Another great weekend of games just finished up. My first impression is that all of the boys are going to have to get used to the extra playing time. 25 or 30 minutes doesn't seem like a lot, but when you are shuffling in and out of the game quickly there isn't a lot of rest. Throw in the fact that the motion offense requires you to be constantly moving and thinking and you can understand where the fatigue sets in.
The progress being made is really great. We're looking forward as coaches to one more week of practices and games before taking a break for the holidays. Here's my thoughts on each division.
YELLOW DIVISION
Other than the fact that I didn't do the best job of forming the teams this week, there were some nice games on Saturday morning. We'll have to move a couple of guys around to make up for my error to even things out a bit, but individually we're seeing guys start to recognize how to react to the defense and take advantage of opportunities. I think the guys are ready to start using more back door cuts against defense that overplaying the pass so we'll make that a focus this week in practice. There are a few guys who are still a little lost on the court in the motion so we'll need to make sure we get guys up to speed.
ORANGE DIVISION
We really saw guys hit the wall a the 15 minute mark of the second game on Saturday. It was a testament to how hard they are playing. The matchups are really competitive though and its great to see the guys working together. Spacing improved a lot this weekend and we saw a lot of guys taking advantage by making a curl cut to the hoop off the cross screen. As we work with the defense to take away those cuts, the screener will start to see some opportunities to score as well. This group is ready to start focusing a little more on individual skill development so we'll start to get into some smaller groups for fundamental training either this week or the first practice of the new year.
WHITE DIVISION
The boys played awesome tonight in my estimation. You can see a few guys starting to recognize scoring opportunities. There were a lot of great give and gos and drives to the basket off screens. As guys got tired, we had a handful of guys get away from the offense and tried to do things themselves. It's a testament to the defensive effort that individual drives to the basket (those that aren't coming off screens or cuts) are not that successful. There are also a couple of guys who aren't exactly sure where they are supposed to be all the time, so it's up to the coaches to do a better job this week making sure everyone is working together. We'll also spend a little time this week on getting back on defense to see if we can eliminate some of the breakaway layins.
Overall we've got a great group of guys to work with this winter, so we hope to go into the break with a lot of momentum. By the way, if you are looking to stay busy over the Holiday Break or want to have some great chances to improve shooting or ball handling skill check out www.homecourtnw.com/holidaybreak.html.
Get an inside look at what's happening on and off the court at Home Court as well drills and insights from our coaches.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Winter League - Jamboree Impressions
We had a great set of games over the weekend and I was really pleased with the early progress. Right now almost all of the kids are so focused on running motion that they aren't quite able to play at their full speed, but the commitment to the offense is very encouraging. In fact, the understanding of the offense is much higher this year than it has been in year's past at this time. In addition, the atmosphere in the gym was so positive. It really makes it a lot of fun when we have a great group of parents supporting the program. As coaches we certainly noticed a great vibe on both Saturday and Sunday.
We'll add another post on Friday with a link to a web page that will list the team assignments, schedules and standings throughout the program. I also know there was some confusion on what exactly some of the rules for each division and we'll clear those up later this week as well.
Below are some specific things we'll be focusing on in each division over the coming weeks. Let me know if you have any questions.
Coach Pat
YELLOW DIVISION - Saturdays, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
We were really excited at the way the boys were reversing the basketball from side to side when the defense was taking away drives to the basket. Beyond just continuing to become more comfortable with running motion, we'd like to see the boys do a better job of setting screens to get teammates open. If we can get the guys focusing on getting their body in front of the defensive player (instead of just running to a spot) more scoring opportunities will follow. Defensively we want to start to work on going under screens instead of chasing players to limit cutting and driving opportunities.
ORANGE DIVISION - Saturdays, 1:30 to 3 p.m.
The focus here will be more on the cutter than the screener. We want guys waiting for screens to be set and then cutting hard to the open spot. Right now we're getting a little impatient and leaving early which negates the effectiveness of the screens and hurts spacing. We also want to have the guys utilize back door cuts more to keep the defense honest. Speaking of defense, patience is the focus there as well. We're getting a little overextended by pressuring the ball too far away from the basket. We want to focus more on technique and personal accountability to keep from giving up easy baskets.
WHITE DIVISION - Sundays, 4 to 5:30 p.m.
You may feel like the kids are playing a little slower than usual (especially some of the more advanced kids in the program), but I think that's because we've thrown a lot at them mentally. A couple of guys only had one practice under their belt so the focus will be on getting everyone up to speed with moving without the ball. Another are of focus on offense will be trying to limit the unnecessary dribble. We're trying to break the habit of catching the ball on the perimeter and just dribbling in place or dribbling to another spot along the 3 point line. If guys are dribbling we want them going to the basket. Those stand still dribbles limit movement and can sometimes cause guys to miss passing opportunities which slows down the offense and lets the defense recover. Defensively, we'll focus on playing your man where he is, not where he's going. Sometimes guys get into the habit of moving before the offensive players because they know the motion offense. As guys get more comfortable in the offense, they'll be able to recognize how to beat those who cheat on defense, so we want to change those bad habits before they start to cost their teams.
We'll add another post on Friday with a link to a web page that will list the team assignments, schedules and standings throughout the program. I also know there was some confusion on what exactly some of the rules for each division and we'll clear those up later this week as well.
Below are some specific things we'll be focusing on in each division over the coming weeks. Let me know if you have any questions.
Coach Pat
YELLOW DIVISION - Saturdays, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
We were really excited at the way the boys were reversing the basketball from side to side when the defense was taking away drives to the basket. Beyond just continuing to become more comfortable with running motion, we'd like to see the boys do a better job of setting screens to get teammates open. If we can get the guys focusing on getting their body in front of the defensive player (instead of just running to a spot) more scoring opportunities will follow. Defensively we want to start to work on going under screens instead of chasing players to limit cutting and driving opportunities.
ORANGE DIVISION - Saturdays, 1:30 to 3 p.m.
The focus here will be more on the cutter than the screener. We want guys waiting for screens to be set and then cutting hard to the open spot. Right now we're getting a little impatient and leaving early which negates the effectiveness of the screens and hurts spacing. We also want to have the guys utilize back door cuts more to keep the defense honest. Speaking of defense, patience is the focus there as well. We're getting a little overextended by pressuring the ball too far away from the basket. We want to focus more on technique and personal accountability to keep from giving up easy baskets.
WHITE DIVISION - Sundays, 4 to 5:30 p.m.
You may feel like the kids are playing a little slower than usual (especially some of the more advanced kids in the program), but I think that's because we've thrown a lot at them mentally. A couple of guys only had one practice under their belt so the focus will be on getting everyone up to speed with moving without the ball. Another are of focus on offense will be trying to limit the unnecessary dribble. We're trying to break the habit of catching the ball on the perimeter and just dribbling in place or dribbling to another spot along the 3 point line. If guys are dribbling we want them going to the basket. Those stand still dribbles limit movement and can sometimes cause guys to miss passing opportunities which slows down the offense and lets the defense recover. Defensively, we'll focus on playing your man where he is, not where he's going. Sometimes guys get into the habit of moving before the offensive players because they know the motion offense. As guys get more comfortable in the offense, they'll be able to recognize how to beat those who cheat on defense, so we want to change those bad habits before they start to cost their teams.
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