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West Ottawa Basketball Tips & Drills
Mark has a drill that players can practice outside in the beautiful weather!
On this week’s Tips and Drills we continue our dribbling series!
Today we focus on a great dribble move to get past your defender, the In and Out Dribble. It’s a move that you need to stay low on and use your eyes and your opposite leg (from your dribble hand) to fake that you are going in the opposite direction, while you accelerate past your defender on the ball side.
Here’s a great video that shows this move.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know.....
Initially, dribbling was not a large part of the game. Players would catch the ball, be allowed a few steps to slow down, stop, and then throw the ball from that spot. Once the modern basketball was invented in the 1950s, dribbling became a crucial part of the game.
On this week's Tips and Drills we complete our dribbling series with a link to this resource with 17 stationary dribbling drills for you to work on at home in your garage or your basement. Remember the basics when executing any dribble: get in a good athletic stance with knees bent, keep your chest up, and pound the ball into the floor.
Happy hooping!
Did you know....
A warm basketball is bouncier than a cold one because the molecules in the warm ball hit its inside surface at a higher speed.
In this week's Tips and Drills we share a great drill on how to improve your transition shooting when moving from defense to offense.
There are a few keys to scoring in transition. First, you need great fitness to control your breathing and have strong legs after sprinting the floor. Second, you've got to be shot ready on the pass—in your stance, with hands up in the shooting pocket in front of you and third, you need to practice these shots—a lot!
Take a look at this drill and work on it at home with a parent or sibling this weekend. Enjoy the great weather and happy hooping!
Did you know....
Before 1923, basketball teams could choose which player would shoot a free throw after a foul rather than the player who was fouled.
On this week's Tips and Drills, we are going to focus on what you can do BEFORE practice begins and how it can make you a better player!I love to see players who are very purposefully working on their game in the few minutes before practice begins. These players incorporate skills we have worked on in recent practices. Instead of trying to shoot impossible shots from outside their range, they start with form shooting. They work on improving their dribble with their non-dominant hand. They work on their footwork including various pivots. These are the players that progress faster than those who don't take advantage of these valuable minutes to purposefully work on their game. If you want to become this type of player, write out a plan before each practice of the 2-3 things you want to work on during this time. Ask your coach what she or he thinks you should work on.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know....
The first women’s basketball uniforms were called “bloomer suits.” Designed to cover the entire body, they came with stockings that covered the lower legs.
This week we start a new low post series on Tips and Drills!
Today we will focus on how to initiate and keep your preferred position in the post. As this video shows, you want to split your defender's feet before turning your back to the basket. You want to keep this position by staying low with your arms up as the defender tries to move in front of you. Keep them in behind you to set up for a low post finishing move, which we will start to discuss next week. You can practice posting up with a parent or sibling this weekend.
Happy hooping everyone.
Did you know....
The first woman to dunk in a professional basketball game was all-star center Lisa Leslie of the Los Angeles Sparks. She did a one-handed jam in the first half against the Miami Sol on July 30, 2002.
In this week's Tips and Drills, we continue our series on post play with a focus on one of the best low post moves, the drop step.
This is a move you can use in the low post when your back is to the basket and you have a defender closely guarding you. Use a jump stop on the catch to ensure you can use either foot to pivot. Chin the ball and peek over your shoulder to determine which side to pivot. Then drop your leg to seal off your defender, dribble to change pivot feet, and finish with a lay-up.
Here's a good (and funny) video that illustrates this move.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know....
You probably connect Michael Jordan with his legendary Air Jordans, a now-iconic shoe because of its record sales numbers. What you may not know is that these shoes used to be against NBA dress code. Michael Jordan paid an NBA fine each time he wore them rather than play the game without them. Eventually, the NBA allowed the shoes on the court.
On this week's Tips and Drills, we continue our low post series with an essential low-post move that every player should learn—the jump hook.
