EFFECTIVE USE OF TIMEOUTS

Great stuff from Steve Brennan on timeout execution:

You have 4 time-outs a game

Don’t waste your time-out by yelling. If you Call the time-out, the kids know something is wrong

Start each one with a positive statement. Research shows that the first think and the last thing that people say are the things that people remember most

Discuss no more than 3 items during any one time-out, and that may be too many. You must give the first 15 or 20 seconds to the kids anyway. Tell them this at the first of the year. They can get their water, towels, etc.

Develop a cue word to refocus attention. Mine was “Listen.” As soon as I said that the focus of the attention was on me.

Confer with assistant coaches before talking with the team. This is big with me because when I was an assistant coach, I was not part of time-outs. Even if you know exactly what you want to do, just from a psychological standpoint, you should do something with your assistant coaches. Give them some recognition. Utilize them.

Change defenses. Use a “Sequence-stay.”

Run a set play after a time-out. Get your best player into the flow. Set up a play.

Don’t use the entire time-out if you don’t need it.

If the opponent calls the time-out, wait until the referee gets you from the huddle.

Delegate an assistant coach to keep track of time-outs.

Carry strategy on 3x5 index cards. Put your out-of-bounds on cards.

OWNING THE TIMEOUT

When Coach Smith spoke, he expected your full attention. Anything less resulted in a reminder that not paying attention could affect the outcome of a game.

His behavior during time-outs in close games was a lifetime lesson.  Sure, he'd discuss the upcoming sequence of events and what would be required to make them successful, but he always started with a bigger picture. If we were down three points with a minute to play, he’d enter our huddle with a smile. “Isn’t this fun?”

Former UNC player Woody Coley from the book, "The Carolina Way"

BOB BOYD CLINIC NOTES (PART III)

Tough day a few days ago learning of the passing of Coach Bob Boyd who I had the privilege of working with for a year at LSU.  Years before, Coach Dale Brown sent me to the West Coast to spend a couple of days with Coach John Wooden and then on to Coach Boyd's house where we spent a day out by his pool with me peppering him with questions and soaking in his knowledge.  When I came back I told Coach Brown we had to get Coach Boyd to Baton Rouge for our fall Coaching Clinic which we did.  Over the next few days, I will share some of my notes from Coach Boyd that I got from both his home and our fall clinic:

Bringing the ball above the head is a common problem – not hard to guard.

Backline in 2-3 must understand where their overall territory is that they must cover.

On zone offense, a wing must know who’s defending him and take the ball away from where he came.

To cover the ball in the zone, backline must be active. If you play zone defense, break it down in drill form. Can work on both zone offense and zone defense in whole or part method at the same time. Zone defenders must constantly be aware of players in their area.

Time and score would dictate his pressing.

Doesn’t like gambling, all out denial unless behind late in the game (and must practice those type of situations in practice.)

:30 to play and behind by 3 or more we want to deny then foul – no more than 2 seconds be ran off.

On inbounds defense –

            - Scouting is important

            - Give an obvious show (be big, take room, bump em)

            - Team don’t practice enough and when they do, they don’t do with game       

               like intensity. (can’t run inbounds plays against Indiana)

Knight spent the entire fall (2-hour, 3 man) practice period teaching screening. No one in the nation screens better than Indiana yet Knight thinks they do it poorly. What should that tell the rest of us about our screening.

Without game-like intensity in practice you can’t be effective in a game. Game-like intensity comes from coaching leadership.

Good defensive players must be “suspicious” (constantly anticipating.) Mike Singletary of the Chicago Bears. Stance-ready-suspicious. Important on inbounds defense especially.

Kids know when their parents are serious or not, caring or not, prepared or not, so you know they can read coaches.

Your basketball facility (floor, offices, locker room, etc.) is your classroom. Do you have a “good learning environment.” Important to make kids “receptive” to learning.

Good teachers don’t try to trick their students.

Bounce pass (lead low) vs. retreating defender.

Talent sometimes resents loss of identity that sometimes comes with motion offense.

