When you pass, move but don't follow your pass

Don't make two simultaneous cuts into the same area (spacing)

Call out the name of the player screening for (communication)

Catch and face, hold for a 2 count unless you have a good scoring opportunity right away

Don't pass too quickly

If a screener's back is to you, hold to see what develops

15-18 feet spacing on perimeter

Keep the ball off the baseline unless a scoring opportunity is available

If a single post has a scoring opportunity don't go there

Dribble only to advance the ball, improve a passing angle, go to the basket, balance the floor, or get out of trouble (no wasted dribbles)

This article was written by Steve Smiley when he was an assistant coach to Don Meyer at Northern State University. Steve is currently the head coach at Sheridan College.

1. Don’t play hard: You can have the most talented team in the world, you can have the most intelligent team in the world, but if your team doesn’t play hard, there is no chance that they will be successful over the course of time. You must, before all else, establish and demand that your players play hard. It must be your identity.

2. Don’t play smart: After establishing that your team plays hard, you must then teach your players how to play smart. They must have a high “basketball I.Q.” Your players must learn and buy into the system that you teach and they must learn technique. At Northern, we say, “You can have all the intensity of a mad dog in a meat house, but without technique, you’ll end up with a bullet between the eyes.” Your players must learn to be students of the game. We stress the importance of player notebooks and taking notes.

3. Don’t play together: Finally, after teaching your players to play hard and smart, your players must then learn how to play together. Your team will have a very difficult time if there isn’t unity among the troops.

Key Phrase = “Play Hard, Play Smart, Play Together.”

4. Don’t have a delay game: If your team is fortunate enough to get a lead late in the game, you must have some type of delay game. While that doesn’t mean that you become passive and are afraid to shoot, that does mean that you may have restrictions such as; the only shot is a wide- open lay-up, minimum number of passes before shooting is 5, etc. Teams that don’t have a delay game have the tendency to lose big games.

5. Have no delay game defense: There will be times when you are losing and the opponent is running a delay game to milk the clock. If and when that is the case, you must have a secondary defense that will force the offense to speed up and hopefully take bad shots, so your team can preserve the clock. That might mean you have a press defense, or a trapping zone defense, but whatever the case, you must find ways to speed up the game and give yourself more possessions and opportunities to score.

6. No comeback game: Your team won’t always have a ten-point lead late in the game. There will undoubtedly be times when your team is going to be losing and your players have to know how to speed up the game to get more possessions and thus, more opportunities to come back. First of all, do you have “quick-hitters” in place; set plays that will result in a good look at the basket in a minimal amount of time? Also, do you have substitution patterns in place to best maximize your talent when you are losing? For example, subbing in the appropriate players on a defensive possession that will give you the best chance to stop the other team, and during dead balls, subbing in shooters on offensive possessions if you need to get 3-pointers to get back in the game. In addition, when your team is shooting a free throw, do you have players ready to check in if the player makes the second free throw, which will stop the clock and set up your defense (a timeout without using a timeout)? Being prepared for situations where your team is losing late in the game and having a plan of action ready is vital to a successful program.

7. Don’t simplify the game: There is a lot of power and truth in the saying, “Simplicity is Complicated.” You must keep the game simple for your players. If they have to think too much, they won’t be able to react. A good quote is “the more they think, the slower their feet get.” A great coach teaches his or her players a few simple principles from which the program is known by, and then, that coach lets the players play the game.

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, 

When the road you're trudging seems all uphill, 

When the funds are low, and the debts are high, 

and you want to smile, but you have to sigh. 

When care is pressing you down a bit, 

Rest if you must, but don't you quit. 

Life is queer with its twist and turns 

As every one of us sometimes learns, 

And many a failure turns about, 

When he might have won had he stuck it out;

Don't give up though the pace seems slow, 

You may succeed with another blow. 

Success is failure turned inside out, 

the silver tint of the clouds of doubt, 

and you never can tell how close you are, 

It may be near when it seems so far; 

So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit, 

It's when things seem worst, 

that you must not quit.  

-unknown

John Calvin Maxwell is an American author, speaker, and pastor who has written many books, primarily focusing on leadership. One of the best books I've read is "Talent Is Never Enough," by John Maxwell.  Talent is everywhere but successful people make the most out their talent by combining it with a work ethic for maximum results.  Here is a great list I read from Lifehack.com written by DanCassidy.

 

Here are 10 things people possessing great talent always do:

 

1. They commit to their goals

When successful people set a goal, nothing gets in their way of achieving it. They commit 100 percent to the outcome, knowing that one difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that the successful ones commit to a goal and don’t stop until they achieve it.

 

2. And they persist until they achieve them

Obstacles to success are normal and should be expected. They can’t always be planned for. However, you can decide when you commit to success that you’re going to persist no matter what obstacles arise. Go around them, go over them, or push through them, but persist no matter what happens. That’s what successful people do, and so should you if you want to mimic their success.