Even Steve Nash, a 6'0 guard, scored a lot of points with this move. Take a look at this video to see how to execute this move. The keys, as the instructor shows, are:
1) Be perpendicular to the basket to protect the ball
2) Power up off two feet
3) Extend the shooting arm (and the other arm to protect the ball) and use a wrist snap and finger roll for touch.
Happy hooping everyone!
Just 18 sleeps until the new NBA season!
Did you know.....
The slam dunk was originally known as a dunk shot. Then, at a Los Angeles Lakers game in the 1970s, an American announcer named Chick Hearn used the phrase “slam dunk” for the first time. And the name stuck.
This week on Tips and Drills we continue our series on low post moves with a great video on 5 post moves—the jump hook, the up and under, the dribble drop, the Dream shake, and a face-up shot.
These 5 moves are in sequence, designed to build skill (and counters) on top of the ones before them. So, practice them in sequence with lots of reps. You don't need all of these moves. It's better to master one plus one counter, rather than being just okay at all five.
Happy hooping everyone!
Just 8 sleeps until the holiday vacation and 11 sleeps until the start of the new NBA season!
This is the final edition of Tips and Drills for 2020!
We hope you enjoyed the series and we hope we encouraged players to practice throughout the year at home!
This week Coach Mark is sharing with you some last minute gift ideas for the basketball player(s) in your family. There are some great gifts on this list—from books to movies to clothing to training aids.
Of course, we all share the same wish for a return to normal basketball life for all in 2021!
Wishing you all a very happy holiday season!
On this week's Tips and Drills we focus on the float dribble.
This is a dribble you can learn in your basement or garage and it will help you significantly when we get back to playing. The float dribble is like it sounds. You change speeds with your dribble, going from pounding it, to letting the ball come up and float. It's a perfect dribble to use as you move across the court (usually around the arc) to try to find a driving lane to the basket.
Check out Chris Paul execute it really well and this short instructional video on it.
Happy hooping everyone and hang in there—brighter days are ahead!
Did you know....
The player silhouetted in the NBA logo is former all-star Jerry West, who played with the Los Angeles Lakers (1960–1974).
In this week's Tips and Drills, we focus on leadership.
This past Monday was Martin Luther King Day (MLK) and Wednesday was the inauguration of Joe Biden as US President. Both MLK and Biden are inspirational leaders who seek to unify and bring people together. It's a good opportunity to reflect on the leader in each of us. What can you do to inspire and bring together your teammates to work towards a common goal and support each other? This pause that we have in playing basketball right now provides a great opportunity to reflect on how we can be a positive leader and a role model for our teammates to inspire and unite them when we step back on the court.
Be well everyone!
Did you know...
The name Raptors was inspired by a movie. When the team was being named, the movie called Jurassic Park had just been released. This Hollywood blockbuster movie features ferocious dinosaurs including T. Rexes and Raptors. These dinosaurs were fast and fierce, therefore, naming Toronto’s new basketball team the Raptors seemed right.
In this week's Tips and Drills, we focus on court vision.
As Tyler Coston from PGC Basketball discusses in this video, great players don't just see what's in front of them. They also develop great peripheral vision and are even able to sense what's behind them. They use this dominant vision to open up the court and fully engage their teammates. Listen as Tyler shares near the end of the video how you can develop better court vision.
Be well everyone!
Did you know....
The longest game in NBA history lasted 78 minutes and had 6 overtimes. It was a January 6, 1951 game between the Indianapolis Olympians and the Rochester Royals. The Olympians won 75 to 73.
In this week's Tips and Drills, we focus on conditioning.
Staying in great shape during the pandemic has been tough, so here are two videos (Basketball Conditioning Drills and The Professor Home Quarantine Workout Basketball Conditioning) with many conditioning exercises that you can do inside, at home. I really like how they incorporate a basketball (with dribbling) in the second video. The more effort you put into staying in shape now, the stronger you will be when we get back on the court!
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
On December 13, 1983, the regular-season game between the Detroit Pistons and the Denver Nuggets set multiple NBA records. The game ended after three overtimes with Detroit winning 186 to 184. The game set the NBA record for the most total points scored in a single game, and the most and second-most points scored by a team in a game.