Performance must be a Projection of Practice.

The true test of a coach is to coach effectively through resistance.

Ran flex with Post Exchange (he called it “high-low passing game”.) Liked to split the low post in motion with a screen.

When running flex, used a variety of entries to disguise it.

Doesn’t want symmetrical look in PE (1-3-1).

If he came back to coach today he would

            - Make it simpler

            - Be emphatic about rebounding

 

Can’t change performance until you change attitude.

Before the 3-point arc, he wanted his team to shoot 55% from the floor. He wanted his identity to come from field goal shooting percentage.

If you run motion, you need to stay away from junior college players and have four year players in your program.

Important in zone offense to “stretch” the defense with spacing and backside players. He wanted to dunk against a zone. Bring the ball into the paint before an outside shot. Must breakdown zone offense (perimeter & post). Likes loop to elbow screen vs. zone defense. Rover against odd front zone. Must attack the backside of zone defense.

Does not think it is necessary to have more than one alignment of motion to be effective. Regular or High Low. Likes possibilities of triangle.

Against defense that switches, besides slipping, have your cutter make a tight curl (will open up a screener that widens out on the perimeter. Must find “daylight” before slip.

 

COACHES HALF-TIME ORGANIZATION

Do you have a system of organization for how you handle pre-game, halftime, and post game situations?  Here is a great list from Coach Mike Dunlap on how he handles halftime game analysis:

COACHES EVALUATION
We are looking at our pattern of play
1. Offense
    Positive: 3 things
    Negative: 3 things
2. Defense
    Positive: 3 things
    Negative: 3 things

EVALUATION OF HALFTIME STATS
1. Offensive Categories
     Shooting Percentage/Shot Chart
     Assist to Turnovers
     Rebounding
2. Defensive Categories
     Defensive Chart
     Rebounding

ADJUSTMENTS
It is important that adjustments are clear and concise so there isn't any confusion and they will be able to remember the adjustments
1. Offense: 3 things
2. Defense: 3 things

DO YOU HAVE A COMEBACK PLAN?

Some philosophical things to consider in the off-season is how you want your team to play in certain situations.  Here's a great list from Fran Fraschilla on how you play from a deficit.

 

Players need to know how to effectively comeback late in the game:
 

1) Stop clock as much as possible
 

2) Must offensive rebound - send 4 and sometimes 5 to the offensive glass because normally other team is not pushing hard when they are up late

 

3) Who do you foul and HOW do you foul?

 

4) What is your foul signal from the sideline?

 

5) What is your goal in fouling – steals, jumpballs, foul

 

6) Time Out organization (where to sit and make sure subs are sitting/standing next to who they might replace so they know what they are doing when someone fouls out

 

7) Do you have a comeback “platoon”

 

8) Do you have a hurry up offense or quick hitter set for threes/layups

 

9) Teach team how to do a “running timout” – For example when there is a dead ball foul have team sprint to coach for quick 15 second “timeout” on the floor

 

10) “We didn’t lose – we just ran out of time

 

Teach, demonstrate and tell your players that they have 1 dribble per second in late game scenarios. That way if there is 4 seconds on the clock a player doesn’t have to look up – they know they have time for 4 forward dribbles before the buzzer

  

END OF GAME CHECKLIST

Each day I get an email from Brian Williams and "The Coaching Toolbox" -- rarely do I not get something that helps me coach my team better.  If you aren't signed up, you are missing out.  Click here and place your email to get daily coaching nugget.  Brian's website is also one of the best resources out there for coaches.  Please go here and take some time to visit and learn.

Here is an example of what you can expect -- got this one today.  It is an "End of the Game Coaching Checklist" -- and it speaks to the organization of NBA coaches.  This list was assembled by former long-time NBA assistant coach Gordon Chieas.  I had the opportunity to listen to Coach Chieas speak this summer at Coaching U Live and he is a passionate teacher of the game. Here is his "End of Game Checklist" provided by Brian and The Coaching Toolbox:

OFFENSIVE QUESTIONS/CONCEPTS

◄Best offensive team when our team is losing.

