BUZZ WILLIAMS 4 CORE VALUES FOR THE MARQUETTE PROGRAM

Everything Coach Williams does involving his program is done in fours.

1. Get back in transition—no easy baskets

2. Keep the ball out of the paint—no layups

3. Defend without fouling—great ball pressure

4. Paint touches—Great shots—Throw aheads
 

BILL WALSH ON OVERCOMING ADVERSITY

To deal with and overcome adversity, several personal attributes are required. By degree, you must possess all of the following elements:


• An inner confidence that has been tested.

• Sound fundamentals and skills that have been firmly entrenched by weeks, months and years of training, practice, rehearsal and direct competition.

• A functional intellect for the activity.

• A belief—a conviction—that is able to effectively control your urge to “quit and run.”

• A willingness to sacrifice for others.

• A refined sense of communication that enable you to have a realistic sense of what your teammates are thinking and how they will react and respond to a given situation.

• Trust in yourself and in your teammates. This trust must have been nurtured through months and years of practicing, playing and sacrificing for a common goal.

• A philosophy, a scheme, and a system that has evolved, matured and become established.

• Flexibility and adaptability that enable you to effectively deal with change. You must be able to recognize and adapt to markedly different styles, strategies and tactics.

• A qualified support staff and system. Both your staff and your system must reflect a high level of intensity and a comparable level of willingness to make critical sacrifices

• Both elements must be well-organized and well-led.

• Leadership.

• A plan, a goal and a dominating thought process that motivates and inspires.

• A knowledge and understanding of your opponent—his strategies, tactics, system, personnel, attitudes and goals.

• A system of replacing and acquiring new players and staff members.

From "Finding The Winning Edge" by Bill Walsh

OFFENSIVE REBOUNDING AND TRANSITION DEFENSE

Was sharing some thoughts via email with Josh Keys, the assistant coach at the College of Charleston this morning on transition defense.  He wanted to know our philosophy and this is what we shared with him.

the first thing we talk to our team about in terms of transition defense is out offensive responsibilities. Each player on the court has a specific role that she must fill in order for our team to be successful. This is true when we shoot the ball. Once the ball is shot you have one of two responsibilities: crash the offensive boards or sprint back on defense. The worst thing you can do is stand and watch. Here are the guidelines for our team regarding offensive rebounding.


1. IF YOU ARE A 4 OR 5 PLAYER, YOU AUTOMATICALLY GO TO THE OFFENSIVE GLASS
One of the basic advantages of motion offense is that it makes our offensive players “hard to guard.” It should also be noted that because of the movement of the ball and our movement within the offense, we should be equally “hard to blockout.”

2. IF YOU ARE THE POINT GUARD, YOU ARE SPRINTING BACK
It does not matter where you are on the offensive end of the floor — when the ball is shot you are sprinting to half-court and then turning to find the basketball.

3. A PERIMETER PLAYER BELOW THE MOTION LINE IS TO ALWAYS GO TO THE OFFENSIVE GLASS
Any time a perimeter player finds herself below the motion line when the ball is shot, we want her to aggressively attack the glass.

4. A PERIMETER PLAYER ABOVE THE MOTION LINE IS TO SPRINT BACK ON DEFENSE
Any time a perimeter player finds herself above the motion line when the ball is shot, we want her to sprint back defensively.

5. POINT GUARD DRIBBLE PENETRATION EXCEPTION
If the point guard penetrates to the basket, we want the #2 player to start rotating to the top of the key area and if the ball is shot, she is responsible for being the first player back.

6. STRADDLING THE MOTION LINE PRINCIPLE
If you are straddling the motion line, you can go to the glass if you think you have a chance — if not, sprint back. But whatever you do, don’t stand and watch!

I heard a great line last week that as soon as the ball as shot, a coach watching film of his team should be able to hit pause and see the players responsible for offensive rebounding moving towards the glass and the players responsible for getting back moving towards the other end – there should never be a still-shot of a player standing.

In terms of transition defense principles we give our team the following:

#1 Convert mentally...once the defense has secured the ball, know where you have to be and get there.

