now, I no longer have to say anything to him regarding the height of his shots. The results have been impressive.

Raja Bell continues to work to recapture his playing form. In the past, he has come with a shopping list of things he wants to improve. But, after missing almost the entire season last year, he feels that he needs to recapture his intensity and conditioning. Workouts that in the past covered specific things are now more universal, combining a number of skills at once. And every drill involves a cardio aspect to challenge his conditioning.
For more information: www.DonKelbickBasketball.com

Thursday,  August 12, 2010

Workouts are significantly more intense and challenging than they were just a couple of weeks ago. Players need to be rounding into better shape now so there are more repetitions and less breaks during the course of the workouts. They are not longer workouts (I try to keep them under an hour 15 minutes) but there is much more work in each one. Training camp for European players starts much earlier than here in the States. Anthony King leaves Sunday for Cyprus, Guiilermo Diaz leaves for Italy on August 23.

Guillermo Diaz is recovering from a deeply pulled groin muscle that hampered him in Italy and in the tail end of his Puerto Rican season. He is just now returning to form. He has played in the NBA with the Clippers and the Bobcats but feels he can carve out a great career in Italy, so instead of trying to catch on with another team, he is committed to becoming an Italian favorite. Always a great shooter, if he can stay healthy, he will become that.

Jonathon Rodriguez continues to come along. Corrections have become less and less in regard to his footwork and shot. I am now concentrating on trying to have him become more efficient but moving in straight lines and eliminating any drift in his shot. Slowly but surely, he is stretching his range, which he must do to have success at the next level.

I have begum to introduce some competitive work into the workouts with the second group. I don’t usually do that. Because Raja Bell missed most of last year, he wants to work on his instincts and recognition. So, we play some 2 on 2, starting with some type of pro action (zipper cut, ball screen, etc.) and play a few games. After that we do a lot of pure shot repetitions. Before we play, the work is very heavily cardio intensive. Before we play, within about 40 minutes, we try to get about 250 shots per player with a 3 man group. Afterwards, we try to get in about 100 shots more.

Carlos Arroyo is once again in Puerto Rico training with the National Team as team captain. they will be playing in the World Championships in Turkey at the end of August
For more information: www.DonKelbickBasketball.com

Tuesday August 24, 2010

It’s funny how things go. Most of the summer I have been pretty busy. Every day at least 2 groups kept me busy from 8 in the morning until at least noon, non-stop.

Now it is time toplay. Anthony King has left for Cyprus, Jonathan Rodriguez left for the Domincan Republic, Guillermo Diaz has left to play for Puerto Rico in the World Championships and then will go on to Italy others have left to other parts of the world. I am left with 2 guys, Raja Bell and Keenan Browder. That’s ok, because now we can really concentrate on specific needs.

We have transitioned from volume shooting to more specific techniques. We still take a lot of shots but we have moved on to things such as reading screens, spot up shots off penetration, reading defenders in the post, etc. Most of the trigger movements come out of Raja’s role in Utah’s offense.

Keenan has some significant minor league professional experience and we are trying to make a higher level opportunity for him. He has really benefitted from Raja’s experience and advice. He can really shoot the ball and hopefully we can add enough to his game to get him a chance.

Another player who is off to play is Ralfy Portuando. I don’t write about him because he is not a professional. But, he is the person whom I am most proud of. Ralfy came to me as a 15 -year old part time HS player. He is the definition of a gym rat. Every day he would call and ask if we could work out. We would go a 6 am before he went to school. His work ethic earned him a spot a a dedicated workout partner for Raja and Rasual Butler. Imagine a HS player who got not much playing time turning into a mandatory piece in a workout plan for NBA players. They just would not work out without him.

He must have paid attention He went on to play a year in Junior College and now, he is on the way to play at Florida State. The kid who did not know what to do to get himself playing time in HS has worked his way into playing in the top conference in college, the ACC.

Pretty special kid.

For more information: www.DonKelbickBasketball.com

NEW Basketball Drill for Full Court Pressure (Video)

By Joe Haefner

Check out our new basketball drill & video that covers a full court pressure drill. The player practices finishing on offense and transitioning to full court denial defense.