◄Best foul shooting team when our team is winning.

◄Best ball handling team when protecting a lead.

◄Best three point shooting team when our team needs a “Three.”

◄Best individual match-up to score a basket/create a foul.

◄Which opposing player is in deep foul trouble, and our offense can go directly at him?

◄Who is our best inbound passer? Who is our 2nd best inbound passer?

◄What side of the floor, when inbounding from the sideline do we prefer?

◄Know/Understand with how much time left on the game clock, and the score is tied, when should the offensive player take the shot?

◄Know/Understand  that the defense is going to switch-out of any screening action regardless of size The sceener should look for a slip move as he starts setting the screen. The passer has to be ready to “Read and Pass.”

◄Know/Understand that when the opponent has a foul to give and our team has used our last time out, the Head Coach, during that time out, has to give our team two offensive plays to execute.

DEFENSIVE QUESTIONS/CONCEPTS

 

◄Best defensive team when our team needs one defensive stop (under 7 seconds on game clock)?

 

◄Best defensive team to contain dribble penetration

 

◄Best rebounding team when the opponent goes big?

 

◄Best “Comeback” Defensive Team by trapping/presses creating havoc defensively?

 

◄Best zone defensive team to take away the opposition set offensive plays?

 

◄Be ready to match-up small to defend the opponent’s 4 or 5 man who can make three point shots,

 

◄Know and understand the concept of staying home on 3-point shooters on dribble penetration.

 

◄Know and understand how to foul on the catch before the shooter goes into his shooting motion

 

◄Be ready to sub out a key offensive scoring player who has four fouls and ‘sub In” a “designated fouler.” Teach the designated fouler that he is making a positive contribution towards winning. We are not trying to embarrass him.

 

◄Know/Understand that when the score is even or our team Is up one or two, we will early double team or create a running trap situation against the “star perimeter player” in the scoring area. Philosophically we are not going to let the star perimeter player beat us with a basket or create a foul. We are going to make him pass the bail to a lesser offensive threat. Also,as an alternative, we could play a zone defense on the last possession against the star player.

 

END OF GAME CHECKLIST

 

◄Know the score of the game and the time left on the shot clock and game clock.

 

◄Know the timeout situation for both teams

 

◄The Head Coach will tell the players the team foul penalty situation from both an offensive and defensive standpoint. The players will always know if we have a foul to give.

 

◄Know/Understand when to call timeout by a Player who is not involved with the ball when his teammate is in a bad disadvantage.

 

◄Who are the worst foul shooters in the game?

 

◄Who are the worst foul shooters not in the game in case of an injury situation. and the opposing team can choose the new shooter?

 

COACH MEYER DICTAPHONE NOTES: SEGMENT #7

BOB McKILLOP: INBOUNDS OFFENSIVE GUIDELINESS

A. Get to your spots quickly before the person taking the ball OOB gets to the ball

          1. Lets the coach see if it is zone or man.

B. The person taking the ball OOB needs to take their time getting to the ball.

C. Signals – Head, Hips, Knee, Shoulders

D. Use signals and words to distract the other team.

E. The play will begin when the ball is handed to the person taking it OOB. Not on the slap

F. Everyone set up with your hands on your knees

          1. Does not allow the defense to get into you.

          2. Gives appearance of being tired ( Actor)

          3. Gets you low to begin the play

          4. Eye contact is better then any play (See)   G. Attack the Attacker. Do not let the defense rest.

          1. No set up

          2. No numbers called for plays

          3. Keep the defense moving. Do not let them entrench themselves.

H. If you see that the person you want to pass it to is denied, dribble at them and they should back cut.

I. A hard cut is equal to a good screen

J. Rules for offense

          1. Catch and see

          2. Finish your cut

          3. Help someone out

WHAT IS YOUR "END OF GAME" PLAN?