On this week's Tips and Drills, Coach Mark has a little homework for you!
I want you to watch some basketball on TV or YouTube (NBA or college). While watching, I want you to watch offensive players without the ball. Watch how they space themselves and where they move. Look at their cuts. Consider what you are learning and how you can incorporate it into your game to optimize spacing and to get yourself open. Where are the best places on the court to typically get open and what kind of cut or screen is needed to get there? The key to being a great team player is what you do without the ball. This tip will help!
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
Basketball first became an official Olympics event during the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics. The Olympic basketball games were held outdoors, in modified tennis courts.
It's International Women's Month in March, so we will be celebrating some of the greatest women's players of all time throughout the month.
Today we will share this video of Sue Bird, one of the best point guards of all time. She just won her fourth WNBA championship this year (to go along with 4 Olympic Gold Medals and 2 NCAA championships). In this video, watch how she passes to her teammates. She is amazing at finding the open person who has the advantage, whether in transition (I love how she advances the ball quickly to players running to the basket), or when double-teamed in the half-court offense. Your teammates will LOVE you if you can find them when open like Sue does.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
Women's basketball dates back to 1892, when women at Smith College began playing the sport invented by Dr. James Naismith. Today, the sport is played worldwide. Women's basketball follows mostly the same rules as men's basketball, with the exception that the ball is smaller.
In this week's Tips and Drills we continue celebrating great female players by sharing a video of Elena Della Donne, a WNBA Champion and MVP. Donne is 6'5" and is the tallest player on the Washington Mystics. This is a great video to watch especially if you are one of the taller players on your team!
There can be a tendency for tall players in youth basketball to post up a lot and play close to the basket. What I want you to notice in this video is how comfortable Donne is playing at the arc, either shooting 3's or dribble driving to the basket. If you are a taller player, keep working on your dribble (both hands), your shooting range, and your pull up jumper to become an all-round player who can play anywhere on the court. One other thing to know about Donne is that she suffers from Lyme Disease and has to take 64 pills each day. She's a great example of perseverance, resiliency, and hard work in the face of problems that life has dealt her.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know....
The first women's basketball team organized by Senda Berenson at Smith College, adapting Naismith's rules to emphasize cooperation, with three zones and six players on each team.
In this week's Tips and Drills, we celebrate Canada's Kia Nurse, who plays for the New York Liberty in the WNBA and Team Canada.
In this video, I want you to watch how fast Kia plays and especially how she embraces contact when finishing at the basket. One of the tendencies of younger players is to shy away from contact. As a result, the defense forces them further away from the basket. Kia shows in this video how to drive directly to the basket and embrace contact. This not only will increase the number of baskets you will make, but it will also help you draw more fouls.
Happy hooping everyone! Enjoy March Madness (Men's and Women's!)
Did you know...
Kia Nurse debuted for Team Canada at the U-16 FIBA Americas Championship in 2011. The next year she starred as a team captain at the U-17 FIBA World Championship, leading the team with 13.6 points per game and helping them to the bronze medal. In her first year with the senior national team in 2013 she averaged 10 points per game at the FIBA Americas to help Canada finish second and qualify for the 2014 FIBA World Championship. As the youngest member of the world championship team, Nurse appeared in all seven games as the Canadian women finished fifth for their best result since 1986. After winning three straight Ontario high school championships, Nurse committed to play with the two-time defending NCAA champions University of Connecticut Huskies. In her first year at UConn she quickly took over a starting backcourt role and became a significant part of the team’s NCAA titles in 2015 and 2016, earning ACC Freshman of the Year honours in 2015. Nurse had the opportunity to represent Canada again in 2015, taking home gold at both the Pan American Games in Toronto and the FIBA Americas Championship, which qualified the team for Rio 2016. Nurse was Canada’s leading scorer at the Pan Am Games, averaging 13.6 points per game for a total of 68, including an other-worldly 33 points in the gold medal game versus the United States. Her performance led to her being named Canada’s Closing Ceremony flag bearer. She also led the way at the FIBA Americas, averaging 13.0 points per game for a total of 78. In her Olympic debut at Rio 2016, Nurse led Canada in playing time (2:33:20) and scoring (66 points), averaging 11.0 points per game.
