I have a player who probably is the most fundamentally sound with good ball handling and shooting skills, however he is too conservative in games unselfish to a fault. How do I boost his confidence to not be afraid to take chances.

I met this family on a cruise, their son (12 years old) who was an excellent golfer... but was way to hard on himself. I just told him this...

Baseball players hit .275 - .300 and make millions doing that... and you know what that means? It means they are failing 70% or more all the time.

Relax, have some fun, go out and make things happen... and when your shot comes up - KNOCK IT DOWN!

How old is he? What level are you playing at? Put him in situations where he will succeed... and design a play for HIM to shoot the ball. Run it at the end of quarters so he HAS to shoot it.

You may have to adjust your coaching style to this player. Rather than getting on to him, may want to consider praising him when he does shoot the ball. Relay the message of his importance and value to the team and how he can be a game changer. Also get him to play games during the off season. Players must feel comfortable and must see success in order for them to build trust in their own abilities.

Michael Jordan also had a quote, that he missed over 2000 shots and 200 different times he missed the game winning shot but that is why he succeeds...I may be off on the number for the quote, but you get the point.

Here's that Michael Jordan quote. I actually have it posted on my cube wall at work and have also printed out and given copies to my players.

“I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. I’ve committed over 2,500 turnovers. I’ve missed 1,500 free throws.
Twenty six times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

Tell your player he needs to relax, play his game, take risks and have confidence in his shooting, passing, dribbling. Even the best college and pro teams turn the ball over 15 to 20 times a game.

Hey everyone,
Thank you for posting that quote.
I'm not a coach, just a parent of a kid who's been playing basketball for about 5 yrs now, 3 yrs house league and 2nd year competitive. First year jr high team comin' up.
Just an idea, if this kid is intraverted, coach as such. Lots of encouragement. Help to develop mental attitude, such as setting small achievable goals if possible on your team. EX: OK such and such, this is your goal for the next game, I'd like for you to attempt (whatever it is). My gut tells me you're ready for this because I've seen you do this, this and this. No pressure on controlling outcome. The idea is to develop the players by repetitive practice. Coaches have given you great feedback. Kid sounds lucky to have coach who cares. Good luck to you and your players.

Confidence comes from your work ethic. If this kid has dedicated himself to the game and if he continuously puts in the necessary time to be that good of a shooter, then he has earned the right to be a great shooter.

I would constantly remind him of this fact, daily reminders of how hard you work to be successful can improve confidence, this is why we work so hard to display it in a game, now's the fun part to celebrate your hard work.

Also, visioning activities before the game can provide an image in this kids head of him shooting and knocking down shots, as corny as it sounds, visioning activities work wonders to confidence.

Sorry for the delay on this post, new to the site!

Dan
www.innovativeathletes.com