Three Man LSU

NEW Article: 4 Skill Development Techniques that Few Coaches are Aware Of

By Joe Haefner

Take a look at this new article by Don Kelbick where he discusses some relatively unknown skill development techniques.

http://www.breakthroughbasketball.com/fundamentals/4-Skill-Development-Techniques.html

NEW Article on Developing an Explosive First Step

By Joe Haefner

Check out this new article on developing an explosive first step. It also talks about how the cue “long” may be slowing down your players.

http://www.breakthroughbasketball.com/fitness/explosive-first-step.html

Scottie Pippen On The Player’s Greatest Challenge

By Joe Haefner

“Sometimes a player’s greatest challenge is coming to grips with his role on the team.” – Scottie Pippen

As a player, you need to realize that there are many different ways to contribute to a basketball team and be successful. Ben Wallace shot just over 40% from the free throw line and he has NBA championship rings, because he knew that his strengths were defense and rebounding.

Jason Kidd dominated basketball games without scoring a point by playing suffocating defense and distributing the ball to open teammates. There is a reason that Jason Kidd NEVER lost an International basketball game.

Ask your coach what you can do to help the team. When the coach tells you, do it.

As a coach, we need to emphasize the importance of each player’s role, even if they are practice players that get very little playing time. Too often, we don’t do this enough and that’s why players want to score the ball and take little pride in other areas of the game.

All great coaches motivate their players to do the little things.

It’s also part of the reason we produced and highly recommend the DVD, Danny Miles’ Value Point System.

Why Shoot With An Arc?

By Don Kelbick

Is the hole in the rim the same size all the time?

Do you think that’s a strange question?

When I was in pilot training, I learned that the outer end of a propeller moves faster than the inner end. I could not figure out how that could be. They are all connected to the same hub and it only spins at one speed.

Well, when you look at the definition of speed, it is the time it takes to move a mass over a prescribed distance (e. g. miles per hour). Since the far end of a prop has to travel a longer distance than the part near the hub, but must complete its trip in the same amount of time, it must be moving faster.

So, I ask again, is the hole in the rim the same size all the time?

I would argue “No!”

Try this experiment. Get a round trash pail. Put it on the floor and look down on it. How big is the hole, how much do you see? Now, pick up the pail and put the rim of the pail at eye level. How big is the hole, how much do you see now?

Same pail, same hole, different situations. Looking at the hole with the pail on the ground you can see a big hole. Looking at it at eye level, the amount of the hole you can see is very small.

Now imagine your eyes are the ball when you are shooting a basketball. Which angle gives you the best chance to put the ball in the basket? The answer is obviously the angle in which it can see the most hole.

The ball has the best chance to go through the hole when it enters from above. We have all heard that 2 basketballs can go through the hole at the same time. But that is only true when the balls enter from directly above, when the hole is bigger. In fact, when putting balls in the hole from directly above, you can fit 5 balls in the hole at once (I said in the hole, not through).

When shooting a low trajectory shot, if the ball hits the rim, the forward momentum will overpower the downward momentum and probably skip forward off the rim. With a higher trajectory, a larger hole, more downward momentum, the ball hits the rim and rolls through the hole.

The optimum arc is different for everyone because there is a comfort level here. There is a point where too much arc also adds more distance to the shot and it could turn a 20 foot shot into a 25 foot shot and now you are out of your range, but I would say use as much arc as you can comfortably use.

So, is the hole the same size all the time?

For more information on Don Kelbick go to http://www.DonKelbickBasketball.com.

Great Story On What Youth Basketball Is All About

By Joe Haefner

Here is a great story from Jim Bado of Ohio on his experience with coaching youth basketball. It really shows what youth basketball should be all about.

Jim is also an author of the LOSER Report.

Matthew and I strode through the chilly, snow-flecked darkness outside the soaring Gateway Church.

“Have you had fun this season?” I asked.

“Yes,” he replied. “But I’m kind of nervous about our last game. I haven’t scored a basket this season and Saturday is my last game. It’s my last chance to score in a game.”

“Don’t worry,” I replied with the overconfidence of someone who’s tossed in countless points during innumerable contests, “you’re going to score Saturday, I promise.”

