The more you coach the more you will realize that being a sound fundamental team is very important. Two things that come to mind that made me feel good as a coach was hearing other coaches say that my teams were fundamentally sound and that they came to play every night. There were no easy games against East - win or lose.

Your philosophy will change from time to time... you will see things you like that you would like to do and you will try to implement them. I wanted to be a 84 foot coach, press and attack but as the talent went south... I had to change to more of a tempo control guy.

I like what you did with the circle.... you found something that works for you.... keep up the good work. I only wish that I was that smart when I first started coaching at 21. As for the kids liking you and its importance....... IF that is the thing that motivates you, thats great.... I am that kind of guy too... some coaches could care less? Not many of the coaches that I knew though.... their players really liked them.... and I think it was because they showed the kids that they really cared about them. JMO

In our club we have a coach, former Bosnian player, is a coach who plays a lot of setplays. He used to be a very good player, played at a high level. He is a walking encyclopedia. He knows so much setplays. He taught me that if your team can't score, play a setplay that suits your team. I tried it for a few years. But my teams hasn't got that much better. Like Don said earlier, your plays are just as good as how good your players are. So I focused more on improving my players and it worked very good. What I'm trying to say with this example is what we talked about earlier. The philosophy will change all the time, coaches all tell you different things and setplays doesn't improve players. I think this example covers it all.

He is right about when your team can't score. The purpose of a set play is to get a particular player the ball in a particular spot where he can score, or to control a matchup so the offensive player can take advantage of a defensive weakness. Don't throw them out completely, but once you have a couple of players that can finish, use a couple to take advantage of their skills.

You don't need a lot of plays, just a couple where your guy can finish and some confidence. That will expand the value of your player's skills exponentially. Use them situationally.

What you are saying right now is different from earlier. In earlier post you said:
"Make better players, not better plays. No matter what plays you construct, they will only be as good as the players who run them. If you have good players and no plays, they will find a way - that is what makes them good. If you have good plays and no players, it won't matter."

Could you explain it?

It is not different.

Once you have players skilled enough, you can highlight their skill by placing them in position where they can most effectively use them in the given situation. If you need a basket and you have a skilled shooter, you can get him a shot he can make by running a play.

However, if you run the same play for someone who is not skilled enough to make the shot, it doesn't matter how good the play is.

Don is right on this Kris...

The player makes the play..... sometimes a great shooter makes an average play good..... meaning that maybe you don't execute just right but the great shooter makes the shot anyway.

I am not a proponent of just running plays... that Robot Basketball 101...... teach your kids how to play the game, set good screens, set up your man so you can utilize the screen and make the right move off of it. We ran some sets in practice and our second unit knew them as well as the first and they would be there before the offensive player.... so you need options to combat that - but if you are running continuity type offenses its tougher to scout and defend. You need a good combination of both.... we were able to go right into one of our motion offenses from any set we ran.

Don,

Seriously, did you ever get the chance to work with Shaq and his FT shooting? And what do you think is the biggest problem with some of the Pros and FT shooting?

No Ken, I have never worked with Shaq.

From what I have heard, and I have never been on the floor with him so I don't know if it is true, Shaq actually has a physical issue related to either a broken wrist or an elbow which prevents him from getting into the classic shooting position with his hand and elbow in alignment. From what I see, and I was in Orlando when he came into the league so I saw him a lot in the first few years, he constantly changes his shot and rhythm after misses. He also never gets the ball up in the air enough to get the ball to enter the rim from above. His ball always enters from the front, which makes the hole pretty small.

NBA players are the same as anyone else, they have the same insecurities and confidence problems as your kids. I think foul shooting has a lot to do with self image. I have found that very few players technical issues. With just a few exceptions, most of their shot have the same repeatable actions. I think that when NBA players don't shoot well, it is mostly a mental issue where they lose confidence in what they are doing and they then change. Once you start thinking about what you are doing, you are dead.

In my thinking, and it is not the be all or end all but it works for me, the things that are important are rhythm and arc. I very rarely screw around with technique. As long as the action is repeatable and is the same every time, I don't care what they do. The important thing i release point. Rhythm give you release point and a consistent release point will give you a consistent shot (true in jump shooting as well). Then, if you get the ball high enough to be able to get the ball to enter from the top so you get the use of the entire hole, making a shot becomes a pretty easy thing to do.

When you start to do things that disturb your rhythm, such as aiming, thinking about the shot, changing something in your technique or routine (the purpose for routine is to establish your rhythm) you are in trouble. The smallest, most imperceptible, most minute thing will disturb your rhythm. That is why I don't like it when players spend too much time on the line. I can see them going through their shooting check list in their minds and the result is a poor shot due to a minute change in rhythm. I think Dwight Howard is the best example of this. There are times when he steps to the line and can make a bunch in a row, but his overall percentage is just awful. When he gets a lot of shots in a game (especially early), he establishes a nice rhythm and makes a good percentage. He can't seem to do that when he has only a few foul shots.

Shaq and Howard are not good shooters, so they have issues with all their shots. The most puzzling player I have had is Bruce Bowen. He is a guy who is one of the smartest people I have ever met, so intellectually he gets it, but emotionally he had trouble. Bruce is one of the best long range shooters in the history of the NBA. He played for 12 years (I think) and made a living on scoring long range jump shots. His 3-point shooting is among the best in history. However, his career percentage from the foul line was in the low 50s. I asked him, "How can that be?" He told me that every time he steps to the line after a miss, he has a lot of shot thoughts go through his mind. We sat and talked about the fact that throughout his life, he has probably taken over 1,000,000 foul shots in his life. Why is it that when you miss, you think you have forgotten how to shoot? He just couldn't get over those thoughts.

That is a problem with a lot of players, at all levels. I try to get them to realize that just because you miss, it doesn't mean you forgot how to shoot. Only when it becomes an extended problem do you make adjustments, and then it is your rhythm that you try to adjust first, not technique. Too many players put more value on a miss than the 5 makes that came before it.

I give the book "Zen Golf" to all of my high level clients. It is less about golf, and more about a way of thinking. The most important thought is, if you go out an practice something, trust your practice when in competition. Just let it go and allow your body to take over. Take your brain out of it and let your body do the things you have trained it to do. Good book.

But in direct answer to your question about problems with NBA foul shooters, I think they are the same problems that you have with your kids.

Then it all goes back to muscle memory right Don? We had some kids come in every day during the summer and shoot 1,000 FTs a day, they were great shooters during the season. Some one asked me why I didn't have anyone in the lane...... told him that they were great shooters, 90% and they liked it when I left the lane open..... confidence..... they took one dribble and shot it.

I remember one summer camp, we had a ft shooting contest... this young kid going into 7th grade my 91 out of 100 - Colin had a great shot with great form..... and didn't spin it three times after bouncing 5 etc... one bounce and up. My Varsity kids were amazed ( as I was too )

One thing that worked for us was breathing.... take a deep breath and let it out slowly.... relaxes the muscles, then shoot. I think we could put the bad shooters right over the rim and they wouldn't make it.

I always wondered why Shaq was so bad....and others... now I have a better idea.

Oke that sound about right.

I agree with Don, if they have developed some kind of shooting style, scoring has everything to do with confidence, if you think you will miss, 9 times out of 10 you will miss, if you think you will hit 9 times out of 10 you will hit. Than we go back to the mental aspects of the game. Just like you said Coach Sar. Get them the shot their confident with and they will knock it down most of the time.