I have been re-reading some stuff given to me some time ago from Mike Neighbors, now an assistant at the University of Washington for Kevin McGuff.  I came across a great passout from Mike and Kevin on End of Game Situations and thought I'd pass it on.  Do you have a strategy for End of Game Situations?  How much thought have you gave it?  The thing I respect about Mike and Kevin is that they are detailed in their approach to all phases of the game -- which lead to great success at Xavier and now as they rebuild the program at the University of Washington.  Here are their thoughts on EOGs:

Why is END OF GAME SITUATIONS even a topic for a clinic when we all as coaches know that the first possession after tip-off, or the third possession after the 8:00 media, or the 43rd possession of the game all have the same point value potential?

It’s because everything gets magnified at the END OF THE GAME. Pressure seems greater. Emotions run higher. Coaches have to talk louder in timeouts because everyone in the crowd has stopped text messaging and is now laser locked onto the action. Referee’s huddle and make sure they are all on the same page. The number of in game distractions increase.

It as become evident to me that the teams who are BEST at EOG’s are teams that throughout the course of the game have treated every single possession with the same respect as the very last ones. These teams appear to be oblivious to any of the mentioned distraction and repeatedly execute game winning situations when the pressure is the greatest. They display a composure that others don’t. Their coach has a control that others don’t. Their players demeanor is consistent. They are in character. As a result THEY WIN more than they LOSE!!

Once you establish that approach it is still imperative that you have a plan for implementing and executing. That is where we come up with the D.I.E.

        D- Develop your philosophy
        I- Implement you strategy
        E- Execute your tactics

DEVELOP YOUR PHILOSOPHY:

You can attend clinics, buy books, look on-line, or steal from others but to be successful your EOG Philosophy has to be YOURS!!! My grandpa always said “You can’t sell what’s not yours” and he was right. If you don’t believe in it, your players won’t and you’ll LOSE more than you’ll WIN. So utilize all the resources you can to think through as many situations as possible then MAKE THEM YOURS!!!

SOME PHILOSOPHY THINGS TO CONSIDER:

Are you going to foul on the floor ahead by three points? Does it depend on the time left? Is that time 8 seconds? Is that time 5 seconds?

Are you going to get the ball in your best players hands or use that player as a decoy for option #2? Do you work in practice as if your first option has fouled out already?

Are you going to take a quick two point shot then foul if down three with a certain amount of time?

Are you going to miss a FT on purpose with a lead to force opponent who is out of time outs to rebound and hit a last second shot?

Are you going to run plays that your players already know or draw something up? Are you going to run a “dork” play?

Are you a go with the stats coach? Are you a go with your gut coach? Are you depends-on-the-situation coach?

Are you going to switch all screens? Stay on and play 1-on-1 defense? Trap a ball screen? Change defenses out of the time-out? Show a defense play another defense?

Are you going to put a big player on the inbounds passer or play centerfield?

And the countless other situations that we encounter at the end of game.

IMPLEMENT YOUR STRATEGY

Now that you have your philosophy, you must implement the strategy with your players and your team. This is where you determine which players on your rosters can perform certain skills… who can throw it the length of the floor, who can catch that pass, who can dribble from end-line to endline in five seconds, who can create their own shot, who can throw a lob pass at the rim, who can simply inbound the ball safely.

This is how you are going to teach the skills necessary to be successful when pressure and distractions are at their highest level… will you devote time in practice to these situations, will you turn on the PA system to simulate crowd noise, will you stop practice in the most stressful moment and work on an EOG.

This is the plays the you are going to call or the defenses you are going to play to win games in the last few minutes… beg, borrow, steal from the best, find ones that have worked

Some great EOG things I’ve stolen from various coaches:

Throwing tryouts… A coach stood at one end of the court and let players try to throw balls to hit them. Whoever could, was their long throw-in girl.

Set the shot clock to various times and see who can go score 1-0, 1-1, 2-0, 3-0 etc.

Team worked on saving the ball to their own basket and keeping the ball in play as the clock ran down

Keep away in working on not allowing a team to foul ball handler

Dribbling the ball to various spots on the court to call timeouts

Loose ball scramble to work on creating held ball situations and NOT creating held ball situations

EXECTUE YOUR TACTICS

Now that you have a philosophy and a strategy, it is time to EXECUTE your tactics to win the game.