I intended to keep that promise because last season, Matthew’s first, he failed to score during all eight games, a fact that frustrated me to no end. During last year’s practices, despite my objections, we spent almost the entire time working on plays. The head coach more fixated on executing six different set plays than the paparazzi on the movements of Britney Spears, even though more than half our kids, including Matthew, couldn’t shoot a lay-up, pivot or rebound to save their young lives.

This season, the coaches agreed to focus on fundamentals, keep the players moving with skill-based drills and have fun scrimmaging. With the goal of taking more shots, the team pushed the ball up the court to shoot lay-ups, rather than setting up plays. As we told the players, check any basketball box score: the squad attempting more shots usually wins.

Running late, Matthew and I arrived at Saturday afternoon’s contest a couple minutes before introductions. Slapping each player five in the pre-game room, I saw the team’s “rules” written across the whiteboard

1) Have Fun
2) TA-TA-team (support and respect your teammates)
3) Fun Have (the Star Wars Yoda rule)

In addition to Matthew, Talyn, our tea drinking, skin-and-bones — he weighed about sixty-five pounds dripping wet - forward hadn’t scored a basket either. Huddling with the other coaches, we agreed today’s primary goal was somehow, someway getting them a bucket during the next thirty-six minutes.

From my perspective, if any kid didn’t score, the coaches failed to reach the program’s goal of “every child a winner.” As the head coach, their success became my responsibility. Moreover, if Matthew didn’t make a basket, that would mean he’d played two seasons without scoring. I’d promised him better than that.

Before the game, I asked the opposing coach who hadn’t scored on his squad; he pointed to Suns #32, a tall, slender kid playing the first period. Giving the other team the ball rather than staging a coin flip, I huddled our starting five, asking them avoid guarding #32 on the first possession. I figured the other team would throw him the ball under the hoop and he’d score easily. Our guys followed the plan; the other team didn’t and another kid shot instead of #32. We rebounded and the game rolled onward from that inauspicious start. I looked at the Suns coach and he shrugged a “what can I do?” response. A missed opportunity, but not the end of the world: plenty of time remained for all three guys to get a bucket.

Matthew and Talyn played the second and third periods. Our guys passed them the ball and they took multiple shots, but, alas, missed all of them. During half-time, I checked the league-mandated player rotation for the second half (a great rule requiring each kid to play a minimum of half of every game). Matthew only played one period: the 5th. That would be his last chance to make a basket; we needed to make it happen. Prior to its start, I pulled the team together, telling them to get Matthew the ball. They complied and he took four shots, missing every one.

Without timeouts, an Upward Bound Basketball coach cannot stop play to direct the team, even to help someone score. As the clock wound toward zero, a Suns player tossed up a long shot. It clanged off the backboard and the shrill buzzer ended Matthew’s Upward Bound career. He’d participated in sixteen basketball games without scoring one single basket. Matthew wouldn’t start the final period and the league’s player rotation rules prohibited substitutions, meaning — even though I wanted him on the court — he couldn’t return to the game. As a sixth grader, this was his last year playing; in other words, he would never score a basket in an Upward Bound game, ever.

Talyn, however, played during the final period. Before inbounding the ball, I emphasized how the team needed to get him a basket. The players nodded in agreement. Grabbing Talyn’s bony shoulders, I squatted to eye level, telling him that somehow, someway, he would score today. The players put their hands together and yelled “1-2-3 Talyn”! Out for the last period of his last game, my son sat quietly on the bench. I wrapped an arm around his shoulder, consoling him, rather than watching the game and yelling encouragement to our team. He seemed fine, but I knew the painful sadness of failure lurked behind his happy-go-lucky facade.

My throat went dry thinking how Matthew’s Monday night vision became Saturday-afternoon reality. I’d broken my promise to him, failed as his coach and, more importantly, failed as his father. Although mostly uninterested in sports, Matthew, at our insistence, had played three youth soccer seasons while in elementary school without scoring a goal. He “retired from soccer” — his description — at age nine. Now he’d participated in two seasons of Upward basketball without one hoop. Clenching fists, I grew angry with myself for not doing more to help him succeed. One dern basket to reward all the kid’s effort, was that too much to ask for?

