Finishing and getting fouled like Monta Ellis

So you do want me to get to the freethrow line.

Just like Monta Ellis:)

Hmmm - smart guy eh! J/K

Of course you should get to the free throw line...

BUT... more like BEN :-) Be yourself... next thing you know, you will "want to be like Mike"

Did I give you some good answers to ponder?

"The key to the game is to use your strengths and hide your
weaknesses." (Paul Westphal)

Ken

Yes you did give me some good answers.

Yes I will try to be myself

Thanks

Thats great.... you can strive to be like those players IF you want and thats great... as long as you remenber who you are.... what you can and cannot do. (right now - that will change as you get older)

I know that you work hard at your game.. keep up the good work. ( I hope you don't think that I am putting you down or discouraging you from trying different things because that is not my intention.)

Improvements come in small steps and those small ones become big ones before you know it.

Ken

What did Coach Springer mean about Monta Ellis putting his body between the defender and the ball?

and how do you do that?

Ok Coach Springer... step up on this one :-)

Ben, think about dribbling... where you keep your body - forearm out a little bit to create space.... I take it that as you go in for the lay up you keep the ball to the outside away from the defender.. shoot the lay with the proper hand.. left or right handed.

This way the defender can't get to the block unless he fouls. You are a lot like the freshman kid I saw play the other day... he took it into the defenders body to try and draw the foul... he was knocked down a few times and he scored a few also.

So there are two trains of thought here. Right now I would suggest to do what works the best for you. Let me know how you are practicing this... work at this move against your friends to get better at them.

Ken

Well When me and my friend play... we do a drill/game where there is an attacker/offenssive player and there is the help d on the opposite block.

The attacker drives to the basket and then the defence steps up to challenge.

Its hard to draw the foul because we usually practtice on an outdoor court.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIVthrL0pJU

This is a video of my shot from the side view.

I understand - you sure don't want to hit the ground on an outside court.....but, could you try to draw the foul without the defender getting to aggressive? Remember to work on both hands.

I watched your shot and it looks like you have pretty good form... off hand is still and not effecting the shot... good follow thru and holding it. I cant see the arc on the shot so you will have to tell me
if it is high enough. Were / are you making a good percentage of your shots now? Because IF you are, I wouldn't mess with your shot... just keep working on it so your shooting % goes up. I like what I see Ben, thanks for putting it on U Tube... its easier to comment on things when you can see it first hand. (and now I can put a face to the person I've been talking to for all this time)

Ken

Maybe you could post a video of you shooting off the dribble? Moving to one side and then the other? Do you know the flip drill?

What I was trying to say about the arc on your shot is... IF it is working for you, then its good. OK?

"The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be
continually fearing you will make one." --( Elbert Hubbard)

Well on the video I made 2 out of 3 from 15-17 ft. I missed the 1st one it was halfway in, the 2nd one was a make and the last one was a swish.

Well the arc was a little low., I think I could have a little higher arc. The one thing I noticed was that my follow thru was low.

And I will post a video of me off the dribble.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVRr9ogNWZg
This video is me off the dribble innout, crossover and through the legs.
6 for 6.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtOZYVl_sdc

This is me with the flip drill.
3 for 4.

Dang, Ben. Nice shooting!

Remember, to keep pushing yourself out of your comfort zone to shoot shots at game speed and to keep that elbow above your eyes on the follow through.

Another coaching friend and I say the same thing about your shot Ben...

GREAT SHOOTING!! GREAT FORM

The first video is good... good footwork and good form... and great shooting. IF you keep this up you are going to be a great shooter.

The FLIP drill looks like you are taking an extra step... travelling. (catching the ball taking one step and then 1-2 steps and a shot)...

Why don't you try the flip drill this way... think of it as being on the free throw lane line ... going from left to right.. flipping the ball, going to the ball, planting your inside foot (left foot), squaring up and go right into your shot. Then flipping the ball going the other way... going to the ball, planting the inside foot (right foot) , squaring up and going into your shot.

I want you to take a close look at the video of your flip drill and see what you think... then try it the way I just descrbed and send me a video of that if you don't mind. See if you can see and feel the difference.

Joe, take another look at that and see if I am right....

Ken

I just don't want you to pick up any bad habits Ben... so IF I am right.. you can correct it now....

Yes, Ken. I would say that you are correct. That is a difficult shot for players.

Something I learned from Don Kelbick is that young players can do a lot of the same things that older players can, just not as well (Correct me if I'm misinterpreting anything, Don). With repetition, Ben will eventually get the footwork mastered. Instead of doing it correctly right away, the progression might go from:
- traveling every time to
- traveling a little bit less
- traveling half of the time to
- barely ever traveling.

What you recommended is great as well.

Remember, Ben. Practice outside of your comfort zone! If you're making mistakes, you're probably getting better. That is one of the biggest mistakes I made. I never wanted to make mistakes and rarely practiced out of my comfort zone.

Joe,

I like the things you said here....


The reason I brought it up was that I don't want to see Ben create some bad habits.. and I agree that this is a learning process for him... but if he were to catch it now he can correct it now before it gets too ingrained in his game. Good footwork is a huge part of being a great shooter... so thats why I brought up now.

I think that he has great form and is a good shooter right now.... from our conversations I believe that he is a hard worker and is not worried about making mistakes. He is willing to try anything that will make his game better.

Keep up the good work Ben.

Yeah. I agree with you, Ken. Great idea to point it out now, so Ben doesn't form bad habits.

My statement was just to provide some food for thought and words of encouragement, so Ben doesn't get frustrated if he doesn't figure it out right away.

I agree Joe, I always try to encourage him while I point things out.. I want you (BEN) to think of it as helpful criticism.... not being negative. I only wish that I could have shot like you at your age.

I think he is going to be a good / maybe great shooter as he gets older.... IF he keeps working this hard he will do just fine. Just wait until he gets more hands on coaching, think about how much better he can be... instead of us "net" guys. :-)

I do think that if he tries the flip drill the way I described it his footwork will become automatic - catch - square - shoot - all in one motion. We got that drill from George Lehman.