“Why” You Need To Change The Questions You Ask Your Players
“Why did you run that play?”
“Why didn’t you play that player more?”
“Why didn’t you get out of that defense sooner?”
Have you ever been asked questions like that? I know I have. Whether you have or not, think of the last time someone asked you a question that started that way - “Why did you.”
How do those types of questions make you feel? For pretty much everyone, they immediately put you on the defensive.
If you feel that way, why would you expect your players to be any different. . .
3 Reasons Questions Are A Powerful Coaching Tool
If you’re using questions in your coaching, that’s fantastic. Too many coaches simply tell players what to do.
There are times when you have to do that - in a game, perhaps. However, you don’t want to make it a habit. Here are three reasons why:
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Questions provide an opportunity for them to think and formulate their own answer.
We all want players who have ‘basketball IQ.’ Thinking about the game and sharing those thoughts is a way to develop players’ mental game.
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Questions tell you what players really know.
How many times have you told a player something only for them to shake their head and indicate understanding... and then go out and make the same mistake? The answers your players provide should guide your next coaching steps.
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Questioning allows YOU to learn something.
As coaches, we think we know best. Generally, that’s true. However, we aren’t on the floor. We only have our vantage point. There may have been information we weren’t aware of that influenced a player’s choice. By asking, we might learn something new as well!
1 Reason Many Coaches Don’t Ask Questions
The #1 reason coaches don’t use questioning is that it’s slower than simply telling. Good questioning involves wait time. It could lead to a longer dialogue with a player.
In some coaches' minds, those are negative things. They take away from time doing. However, to go back to an earlier point, if a player just nods at your instruction and then makes the same mistake (either through miscommunication or because they don’t understand the teaching point), how much more time will you have to spend going over it again at that point?
Thus, a little time investment in questioning now will save you a lot of time later.
The Issue With Questions That Put You On The Defensive
We’ve already established that ‘why’ questions put people on the defensive. When that happens, people are no longer thinking about alternatives to their choice or where they might have gone wrong.
Instead, they are thinking about defending the choice they made. We feel threatened. That’s no way to produce a positive answer to your legitimate question.
Change Your Question Stem To Bloom Better Answers
So, what should you do?
Try this - start your questions with ‘What’ and ‘How.’
Think about the difference between these two questions:
“Why didn’t you get out of that defense sooner?”
“How did you decide what defense to play tonight?”
Or:
“What other defenses might you have tried looking back?”
Of those three questions, the first one is likely to produce a defensive response. The latter two are more likely to produce a thoughtful one.
Making this switch allows you to question the same concepts, but in a productive and thought-provoking way.
Use Questions To Empower Your Players
The fact that you are using questions is excellent. It doesn’t matter what age you coach; questioning should be in your coaching toolbox.
Replacing ‘why’ questions with ‘what’ and ‘how’ questions will empower your players to answer from a non-threatening place.
They’ll be able to think more broadly about the concepts you’re discussing, leading to a deeper understanding of the game... and better play!
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