Thursday, May 4, 2017

Coach, What Do I Need To Do To Make The Varsity Basketball Team?

I get this question a lot in our program, and another question we get along these same lines is, 'what can I do to play more?'

This is a list of the basic skills that you must be able to do to be a varsity basketball player in our program.  

Ball-Handling
- You have to be able to handle the ball, against heavy pressure, with both hands without turning it over and keeping us in what we are trying to do as a team.

Passing
- You have to be able to make the right read and the right pass with both hands, against pressure, and while reading the defenses without turning the ball over and keeping us in the rhythm of wait we are trying to do on offense.

Shooting
- You have to know what a bad, good, and great shot is for yourself and the team, and you have to be able to take and make good shots that you have practiced and have confidence in.

One on One
- You have to be able to handle your man one on one and keep us in the offense.  When you have an advantage over the person guarding you, you have to be able to make a good play.

Team Offense
- You have to know what we are trying to do on offense at all times, and play unselfishly and aggressively in making the right play.

Rebounding
- You have to be able to beat your man trying to box you out and at least get deflections, and you have to be able to box your man out every possession then pursue and secure rebounds.

1 on 1 defense
- How well can you stop and pressure the ball, without fouling and without getting beat?

Team Defense
- We contest EVERY SHOT by sprinting back on defense, getting matched up, talking and helping each other, and being in the right spot in the right stance with the right focus EVERY POSSESSION.  Understand what we are trying to do defensively and do it with as much energy and aggressiveness as possible.

Transition Offense
- Get the ball to the right person and sprint the court, looking to beat the defense back, and if we can’t score before they get set, immediately flow into our offenses, putting a lot of pressure on the defense to make sure that they have 5 girls back and in position to guard us.  If one person is not back and ready on defense, we HAVE to take advantage of it.

Transition Defense
- As soon as we don’t have the ball, we have to sprint back and make sure that we have 5 girls always ready and in position to contest every shot without fouling.

Character
- Be an energy giver not taker.  Be a great teammate.  Be a leader on the court, in the locker room, in the classroom, and in the community.  Don’t speak negatively about your teammates, the team, or what we are trying to do.  Build people up with praise.  Work hard every day to get better for yourself and your teammates and do it with energy and enthusiasm.  Handle challenges and adversity in a positive way.  Be someone that, when you walk into the gym, people get excited to see you.  Be someone that when you talk, people listen.  Make the people around you better and help make their experience more enjoyable.


Your Role
Have at least one thing that you do that is ‘special’ and that you take pride in.  It could be scoring in post.  It could be the way to pass and read the defense.  It could be making shots, or playing great one on one defense, or rebounding.  We need to have at least two specialists in every asset mentioned above.  Which one is your strength and what will your role on the team be?

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