#2 Don’t try to steal an outlet pass or steal the dribble from the point guard on the outlet pass...get back.

#3 In getting back, we are looking to straight line sprints...you are immediately sprinting back towards the paint...our goal is to have five players sprint back and get at least one foot in the paint before approaching their offensive player.

#4 Low post defense in transition starts at the free throw line...we want to meet all post players at the free throw line and make them cut behind us to get into the low post...this is a great place to pick up a charge on a slow-footed post player.

#5 Allow no shots in the paint in transition and allow no open looks for 3-point shooters.

#6 Once we have stopped the opponent’s break we want to immediately get into our half-court defense (it doesn’t matter if we are in man or zone)...don’t relax!

TRANSITION DEFENSE GOAL: ALLOW OUR OPPONENT NO EASY SHOTS!

BRIAN McCORMICK ON WHY EVERYONE SHOULD SHOOT LIKE STEVE NASH

The following comes from Brian McCormick's "Hard 2 Guard Player Development Newsletter":

I believe Steve Nash is the best shooter to play in the NBA, at least since the NBA incorporated the three-point line. While my belief is based primarily on observation, the numbers support the theory. John Hollinger, the creator of the player efficiency rankings, ranks Nash as the all-time #1 shooter based on a combined shooting range (CSR) which adds 2-point percentage, 3-pt % and FT%.


According to Hollinger’s rankings, four players are career 180 Shooters: Nash (184.9), Steve Kerr (181.2), Reggie Miller (180.7) and Mark Price(180.7). Also, Steve Nash and Larry Bird are the only players to finish multiple seasons in the even more difficult 90-50-40 club (90% FT, 50% 2-pt FG% and 40% 3-pt FG%). Bird accomplished the feat twice, while Nash has accomplished the feat four times ('06, '08, '09, and '10). Based on the numbers, I do not see much room to argue for anyone else.

If we agree that Nash is the best shooter of all time, why don’t more players emulate him?

Last season during the play-offs, several NBA bloggers tweeted that players who mimic a shot before shooting a free throw shot a higher percentage than those who did not. This was anecdotal and observational, and not a real study, but science supports the claim.

Nash, of course, motions to the official to hold the ball so that he can go through his routine and take a practice shot without the ball. Few other players have copied this routine even as Nash as evolved into this generation’s best shooter. One would think that hundreds of youth players would copy Nash in the same way that many in previous generations copied Pete Maravich drills in an attempt to handle the ball like the Pistol.

Robert Singer developed a five-step Performance Model for closed skill (self-paced) performance. His five steps were:

1. Readying


2. Imaging


3. Focusing


4. Executing


5. Evaluating

When we instruct youth players to use a pre-performance routine, we essentially use this model.

The Readying phase is used to create the proper attitude for performance and to control emotions. I instruct players to receive the ball away from the line and take in a deep breath through the nose and out through the mouth. This helps to slow the heart rate and eliminate tension.

A pre-performance routine accomplishes three main physical goals

1. Stabilizes the motor pattern


2. Adds consistency


3. Establishes a rhythm

When Nash attempts his practice shot, he uses the Imaging step. Rather than pure visualization, where a player may imagine a previous made shot, Nash adds the kinesthetic element. He imagines the ball going through the basket, but he also feels the shot.

This is only a portion of Brian's thoughts on this subject.  If you aren't on Brian's email list you need to be -- lot of solid, advance concepts in regard to basketball.  Email Brian to get on his mailing list at: hard2guardinc@yahoo.com

DENIS WAITLEY ON HABITS

We learn by observation, imitation and repetition.

Habits begin as offhanded remarks, ideas and images. And then, layer upon layer, through practice, they grow from cobwebs into cables that shackle or strengthen our lives.

Habits are like submarines. They run silent and deep.

First we make our habits, then our habits make us.

Habits are like comfortable beds. They are easy to get into, but difficult to get out of.

Winning and losing are both learned habits.