Your very first thought should be that HOW you say what you are going to say is just as (if not more so) important as WHAT you say!!! Your demeanor and your tone will be directly reflective of how your team will perform.

Are you talking to them in the same manner?

Are you on the same spot on the floor as you normally are for timeouts?

Are you using a wipe board or not?

Are your assistants scrambling and frantic in your ear?

Are the subs in their ’normal’ huddle mode? (if it’s not how you successfully practiced it, then don’t expect them to perform in the game)

Do you have a method for knowing the number of fouls on each team, who has the possession arrow, have you pointed out in the various arena’s where the game/shot clocks are located?

Do YOU know the situation?

INBOUNDS OFFENSE POINTERS

From the guys at Hoop Tactics come some great thoughts on inbounds offense:

Offensive Situations: Automatic Reads Are The First Option On All Out of Bound Plays

Some coaches just like to get ball inbounds and then set up a play, while other coaches find it a great opportunity to attack; and, since most teams are poorly prepared to defend out of bounds situations, they deploy several inbounds plays during a game. However, no matter what philosophy is utilized, automatic reads are the first option on any out of bound play.

1. Players should cut to basket for lay-up any time their defender plays with their back towards them watching the basketball.

2. When the inbounder is left unguarded, they should execute a quick "give & go" with the inbounder making a quick inbounds pass and cutting to the basket for a return pass.

3. If a defender faces up and plays with their back to the inbounds passer, players should have the "Green" light to execute a lob pass over the defender for shot.

4. If the inbounds passer's defender plays with their back to the ball, the inbound passer can simply pass the ball off the defender's back, step in bounds, pick it up and score.

Note: On automatics, players should communicate using eye contact and body language.

15 NIGHTMARES TO AVOID

Here is an outstanding list from Ernie Woods and Bob Kloppenburg at http://hooptactics.net/news/

Not protecting a hard earned lead

When ahead late in the game the game clock becomes your ally. However, you must use it wisely. Keep it running and do not stop it (unless in very serious trouble). Coaches may elect to spread the court on offense to take time off the clock and cut down on the number of opponent's offensive possessions.

However, in doing so, be sure to continue to make basket cuts and attack the basket. Holding the ball for the sake of trying to run time off the clock will allow the defense to get more aggressive and disruptive. You must attack the basket. If the opponent tries to trap or double team, assume a 2-1-2 alignment and move the ball.

Watching the ball and not boxing out on a last shot
On last shot situations, more games are won on putbacks than on made shots. Therefore, on last shot situations, it is imperative that all defenders aggressively box out and prevent any offensive rebound instead of watching the flight of the ball to see if it is going to be made or not.

Giving up an offensive rebound on a missed free throw
Defensively, teams should work hard to never give up an offensive rebound off a missed free throw situation during a game. Many of championships are lost because of a failure to box out on free throws. Players should be well drilled in boxing out on all free throw situations. Players must also communicate to make sure that the shooter is boxed out. Pinch or double team against a really good offensive rebounder. Be determined to rebound the ball.

Allowing precious time to run off the clock before fouling
Hopefully, you are well prepared and in control of the game so that you will not need to resort to clock management. However, if you ever fall behind late in the game don't give up! By using time outs and fouls, the last few minutes of a game can be an eternity. At this point in the game, the clock is your worst enemy, not the opponents, so every second counts. Therefore, do not let precious time run off the clock before fouling. If you need to foul, foul right away.

Not substituting for key players in must foul situations
When fouling to the stop the clock at the end of the game, during a timeout or free throw or defensive out of bounds situation, substitute players into the game that can afford to foul instead of losing their best players because of disqualification. Also, key players in foul trouble are reluctant to foul, allowing precious time to run off the game clock.  Once a foul has been committed, stopping the clock, players in foul trouble can be reinserted back into the game.