We wrap up International Women's Month on Tips and Drills by celebrating Diana Taurasi, the player that many people believe to be the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) in women's basketball.
Taurasi, a Guard, has won 3 NCAA national championships, 4 Olympic gold medals and 3 WNBA championships. In this video, I want you to watch how well Taurasi reads the defense. By reading what her defender is giving her, she consistently makes the right plays—shooting the 3 when open, relocating to open space when she doesn't have the ball, moving to the low post when she has a height advantage against her defender and driving the lane when possible.
Happy hooping everyone. It's almost time when we can get outside and start hooping in our driveway!
Did you know...
Becky Hammon, a six-time WNBA All-Star in her 16-year playing career, was the first full-time female assistant coach in NBA history when hired by the Spurs in 2014. She previously served as the Spurs' head coach during Summer League, which is held during the offseason.
On December 30, 2020, Hammon became the first female acting head coach in NBA history after Spurs' head coach Gregg Popovich was ejected during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Wow, March Madness has been truly amazing, especially last night's game! On this week's Tips and Drills, we focus on the one skill that separates the championship teams in the men's and women's tournaments (Gonzaga, Baylor, Stanford, and Arizona).
All four of these teams are outstanding passing teams, especially Gonzaga and Stanford. In this video, we explore how to up your passing game. The key, as Tyler points out, is to work on more advanced passes, like flick passes, hook passes, and shovel passes. These are passes you can practice with a sibling or parent in your driveway.
Happy Easter and Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
Prior to 1966, the NBA had territorial draft picks. These were special picks that allowed teams to forfeit their first-round picks and instead select a player within a 50-mile radius from the city.
For the rest of April we focus on shooting basics to remind you of key fundamentals as you start to play more outdoors. Today, we focus on finger placement. A lot of players aren't aware of where they place their fingers on the ball, but it's essential that your fingers are in the right place on the ball. The key is that your index finger or pointer finger should be in the middle of the ball. An easy way to line up your pointer finger is to place it on the seal of the ball. Here's a video that will show you more about proper finger placement.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
Harlem Globetrotter Corey “Thunder” Law shattered the Guinness World Record for the longest successful basketball shot at 109 feet 9 inches. He also set the record for the longest basketball shot blindfolded at 69 feet 6 inches. He also made the farthest shot backward, at 82 feet 2 inches.
We continue our April shooting fundamentals series with a focus today on feet alignment.
Traditionally, many coaches have focused on pointing all ten toes at the basket. Now, most NBA and college players and coaches favour turning your feet. This helps align your shooting arm and reduces tension in your shoulder to enable a more accurate shot and greater distance. This video talks more about it and provides some drills to work on it. We recommend starting with simple form shooting from about 4' in front of the basket. Get comfortable with this form then load in some of the drills in the video.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
Basketball incorporated rules from a children’s game called “Duck on a Rock,” in which a stone was placed on an elevated object, such as a tree stump, with a player guarding it. Other players would try to knock the stone off by throwing “ducks” or rocks.
This month we have focused on the most important shooting fundamentals—finger placement (pointer finger in the middle of the ball), foot placement (slight turn instead of ten toes at the rim), and arc (hand under the ball at your set point to create the proper arm lift).
In our final shooting series tip, we focus on where to aim. Where do you aim? The first thing in aiming is to get your eyes on your target early (i.e., when you catch the ball). Secondly, choose a consistent spot. Most players look at the back of the rim from the angle they are on. Why the back and not the front? It's because as a game goes on we tend to get more tired and our shot gets a little shorter. A good way to remember to aim for the back rim is the acronym BRAD (Back Rim And Down). Here's a video that shows you more.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
All NBA floors are made from hard maple (Acer saccharum) from board cut 3/4ths of an inch thick. The only exception is the floor in Boston’s TD Garden, which is made of red oak.