SPECIFIC GOAL SETTING

I loves this quote from Tom Landry that I saw on Greg Brown's blog:

"Setting goals is not the main thing. It is deciding how you will go about achieving them, and then staying with that plan."

Greg's blog post dealt with being specific about your goal setting.  It's a great post and well worth the read: http://bit.ly/bxnveB

DARREN HARDY: ACCOMPLISH MORE BY DOING LESS

The following is an outstanding read from Darren Hardy of Success Magazine on the best way to incorporate and maximize the various self-improvement resources available to us.  It reminds of Coach Don Meyer who tells us to take great notes at clinics but don't try to come back and utilize all the great ideas we discovered.  Instead, pick a few that fit your system and put them to use.  Here is what Hardy has to say on the topic:

There is a significant difference between learning and improving.

The difference is results.

Have you ever been to a seminar, listened to an audio program or read a book that promised life transforming results in 90 days or less… and it didn’t happen?

It wasn’t that the material didn’t work; YOU didn’t do the work. It’s not what you learn; it’s what you DO with what you learn. Doing has to follow learning.

Knowing what to do is not the same as doing what you know. There are a lot of people who read all the books (or blogs!) and go to all the seminars, but their life never improves. The world is filled with broke geniuses.

I will walk you through my process of how I turn learning into study and study into improvement/results.

Selection

I break my yearly goal achievement plans into four quarterly themes. In each quarter I focus on a particular area of my life or skill I want to improve (e.g., marriage, health, keynote speaking, interviewing, etc.).

I research online and reach out to my personal network for recommendations on the best resources for improving that discipline or skill.

I then buy the top 5 books, the top 3 audio programs and sign up for (at least) one seminar on that topic during that quarter.

Action: Pick a skill you want to study and implement the 5-3-1 program now.

Book Study

I don’t just read a book—I consume it. When I am done with the book it looks as if it’s been through a meat grinder.

I will underline, circle, star, inscribe bolded exclamation marks, dogear, highlight, put sticky tabs all over it and write notes in the margins, at the end of chapters and in the back of the book.

Don’t treat a book like a piece of fragile museum art—treat it like a workbook. Make your mark in it. A book is meant to be used, not just viewed.

Action: Don’t attempt to do everything suggested in the book. Reduce the book down to the best three ideas for you. Now pick one idea that you will implement this week. Write what it is and set a time to review the results a week later. Practice that idea for a few weeks until you have mastered it or it has produced the results you sought, then (maybe) pick another idea and practice it for another week to three weeks.

If all you did was implement, measure, review and improve upon one idea from every book you read your results would improve dramatically. I think you would be surprised how little impact all your learning has had on your life up until now.

Process: To fully squeeze all the benefit from the book, I go back through the book and pull out all the notes, highlights and underlined key points and transfer them to my Knowledge Bank. My Knowledge Bank consists of a document system organized by topic (leadership, sales, fitness, nutrition, communication, etc.). This is why I have virtually unlimited access to the best ideas because I have every key idea I have ever studied, thought or discovered organized by topic.

Read the entire article at: http://bit.ly/aZ0WUL

BRUCE WEBER'S INDIVIDUAL SCORING SYSTEM

Thanks to Coach Duane Silver for passing this on to us:

These stats will show you who is playing hard on defense. This is Coach Bruce Weber's top award he gives out at his end of the season basketball banquet. (I love it!!) He keeps a scoreboard of this up in the locker room. He does it game by game.

1) Passes deflected +1

2) Blocked Shots +1

3) Steals +1

4) Dives +1 (He only counts logical dives on the floor after loose balls) (Could be on the offense or defense.)

5) Loose Balls +1 (someone else might deflect a pass, and if you come up with the ball this is a loose ball)

6) Charges Taken +2

7) 5 Second Count: This is only for the man guarding the ball. Not the players denying the passes.