Not teaching and practicing how to foul
Most coaches assume players know how to foul. However, in reality, when a coach tell the players to foul, they will simply go out and just push or grab an opponent resulting in an intentional foul. Since the opponent gets to shoot free throws and retains ball possession, this is disastrous.

CAUTION: There is no room in the game of basketball for hard fouls (even in the NBA) especially on lay ups when shooters are most vulnerable to injury. Play hard but play fair. Basketball carries more than enough injury risk without a player intentionally or unintentionally injuring another player when fouling.

Fouling a shooter
Eliminate the three point play. Giving up a three point play by fouling a player in the act of shooting is a RBP (Really Big Play). Instead of fouling a shooter and giving up a three point play, it is better to just concede the shot and let them score. All you have to do is to score on the next possession to "erase" or cancel it. However, if you foul the shooter and give up a three point play, you will then have to not only score on your next possession, but also come up with a defensive stop and score a second time to erase or cancel it.

Not saving timeouts
Save your timeouts. You will need at least two at the end of a closely fought game. Force the opponent to use their time outs especially early in the game. Early in the game, use substitutes to make changes and adjustments rather than taking a valuable time out. Play through adversity. Do not ever call a timeout in reaction or frustration to bad call or play. It will only waste one of your valuable time outs! Having time outs at the end of the game will definitely increase your chances of winning.

Not knowing the time out situation
Coming out of time outs, make sure every player must knows the number of time outs remaining along with the team foul situation. This is extremely important at the end of a close game. Games and national titles have been lost by players taking a timeout after a team has used their last timeout.

Not knowing and taking advantage of the team foul situation
All too often games are lost on last second shots because a players are unaware that they had a foul(s) to give. After timeouts all players should be aware of the team foul situation and if they have any fouls to give. Keeping an opponent out of the bonus free throw situation is a real advantage.

Not avoiding the opponent's intentional foul
Do not allow the opponent to foul in order to stop the clock. Move the ball and run as much precious time off the clock as possible  before the opponent can foul. Also, be sure to have your best free throw shooters in the game.

Not prepared for intentionally missing a free throw
Chances are good that an end of game situation will be encountered that requires intentionally missing of a free throw. Therefore, teams must be prepared for it. Intentionally missing a free throw must be taught and practiced. Players must recognize and know what their assignments are on an "intentionally" missed free throw situation. Shooters must not only practice the intentional miss, they also need to be aware of the rule that the ball must hit the rim on the attempt.

Not prepared for last shot situations
End of game situations really become paramount when a single shot can make the difference of winning and losing along with determining a team's playoff hopes and fate. Therefore, to be successful, teams must be prepare for last shot situations. A last shot situation is not just a simple matter of drawing up a play. There are numerous last shot situations to address dependent on court location and time on the clock. Be sure to get the ball into the hands of your best player, and let them hit the open shot or pass to an open teammate. Keep the play simple and execute. The more complex the action, the greater chance that a breakdown will occur.

CAUTION: Don't ever expect players to execute anything they have not practiced. The chances of drawing up a last shot play during a timeout and having it be successful is very minimal.

Taking the last shot too soon
Taking the last shot too soon, even if it is made, provides the opponent with an opportunity to tie or win the game. When holding for the last shot in a game, players should be in position with 10 seconds and initate the play with 8 seconds remaining. This will allow enough time to take the shot and go to the offensive boards for a second effort. If the opponent should rebound, they will not have enough time to advanced the ball down the court for a shot.

Failure to inbound the ball
Many championships have been lost because teams were not able to inbound ball at end of game. It is not easy to inbound the ball under pressure. In making an inbounds pass, the passer is facing a five against four defensive advantage and only has five (5) seconds in which to locate a receiver and make a successful inbounds pass. In addition, to this numerical disadvantage, by rule the inbounder cannot move, except after a made shot. This provides the defense with the opportunity to jam or smother the passer very effectively with an active defender on ball. Also, on baseline out of bound situations, the backboard comes into play and becomes a real obstacle which the inbounds passer has to contend. Good inbounds passers are vital, and a team will not win a championship without one.