Post-Season Coaching Essentials to Maximize Your Off-Season, Part 4
Coaches,
What is your program doing this summer to get better? If you haven’t already, now is the time to make these plans. Four things need to take place for your team to get the most out of their summer:
- Athletes need to improve skills alongside their teammates
- The team needs to get stronger and more athletic
- The team needs to play 5-on-5 games together to build on-court chemistry, to win together, and to have fun
- Athletes need to improve outside of their “common zone”
Athletes need to improve skills alongside their teammates
How many times a week do you open the gym for your players? Are your players showing up and just playing games or are they developing a “go-to” move in the post, improving their perimeter jump shots, shooting “focused” free throws, and improving their ball-handling skills?
As the Head Coach it is your job to set up the logistics of summer open gym. The most important thing is to be consistent. Do not change days each week and let your athletes know what is expected of them. Communication is key. If you go M-W-F each week, do not change this and do not change times each day (if possible). The more consistent you are, the less excuses your athletes will have.
Remember: The goal isn’t to just get your top players in the gym.
More than likely they are your top players because they have been committed for a long time. It is so important to get your role players and younger athletes in the gym (alongside your top players) so everyone improves together. MAKE IT MANDATORY.
Also, do not just roll the balls out and let your players play. While you should end each open gym with 5-on-5 full-court games, the primary focus needs to be improving your individual athletes so you have a better crop of talent to work with next winter.
Suggestion: Bring in a secondary voice.
Your athletes hear your voice all year long. Camp organizations such as Midwest Elite Basketball run Satellite Camps and travel their staff of college coaches to YOUR gym to work with YOUR program. This is a great way to build excitement in your program while expanding the skills of your top athletes, role players, and younger athletes. For great deals on camping trailers, it is best to check out different services and get their help planning your camping trip.
The team needs to get stronger and more athletic
This is #2 and very important. In a select few programs who have a bunch of highly skilled athletes but are soft (you see this in Europe a lot more than you do in the United States), this may be the #1 priority of the off-season. Nonetheless, I have detailed this extensively in my previous article. Feel free to check it out: https://midwestelitebasketball.com/news_article/show/142774?referrer_id=4
The team needs to play 5-on-5 games together to build on-court chemistry, to win together, and to have fun
There are three ways to get this done:
- End each open gym with competitive 5-on-5 play
- Play in a summer league against area schools
- Attend “team camps” which are usually packed with a variety of opponents and games
At the end of the day, athletes play basketball to play games. This is why it is important to not neglect playing during the summer time. Playing also allows your athletes to implement the skills they have developed into a game-setting. Trial and error on skills should occur during the summer, not in the winter. Team chemistry is also built when playing together. Leaders will step up, team communication should improve, and spacing and motion should improve as well. MAKE YOUR PLAYERS RUN YOUR STUFF. Do not just “let them play.” They need to play “your way,” and get comfortable in your system. This eliminates the learning curve come late fall (high school coaches have a very limited number of practices to prepare for their first game; this shouldn’t be a problem if you utilize your summer properly).
Note: This is listed as third for a reason. Improving skills alongside teammates and building a stronger, more athletic squad is more important. I have heard of teams who attend a dozen team camps each summer. This is gross excess and a waste of money. There has to be balance between skill development and playing if you want to improve your program. Otherwise, just roll the balls out and let the players play”¦ you will only be as good as the “natural” skill-set of your athletes.
Athletes need to improve outside of their “common zone”
A good way for players to get better is to compete against those who are better than they are. While your role players and younger athletes may be suited well competing against your “go-to” players and varsity members, how are your feature players supposed to improve if they aren’t battling against players of their caliber (or better) in the off-season?
While I am not big on plugging AAU, I will say, this is a good resource for “select” players. Athletes get the opportunity to compete against some of the top players in the country, they get exposure from college coaches, and they get to travel and make life-long friendships. The reason I say improving outside of their “common zone” instead of “comfort zone” is because usually AAU games generally provide more comfort than a high school game. Games are loosely officiated, there isn’t a student section of raging fans cheering against/for you, and usually there are many games taking place simultaneously in the same gym. Athletes should be comfortable playing in these events despite playing against better competition.
