Coaching Basketball Effectively by Leading the “Right” Way

By Don Kelbick

Sports hold a unique place in the American culture. Few things have the same impact in so many areas of our lives. Good days and bad days are often defined by how our teams did. Not just for the players, but for the fans as well.

So few things can teach as much about life as sports can. Teamwork, handling success, dealing with disappointment, standing up to the pressure of constant scrutiny, punctuality, leadership, etc. are all aspects that are developed through playing organized sports. For that reason, few professions offer more diversity or uniqueness than coaching.

Coaches are more than people on the sideline calling plays for their teams. The  responsibilities and techniques of coaching basketball require the coach to be a motivator, teacher, substitute parent, confidant, tutor, policeman among other things.  But above all…. a coach is a leader!!

If You Lead, They Will Follow

In a culture as totally encompassing as sports, teams take on the personality and values of their coach. This is true for younger players all the way up through the professional ranks. Coaches make demands, set rules and make decisions based upon his own value system. To be a truly effective leader, the coach has to live those values. Players look up to and want to emulate their coach, especially with younger players. When you accept a coaching job, even at a youth level though to a lesser extent, you decide to accept a lifestyle. Regardless of what else you do, to your players, you will always be “Coach.” Whether you see your players in practice, at the supermarket or in a restaurant, you will be “Coach” first, whoever you really are second. Your actions must reflect that.

Your players will do what you do. Use questionable language in practice, so will they. If you dress inappropriately, so will they. Be late for appointments with them, so will they. Your players, especially at the younger levels, will emulate the way you carry yourself. For that reason, coaching has become a lifestyle.

Create a Persona You Can Live With

Being a leader of young lives is an awesome responsibility. You have a right to lead your life the way you want to but you have to understand the effect you have on others. You have to find a way in your personal life where you can enjoy and grow your life and yet be a person that players will want to look up to. You have to be a person parents will want to entrust their kids to. You have to make sacrifices.

I know great coaches, great teachers, great leaders who have lost their jobs because they were seen in a strip club. I know others who are out of coaching, not due to wins and losses, but due to DUIs. After all, would you entrust your child to someone who doesn’t exercise enough judgment not to drive when he has been drinking? Once you decide to coach, you affect not only your life but the lives of others as well. You must create a coaching persona that you would be comfortable living with but it also must be someone you would be comfortable having your child play for.

However, that coaching persona cannot be different than the person that you really are. Players can tell when you are faking, they can tell when you are not being genuine. In addition, if you are not real, you can’t keep it up all the time. Coaching adults is a little different; they can figure out that there is a coach in their coaching role and a coach in a personal role.

But, if you decide to coach younger players, high school, youth, etc., those kids have a more difficult time with that. You have to remember, at that level, you are always a role model. Standing in front of a player in the supermarket is the same as standing in front of a player in practice. Remember back to when you were in 5th, 6th, 7th grade. If you saw a teacher outside of school and that teacher acted differently than you expected, you looked at him differently when you went to school the next day. The same is true, even more so, as a coach.

I am not saying that you have to change who you are. Nor am I saying that you have to live your life according to your player’s expectations. I am saying that is part of your consideration when making your decision as to whether to become a coach or not, the role model factor has to figure in. If you wish to be a coach, you have to be willing to bear that responsibility.

Which Passing Statistic (Not An Assist) Leads To Teamwork & Unselfishness?

By Joe Haefner

We posted a really interesting new article about Gretzky’s.  This little known statistic can help you improve basketball teamwork and passing. 

To read more about this great pass statistic, you can visit this page: Gretzky’s

We learned about this interesting stat from Don Kelbick and Mike Neer.  It was Mike Neer that actually coined the term “Gretzky”. So we thought you might be interested in an email from Mike Neer that supplements the article above.   

Coach Neer coaches at Rochester University. Mike has won over 500 games and has led his team to 8 Sweet Sixteens on the way to 4 Final Fours and a National Championship at the Division 3 National Tournament.