4 KEY DEFENSIVE CONCEPTS FOR ROY WILLIAMS

1) We want to steal the ball or force you to take a bad shot

2) Rebound the bad shot – one and done

3) Do not let the opponent run what they practice/what they are good at

4) Set tempo – pressure the ball – run someone @ dribble

JOHN MAXWELL ON LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

A great post today from John Maxwell on the daily development of leadership.  The post comes from his outstanding site: http://www.giantimpact.com/

A group of American tourists walked through a quaint English village in wonderment. They were enamored by the town's winding cobblestone streets, the beauty of its courtyards and plazas, and the sense of history emanating from its ancient churches. While strolling through the local park, the tourists struck up conversation with an elderly gentleman and found out that he had lived in the town for his entire life. One of the Americas, eager to hear more about the town's history, asked, "Sir, have any great men been born in this village?" "Nope," said the old man, "only babies."


Personal Growth Is a Process
In our twenties, we think ahead to when we'll be ideally situated in our career, positioned to do exactly what we enjoy, and enjoying immense influence in our occupation. Like children on the way to Disneyland, we impatiently await arrival at our destination instead of appreciating the journey there. However, as we age we encounter an uncomfortable truth: growth doesn't happen automatically. We cannot coast through life hoping one day to stumble across our dreams. Unless we set aside time to grow into the person we desire to be, we'll not reach our potential.

Leaders develop daily, not in a day. They commit themselves to the process of growth, and over time they reap the rewards of daily investments in their development. In this lesson, I'd like to share five principles to encourage you to adopt a lifestyle of personal growth.

#1 Growth is the great separator of those who succeed and those who do not.
When I went to college, there was no gap between my peers and me-none at all. We started on the same level. However, at the age of 17, I made a commitment to spend an hour a day on my personal growth. I studied and read, filing the lessons I learned along the way. Now, in most cases, the gap between my former classmates and me is pretty wide. Am I smarter than they are? Absolutely not. Many of them got better grades than I did in college. It's the growth factor-my commitment to the process of personal growth-that has made the difference.

#2 Growth takes time, and only time can teach us some things.
When it comes to personal growth, you cannot substitute for time. Yet, the mere passage of time doesn't make you wise. Experience is not the best teacher; evaluated experience is the best teacher. To gain insights from your experience, you have to engage in reflective thinking. I have a habit of taking ten minutes every evening to look back on the day. As I reflect on what happened, lessons emerge, and I capture them in my notebook so that I can learn from them.

#3 Growth inside fuels growth outside.
The highest reward of our toil is not what we get for it, but who we become by it. At the age of 17, I decided that I would read, file, and begin to prepare lessons. From that simple discipline I accumulated a wealth of content that fueled my speaking and writing. I never set out to be a leadership specialist; I was simply diligent about reading, filing, and studying. With respect to personal growth, take the long view on results. The most important question to ask is not "What am I getting?" from the discipline of personal growth, the most important question is, "Who am I becoming?"

#4 Take responsibility for your own growth.
For 15 to 20 years, the school system holds us responsible for growth. Educational curriculum clearly spells out, "here's what you do next," and "here's the next step." Then we graduate with diplomas and certificates, and we no one longer have anyone to map out the next step for us. If we want to continuing growing, we have to do it ourselves. We have to put together a game plan so that we become students of life who are always expanding our minds and drawing upon our experiences.

#5 Determine the areas of your life in which you need to grow.
You've probably heard someone say, "You can do anything as long as you put your mind to it." Sadly, as nice as that sounds, it simply isn't true. In watching people grow, I have discovered that, on a scale of 1-10, people can only improve about two notches. For instance, I love to sing; that's the good news. The bad news is that I can't carry a tune. Now, let's be generous and say that, as a singer, I'm a "two." If I put lots of money, effort, and energy into developing my voice, perhaps I can grow into a "four." News flash: on a ten-point scale, four is still below average. With regards to my career, it would be foolish for me to focus my personal growth on my voice. At best, I'd only become an average singer, and no one pays for average.

Don't work on your weaknesses. Devote yourself to fine-tuning your strengths. I work exceptionally hard on personal growth in four areas of my life. Why only four? Because I'm only good at four things. I lead, communicate, create, and network. That's it. Outside of those areas, I'm not very valuable. However, within those areas of strength I have incredible potential to make a difference.