This month on Tips and Drills we are focusing on finishing moves that can help you score more in the paint.
Today, we are focused on the floater. This is a great option when you are dribble driving in the key but cannot get to the basket because of defenders who are protecting it. You can execute a floater off one foot or two. The key is to get a good arc on the shot to get it over the defender(s). You should practice from different spots, distances, and with and without the backboard. Here are two videos that break this shot down nicely. Video 1. Video 2.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
Goaltending was only considered a violation in 1944, due to its use by Hall of Famer George Mikan against opponents. Prior to 1944, goaltending was considered legal since there were relatively few players that were able to execute it.
This week in our May finishing series, we focus on the Euro step.
This move is used when you are driving in the key and have one player to beat and need to avoid a charge call. This is a great video that shows you the key elements of the move and some drills to work on it. As you will see, the key is a jab step to one side, ripping the ball across your body to avoid the defender's hands, and finishing with either hand depending on where you are in relation to the basket.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
The league we now know as the NBA was originally called the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and was founded on June 6, 1946. Following a merger with rival National Basketball League on August 3, 1949, it changed its name to the National Basketball Association.
In our last finishing moves Tips and Drills, we focus on the spin move.
This is a great move to beat your primary defender when you are driving the key. The one thing that I always focus on when doing the spin move is to make my pivot foot (the one I am spinning around) the one that is closest to the direction I am spinning in. So, if I am spinning to my right, my right foot is my spin foot. As this video shows, the other key is to really fake with your body (including your eyes) going in the opposite direction before spinning the other way.
Happy spinning and hooping everyone! We hope the finishing series has helped teach you some new moves to blow by your defender and score.
Did you know...
“March Madness” originally had nothing to do with college basketball. In fact, it’s the name of an essay written by Henry V. Porter, an Illinois teacher and coach, back in 1939 that captures the thrill of Illinois’ high school basketball tournaments.
This month on Tips and Drills we focus on drills to improve your play near the basket, in the mid or low post.
All players should learn how to finish in these high percentage areas. Today, we focus on the drop step. It's a great move for sealing your defender and finishing high and strong. With your back to the basket, you catch the ball with a jump hop so that you can use either foot to pivot. Read which side your defender (in behind or beside you) is playing on and seal them off with your leg while doing a power dribble with two hands. Finish high and strong. Here's a really great video that explains the drop step.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
We know that a typical basketball match is played for 48 minutes which is broken down in 4 quarters of 12 minutes each. But on the 6th January 1951 during the match between Rochester Royals and Indianapolis Olympians, the match lasted for 78 minutes and had 6 overtimes.
The Indianapolis Olympians won the game 75 to 73.
This week in our low/mid-post series, we focus on the jump hook.
It's a great way to get the ball up and over a defender near the basket. The keys to the jump hook are to be perpendicular to the basket, with your hips slightly open. You want to protect the ball on your shoulder furthest from your defender, while powering up off your feet, extending your arm and let the ball roll off your fingers while flicking your wrist.
Here's a great video that explains the jump hook.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
The Sacramento Kings retired the number 6 to honor their basketball fans, “the Sixth Man.”
This week in our low/mid-post series, we focus on facing up.
Facing up typically happens when you are in the mid-post (halfway up the key). When you receive a pass with your back to the basket, you face up with a pivot in order to face the basket. You can then either shoot (if your defender sags off you or you have a height advantage) or you drive to the basket if you can beat your defender 1 on 1 and there is no help defense. In this video, Jayson Wells from PGC Basketball shows you both of these options.
Happy hooping everyone!
Did you know...
Gene Conley won 3 championships with the Boston Celtics and 1 with baseball's Milwaukee Braves in the 1957 World Series. He is the only player to win an NBA championship and a World Series.