Coach,

This past weekend we were playing a game and the we were on the short end of a very lopsided score, which is ok, since I know our team is inexperienced and still learning.  The problem is that our opponent didn't let up in pressing until the game was way out of hand.  I was so busy coaching my team and I didn't want to bother the other coach, but this could have been avoided I am sure. I coach a 6th grade team.  Any suggestions?

 Coach,

Most leagues now have a pressing rule based on points ahead.  I would think up until the 6th grade, that once a team is ahead by 15 points, they should be made to back up theire defense to inside the 3 point line atleast.  This would allow a team to get the ball across half court and get into an offense before feeling pressure.  Any league below 5th grade, might not want to allow pressing at all, since most players are still learning the game and its rules.  If your league does not have a rule, then you may want to speak to the other coach before the game, and ask their feelings on pressing and if your team is weak, then ask the coach to keep an eye on the score and the pressing so that it does not become a negative situation.  Some coaches might say this is the only time my 2nd team can practice pressing in a game situation, since at that level, practice time is limited.  If that is the case, then as long as you know in advance then that is ok as well.  One time, when we knew one team was that much better then the other, we didn't keep a running score on the scoreboard, and since noone knew what was the real score, the game was still productive for both teams since we knew the outcome was already a given.  Communication and common sense is the key!

Posted by Bill Sniffen at 03:56 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Coach,

A few games into the season, and already I can tell that our team is going to be on the "short" side for our league, and we are going to have trouble getting our share of the rebounds.  Any suggestions?

Having coach a high school team with no players over 6'1, we battled that for the entire season, but with some creativity, we worked around it.  First, in practice, we started to emphasize team rebounding, with everyone playing a role.  The person who is closest to the shooter is responsible for them and everyone else should then be inside the 3 second lane, with a body on someone on the other team, especially those near the basket.  We would then try to gain position between the basket and the opponent.  We would first practice this in the form of 1 on 1, then 2 one 2, 3 on 3, etc., drills in the form of mini games, with the defense getting one point for the rebound and successful outlet pass and the offense getting 2 points for scoring on the defense.  We would play these mini games to 7 and I found them to be very spirited.  Also, while working 5 on 5, we would stop the play and tell the players to freeze right after the rebound was recovered, so they could see themselves in or out of the position we wanted.  We would spend an entire practice on just rebounding emphasis and see how it applied to the rest of the week's games and practices and bring it back when needed.  I noticed it eventually caught on as a team goal and helped us a great deal to rebound as a team.  It came in helpful against a 7 ft player, Mark Blount.  Yes he dominated play at times, but we held our own when we rebounded against him as a team and he is now playing along side Shaquille O'Neill in the NBA!

Posted by Bill Sniffen at 08:34 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)