 

3. They take responsibility

Successful people know that they are the masters of their own destiny. You don’t hear them complain about the things that stopped them from success. You won’t hear them make excuses. Instead, they push forward knowing that they are the only thing that will make or break their success.

 

4. They work hard

Have you ever met someone who is super-successful and lazy? Neither have I. The truth is that the road to success is paved with hard work. If you want to achieve great results, you’ll need to wake up early, stay up late and put in your time. Success doesn’t just come to those who want it. You’ve got to pay your dues.

 

5. Find people who are doing what they want and emulate them

A college professor once gave me some of the best advice I ever received. He said, “if you want to be wealthy, hang out with wealthy people. If you want to be funny, hang out with funny people. And if you want to be poor, hang out with poor people.”

 

The truth is that people naturally mimic the behaviors of those around them. Mindset is contagious. So if you want to be a big success in life, spend time with others who are already successful.

 

Don’t know anyone successful? That’s ok. You can read books written by them or about them. Listen to their radio interviews or watch them on TV. Attitude and success is contagious, so catch it by hanging around some of the greats.

 

6. They believe in themselves and their vision

The school of hard knocks ain’t easy, so if you want to achieve big results, you’ve got to believe in yourself. The world’s most successful people have unshakeable confidence in themselves and in their vision. Without it, they’d have to give up too easily after a few obstacles got in their way.

 

How’s your confidence? Do you believe you can achieve your dreams? I’ll tell you something in case nobody told you before: you can do whatever you want in life, you’ve just to first believe it, and then work like mad to get it.

 

7. They take care of themselves

When was the last time you saw a successful person who was obese or extremely overweight? Sure, these people exist, but they’re the exception to the rule. Most successful people know they need energy to get ahead, and the best way to have that is to eat right, exercise and get proper rest. Which brings us to our next point…

 

8. They rest and recharge

Hard work is a requirement for success, but you can only push yourself 24/7 for so long. Successful people work hard and then unplug so they can refresh their minds and bodies.

 

If you’ve been pushing it to the limit, think about unplugging for a long weekend or more. Once you get back to the grind, you’ll be more effective at getting the results you want.

 

9. They constantly learn

Successful people believe that learning never ends. This doesn’t mean they’re going to school to get new degrees, although they may. Even without formal education, they’re constantly reading and learning from others around them, perhaps from books, trade magazines or conferences, or from others who are ahead of where they want to be.

 

What have you learned recently that can get you closer to the success you want? If you haven’t picked up a book, trade magazine or listened to CDs or MP3s that can get you smarter in your field, it’s time to start.

 

10. They make mistakes and learn from them

Successful people aren’t afraid to take risks. Because of their unshakeable confidence, they treat any mistake as a learning opportunity.

 

Think about the last mistake you made. Didn’t make a sale? Reevaluate your sales call and make it better next time. Screwed up a presentation? Read a book on how to present successfully so you can crush your next one. Failed in your last relationship? Call your ex and ask what you can do better with your next partner. So go take some risks, don’t be afraid of making mistakes, and if you stumble, learn from it so you can be better next time.

 

These are 10 things successful people do. How many of them are you doing today? If not all, or most of them, it’s time to upgrade your behaviors so you can get the success you deserve.

 

Read the entire article here

I talked to a former teammate last night. The conversation consisted of leadership, and the mistakes that leaders often make. After our conversation I decided to make a list of  leadership mistakes in coaching. However, these mistakes are often made in every profession. Here are my top 6:

1. Making emotional decisions

• Responding to how you feel vs. what they need
  
• Bad shot, bad pass, bad defensive positioning: Keep negative reactions to a minimum because they are watching you 
  
• Reaction substitutions: it is okay to be mad at a player. Just don't make a emotional substitution that can cost you the game
  

2. Inconsistency

• Saying one thing then doing another, or saying different things can damage a program
  
• Develop a culture and standards, and live by them
  
• Live up to clearly defined standards or don't define them
  
• It's not bad to make mistakes just explain them
  

3. Lack of communication

• Uncomfortable conversations are better than none
  
• Let others know what you want
  
• It's okay not to not always have all the answers.  Don't be afraid to say "I don't know" while you figure them out.
  
• Must find a balance so everyone is on the page
  

4. Assuming  

• Don't assume your staff knows what you want or need
  
• Some things may be bit "elementary" and players should know certain things at a certain level. Don't assume your players know things you have not taught (think back to the bad coaches/managers you've had)
• Don't assume, perform
  

5. Overlooking the good

• More times than not the smart, tough and SIMPLE get overlooked.  When you expect you forget to appreciate.
  
• When things are going bad the focus is usually on the bad.  Take a second everyday and look at the positives in your life and program.

6. Excuses for talent

• If it's not okay for a manager it shouldn't be okay for the star
  
• Does your 'best player' get the same consequences as the last guy on the bench
  
• Talent shouldn't affect the the culture
  

"A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way." John Maxwell