Player Technical Development

- John: Keep being the leader, and stay under control. Work on being patient in the paint, looking for the open man in the paint. Don't let the crowd get to you. - Austin: Be a bit more aggressive. Call for the ball in the paint. Be on balance for your lay-ups. Work on ball handling and bringing the ball up the court. - Lorenzo: Get healthy and come coach with me. - CJ: You need to drive to the paint, in the middle of the court. Get a floater up before defense comes. Work on dribbling fast into the paint. - Kenwyn: Looking for you to return. - Gavin: I need you to put up more shots. Shoot your layups or floaters before your opponent gets close to you. Work on dribbling. - Andrew: Be aggressive and get the ball. Keep your opponent from getting the ball. Practice layups and dribbling. - Braylon: Keep the positive attitude. Shoot more floaters quickly. Work on dribbling quickly into the paint and pass. - Daniel: Be more aggressive. Shoot the ball before your defender gets close. Work on dribbling the ball up and down the court. Don't be afraid. - Jordan: Keep up the great hustle and being aggressive for the ball. Work on dribbling faster and under control. Put up floaters or mid range shot quickly.

- Daniel: Stay on balance. Penetrate and pass the ball. Get all the way to the basket and provide lay-up or floater.

- Jeremiah: Be more aggressive. Penetrate and pass or finish a lay. Take more Mid-range jump shots. Help with dribbling up the court.

- Preston: Be aggressive. Practice dribbling the ball up the court. As a guard you have to penetrate (learn it). Take more shots.

- Phil: Be aggressive. Don't be afraid to dribble up the court. You have to work on your floater and getting to the basket as a guard.

- Bryce: Keep working on the penetration game, it will take you to the next level. Pass in the paint and work on your floater. Be more aggressive on defense.

- Kendall: I'm glad we were able to keep you on the team. We weren't going down without a fight. Just want you to keep a positive attitude and continue to work on your handles. Look for the big man in the paint or kick out to the shooter.

- Ayden: Love your hustle. Just need you to put up more shots. Rebound and put it back while you're on balance. Work on your dribbling.

- Caden: Glad you were able to make it back safely. Make sure to be aggressive on offense and defense. Work on your ball handling and taking mid-range shots.

- Dominic: Love your energy. Just need you to get those rebounds and turn around and go straight back up for the easy lay-up. Also work on dribbling up and down the court.

- Yaya: Welcome to the team. Today's competition wasn't good. Ask for the ball in the paint. Post up and be ready for the shot. Also work on your handles, you will work on some guard skills, bringing the ball up the court.

- Gavin: Welcome to the team. Keep doing what you're doing. Work on your handles and penetrating and passing or floating the ball. Be aggressive and attack the basket.

- Freddie: Good job Freddie. Just calm down when you are handling the ball. Stay on balance for your layups and floaters and look for the quick pass in the paint or at the 3.

-Parents: Thanks very much for your support. Our focus is to develop the players as great sportsmen and skillful players. The biggest deficit currently is ballhandling, passing, and catching. We are going to work to make them skillful players for their future years, not just for this season. My goal is to make them competitive as guards who can dribble, pass, and shoot on a high-school and college level. So we are not focusing on shooting the ball just yet. Winning games are nice, but we really want to see great improvement in each player. Not perfection but lots of practice. Hopefully, each kid is able to have a ball and work on dribbling during their off time. Thanks tremendously!

Basketball Team Update for Feb 4, 2023: Five Key Points to Winning

Hello Team,

Great efforts today! We won the 15-18 year old game and in spirit, we won the 11-12 year old game. I say that because, we faced a giant team and literally almost won the game. I’m proud of both of the teams and thankful for the help of our parents. Thanks for the snacks from Janeen, Gail, and Aaron, it’s much appreciated. Below are some takeaways from the games today, please make sure the players read this and if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

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Inspiration….

The first thing I want to tell you is that you guys are improving in a very great way.I have seen you step up, communicate more effectively, and grow as a team.Every one of you are getting better every time we watch you play.Whether we win or lose, the most important thing is that we win in our attitude, win in our personal skills development, and win in our overall team improvement each game.To me, it’s not perfection that matters, it’s constant improvement.If you continue to listen and improve, you will become near perfect at some point.

1. See the big picture. Remember that it’s not just about winning, its about getting better. Don’t let your performance from today, dictate how you feel for the rest of the week. When you go out on the court, remember that you are playing for your family and friends. You are playing to make connections and learn how to be a team player. If you have a bad game or a good game, be sure that you will have the opposite experience in the future. So see the big picture and look at how you are helping bring joy to the community.

2. Become the feeder first. Some of you are worried about how many points your going to score and this may make you nervous and cause you to mess up more than you normally would. When you play the game, the first thing you should be thinking about is, how am I going to help my teammates to score, how will I get them involved in the game today. If you think about feeding your teammates first you will have less pressure to perform and you will start getting open shots for yourself. The game will be fun and you won’t be as stressed when you play.

3. Shoot your shot. Don’t forget to shoot the ball. If you have been practicing your shot, why wait to shoot the ball when you’re in the game. Too often, I have seen some of you wait 5 seconds before shooting. I have seen you dribble around in circles. Just shoot the ball when your open and if you’re not open pass it and wait for the open shot again. Whatever you do, don’t be afraid to shoot and stop hesitating.

4. Encourage your teammates. When your teammates are discouraged, encourage them. It doesn’t matter what mistakes they made, encourage them. Encouraging them will get the doubt out of their minds and help us to give our best effort. Tell them to shoot the ball. Tell them to drive. Tell them they can do it.

5. Be respectful to the refs. I know the refs made very bad calls today, but don’t forget that they are adults, they have families, and they are taking out their time to make this game possible for us to play. If they make bad calls, just brush it off and let us coaches and parents remind them. If you badger the refs they will only get frustrated and turn against us even more. Besides, we should not win games based on the referee. If we shoot the ball well, our games should not be close. We should win by skill, knowledge, and giving our best hustle.

Thanks for reading this. I look forward to our practice on Monday, we have a few things to work on. Players are welcome to both practices. Also, some parents have asked about AAU, please text me at 609-500-1039 and let me know if you are interested. With AAU there is a significant commitment and we will have to set it up properly for everyone to enjoy the experience. Also, I would like to begin doing a zoom conference call with the players to talk about leadership and respect. If you want your son to be a part of it, please text me on this also. Thanks again for your support! I will see you soon. Coach G.