On the court, Talyn caught a pass and shot the ball right into the basket. The team high-fived him as he raced down the court, beaming with happiness. At least Talyn scored, I thought, taking some solace in that victory before looking at my son sitting on the bench. Trying to get my head beyond my failure with Matthew and back into the game, I strode past Markus, another of our players; he reached out a hand to stop me.

“Coach,” Markus said. “Can’t Matthew go back in and score? This is his last game. We all get to play again next year. He ought to get a chance to score.”
“I wish I could put him in,” I replied. “But the rules don’t allow it.”

Play continued and our squad took a one point lead on Logan’s slashing drive with ninety seconds left. Running up and down the court, #32 from the Suns still hadn’t hit a bucket, despite several pointblank shots this period. In a minute and a half, the game would be over and neither #32 nor Matthew would have scored all season. That awful fact turned my stomach: didn’t it run completely counter to the philosophy of every child a winner? But the game’s substitution and player rotation rules existed for good reasons too. I’d learned to play sports by the rules untold years ago and needed to set a positive example for our players by following them now. Or did I?

Watching the ball bounce out of bounds, I realized adults needed to demonstrate to children how to exercise judgment following rules. Striding onto the court, I stopped play, motioning to the other coach and referees. If I had anything to say about it, #32 would score today. Pulling our guys together, I asked them to avoid guarding #32 and to even rebound for him if he missed. They agreed.

Then, listening to the wisdom of a child, I followed Markus’ suggestion and broke Upward’s substitution rules. Asking Thomas, who played a fantastic game (knocking the ball away from a player twice his height several times), to take a seat, I sent Matthew back onto the court. No one, the Suns coaches, Upward coordinators nor the referees said a word in opposition. We all silently agreed to break the rules in favor of a more important principle: every child a winner. After all, how could any kid have fun and feel like a winner if he failed to score for an entire season, let alone two?

Inbounding, the other team passed to #32, he caught the ball, squared up to the basket and tossed in a shot; the parents cheered. Ticking game clock closing Matthew’s narrow window of opportunity, the team passed him the ball at the top of the circle. He dribbled down the open lane toward the hoop. This it it, I thought, he will score. But, unfortunately, an aggressive Suns player left his man to block Matthew’s shot, knocking the ball out of bounds. The referees called it our ball out. Echoing me, the Suns coach motioned his guy to back off and guard his own man.

With forty seconds left, we inbounded to Matthew. The orange ball left his fingers, kissed the backboard and swished through the net. Never in my long basketball career had one basket been more important, never. Throwing arms over his head, Matthew floated on a wave of pure joy down the court. The rest of the team, including the players on the bench, cheered. The Bobcats stopped the Suns from scoring on their final possession, garnering a one-point second-half victory via Matthew’s first basket.

During the post-game stars presentation, the coaches awarded Talyn and Matthew gray stars for best offense. Sticking out smooth, eleven-year-old palms, they smiled proudly as players, coaches and parents clapped. On the drive home, I asked Matthew and Talyn what they enjoyed most about the season.

“When I scored the basket today,” Talyn said. “I felt sky high. I felt like I could do anything. That was the best moment of all.”

Matthew thought for a minute and commented in a soft voice, “Me too. After that last quarter I didn’t think I would ever score a basket, but I got in there and I did it.”

Saturday’s victory wasn’t about the scoreboard, it was about our players “doing it” by following the team’s rules: have fun, support and respect your teammates, and fun have. Our team’s unselfishness enabled both Talyn and Matthew to score and created the opportunity for Suns player #32 to get a bucket. The rules we’d opened the first practice with nine weeks ago taught our players about more than just basketball. And they’d been used by the team to teach me something important today. I had thought teaching the kids was my job, but, in reality, my real job was to learn from the wisdom of children.

New Article: How To Become A Better Leader

By Joe Haefner

Here is a new article from Don Kelbick that discusses what it takes to be a better leader.

http://www.breakthroughbasketball.com/coaching/4-Ways-Better-Leader.html

NEW Basketball Play: Illinois’s Box Z - Baseline Out of Bounds Play Against Zone

By Joe Haefner

Check out this new play we picked up from Bruce Weber of Illinois. It is a multi-option baseline out of bounds play against zone defenses.

Illinois’s Box Z