Here’s Coach Mike Neer’s email response to us:

I came up with the Gretzky in the mid-80s during the Bird-Magic era of the NBA. They made passing cool, but many of our players were forcing passes in attempts to get the assist. For example, when a point guard was looking to feed the low post with the post-defender playing on the high side, attempts by the PG to curl the pass around the post-defender were either assists or turnovers. I wanted much more than a 1:1 assist-turnover ratio, so I encouraged the PG to fake a pass to the post (to draw the post-defender up the lane) before passing to the wing (opposite the post-defender) who would then feed the post on the baseline-side while the post pivoted to seal his defender from the pass. The two passes led to countless baskets with far fewer turnovers, but our PG sulked because he did not get an assist. Even though he set up the assist with a pass-fake and pass to the wing, he thought he didn’t get due credit: he became the straight-man who set-up the punch-line but who didn’t get the laugh. I felt we had to recognize and credit the PG for his set-up.

It was then that I said to our team that we need to learn something from ice hockey. The players were confused as they knew that I liked ice hockey as much as root canals. I informed them that ice hockey was way ahead of basketball in one statistic; ice hockey can award two assists to a goal. If ice hockey can recognize sharing the set-up of a goal, why couldn’t we? When Abdul-Jabbar outlets to Magic near half-court who immediately throws ahead to Worthy for a lay-up, why shouldn’t Jabbar get as equal credit as Magic for initiating a quick score? So we began to chart the hockey pass, so we could recognize those who initiated plays by pass-faking and swinging the ball to a teammate with a better passing angle. Within days the term hockey pass became the Gretzky, as it was the only hockey player’s name I knew. The players immediately caught on and began using Gretzky as a verb (“Gretzky to the wing!”) and a noun (“I’m open for the Gretzky from the top of the key on ball reversals.”)

The concept of passing away from the defense has been basic to effective team play for many sports for many years. We simply put a name on it. Thanks for asking.

Joe (Myself):

I’ve seen this scenario happen countless times with Kobe Bryant.  He drives the lane and draws 2 or 3 defenders.  He kicks the ball out to the corner. The defense rotates quick enough to prevent the player in the corner from shooting.  The player in the corner quickly recognizes this and passes it to another open player on the wing that nails the shot. I’m assuming you would count this as a “Gretzky” to Kobe?

Coach Mike Neer:

Regarding your Kobe scenario…while I would credit Kobe for breaking down the defense, I would not give him a Gretzky.

• When a player dribbles to the basket, there is some intent to shoot. It is that intent that draws the help-defense off his man which may set into place defensive reaction (possibly rotation) to another player with intent to shoot.
• There is no intent to shoot in a Gretzky. A Gretzky involves recognition that A>C>B is safer and more effective than A>B. There is a dribble Gretzky when a player fakes a pass to B and then dribbles (once or twice) to improve his passing angle to B. A dribble Gretzky can also result in an assist.
• Ultimately, it is a pass fake and pass to a 3rd player that makes a Gretzky. This is different than penetrate and pitch and any subsequent passes which involve a threat to shoot.

Thanks for your interest.
Mike

Thoughts on the John Calipari Roast…

By Don Kelbick

While my friend John Calipari is being roasted over the coals for not calling a time out at the end of regulation last night (maybe he should be fired) here are a few things to think about.

Last week, Bob McKillop of Davidson called a time out to set up his last second shot against Kansas. They got nothing. Last night, Bill Self also did not call a time out either(I don’t remember if he had any left. If not, also an error, maybe he should be fired. Anyway, whether he had one or not is irrelevant) and they got the shot that effectively won the game.

If Cal had called a TO would the kid have missed the shot? Don’t know. If  Kansas did not have a time out, did  Coach Cal not want to call one so Kansas could not set up a play? Don’t know. If Kansas did have a time out left, would Bill Self call it?  Couldn’t have gotten a better outcome. If they did have one left, why didn’t he call it. If McKillop did not call a time out, would they have gotten a better shot? The bottom line is, one kid hit the shot, the other didn’t.

Everyone gets to play the result (including the assistants) except the guys who made the decisions. Why can’t we just say “Great game and it is the players that decided it, not the coaches.” Which is what happened in both games. It is usually what happens in all games.