Time to Mix it Up
Guest Blog Post from the Director of 5&2 himself, Steve Cloran. Enjoy!
Coaches, think about it...
Is your team winning more than losing? Try these things to challenge your players and team:
- Have your "center" play "point guard"
- Have your "point guard" play in the low or high post
- Change up your starting 5 and your finishing 5
- Try teaching and/or playing a man-to-man defense if you're playing all zone and vice-versa
Is your team losing more than winning? I've coached teams that no matter what I tried or what I did, losing was inevitable. Try these things to take everyone's mind off of your record or "competitive challenges"
- Be sure practices have a component of fun where the result is always smiles or laughter
- Set realistic and fun goals for games around things other than winning or losing like: passing, dribbling with the opposite hand, rebounding, turnovers, high fives ... this will take some thinking and some creativity (trust me, I've been there!)
- Cancel practice for a movie night or play wiffle ball or kick ball at practice (I've done this with a few of my Varsity teams at O'Hara - once we went bowling and once we played wiffle ball - two of the more memorable (in a positive way) non-basketball practices ever!
I am coaching two teams this season - a 9th grade team and a 7th & 8th grade CYO team. I think the most important lessons I've shared with both teams are as follows:
- Don't let anyone or anything steal you're love of and for the game of basketball (maybe it's an overbearing parent, a tough coach, a bad referee, a not-so-good teammate, an obnoxious fan, an unsportsmanlike opponent, or maybe it you being too hard on you)
- Play Present (don't let a positive play or negative play distract you from the next play; enjoy the good play you made for a quick second, same with a negative play and PLAY PRESENT!)
- Find joy in other parts of the game of basketball besides playing time and scoring points because both are not guaranteed! (Enjoy being a great teammate, enjoy practices, be the best cheerleader on the bench when you are not playing, learn something from game- days either from the other team or maybe the referee or maybe the fans cheering at the game)
At the coaches meeting Kath and I held before the season (where we handed out shirts and went through some logistics via a powerpoint), I mentioned DESIRED OUTCOMES at the end of my talking time. Don't forget what I shared! Wait, you forgot! Unbelievable! Just kidding! If you forgot or if you weren't there, I asked all the coaches to think about the concept of DESIRED OUTCOMES. Hopefully, one of your desired outcomes is about learning, having fun and loving the team sport and experience of basketball. Are you heading to a destination where your desired outcomes will be met? If so, atta boy / atta girl! If not, there's still time!!! Your desired outcomes for your players or for your child(ren) must be more than just about wins and losses. Thanks for all you do for the kids and for Mission 5&2!