Know this first: Before sending your athletes to play AAU basketball, know what level they are at.
While each AAU program has a “1st” team, they also can have upwards of 5 teams at each level. The 1st team gets the exposure, gets to play on the national stage, and typically has the best coaches. The other teams are designed to bring in a substantial amount of money into the AAU program. AAU is big business and a cash cow. I know of some AAU programs grossing over a half million in the summer. Your players simply need to know what they are getting into (and they need to make sure they are not missing a lot of time with what the team is doing during the summer). Also, just because your player is playing AAU basketball this doesn’t mean he/she will get recruited and it probably means he/she will be forking over a lot of money (upwards of $600-$1000/month after all the expenses which includes fees, travel, hotels, and often times a trip to Vegas).
Other Options: Have your top two or three players attend a serious skills camp. This can be VERY HARD to find. Large university camps are usually not designed for serious player development, rather, for 5-on-5 league games, free throw championships, hot shot championships, and autograph signing sessions.
5-Star Camp is a good option for the serious player willing to travel. Stations are conducted by current or former college coaches and they truly focus on player development. Lectures are conducted by some of the top professional and college coaches in the country, and the cost doesn’t make it impossible to attend. Best yet, your player will get the opportunity to compete against some of the best players in the country (this is arguably the best summer camp in the country in regards to talent that doesn’t require an invitation).
Point Guard College is a good option the serious player at any position (don’t be deceived by the name). However, it isn’t the right fit for everyone. Campers spend a lot of time in the classroom and many athletes learn best on the court (or in brief chalk-board sessions, not hours of classes while taking dozens of pages of notes). PGC’s regular “tuition” fees are $795 which is an absurd amount of money; after travel and road meals you can expect the bill to be over $1,000 each person. They also notorious for mixing boys and girls in the same sessions, something I do not encourage for a focused, competitive environment. However, everyone who attends this camp will become more discipline and they will get better. If you have a “student of the game” who comes from a wealthy family this is a great option.
I like Snow Valley Basketball Camp in Iowa. Multiple coaches who work for MEB also work these camps. Athletes will get better attending this camp, boys and girls are in separate sessions and the cost is an affordable $370 (a price top players are able to pay). The days are long but the skill development is good and you can bet your top players will go against some athletes who are better than they are.
Final Note: I need to reiterate, it is of little relevance if just your top few players improve each summer. Your players improving outside of their “common zone” is last on this list because it should NOT be the priority of your program. Having a serious Satellite Camp Organization, such as Midwest Elite Basketball, come to your school to work with your program will benefit your program on a much higher level. At the same time, athletes only pay either $60/$95/$120 each for the 1-day/2-day/3-day camp and there are no travel or road meal expenses. It is a product that can’t be beat in regards to production and price.
The time to plan for the summer is now. Talk with the baseball/softball coach and figure out when you have access to your multi-sport athletes. Compromise with the football/volleyball coach for the athlete’s times as well. Luckily, we are basketball coaches. There is an unwritten rule that basketball dominates the off-season (much more so than football and volleyball). While this is subjective per school, there are heavy trends showing basketball as the prominent off-season sport. Make your schedule consistent, get it to your athletes, and call a meeting with parents to talk about the expectations of their son/daughter over the summer. The more transparent you are the better results you will get in regards to commitment. Do not neglect any of the four staples of a successful summer listed above.
In Hoops,
Craig Doty
Craig Doty is the Co-Owner of Midwest Elite Basketball and the former Head Men’s Basketball Coach (Interim) at Central Wyoming College. His coaching experience includes stops as an Assistant at Central Wyoming College (Riverton), Morningside College (Sioux City, IA), Riverland Community College (Austin, MN), as well as being the Head Boy’s Basketball Coach at Akron-Westfield High School (IA).