Posts Tagged Passing
Entry Passes
Posted by Coach Harris in Coaches Fraternity, Coaching, UEA on 11/04/2010
A player looks for the entry pass
In lower level basketball a dominant post player can lead a team to success almost on their own. Many teams have taller players, but combine that height with a talent for playing the position (strength, footwork, finishing) and that player can dominate an entire league. Two of the teams I’ve recently worked with have had such a player, and yet we only posted average results for the season.
When we looked at the box scores, our big guys were getting baskets so it wasn’t immediately obvious that this was where our problems were coming from. However, during our games I started to observe that most of their scores were coming from second chance opportunities and from fast breaks (they both excelled at running as part of a break). The problem became clear, we just couldn’t get them the ball in the half-court. They were getting in good position to receive the ball, but our guards didn’t make the pass, or made a poor entry pass.
Late Passers
Posted by Coach Harris in Coaching on 06/04/2010
Stockton never missed a pass
A while ago I was reading an article by Kevin Eastman about the need to eliminate ‘late passers’ from your team. Immediately this struck a chord with me as I had identified the problem he spoke about but never really defined it in such clear terms in my thinking. Passing is a key skill that all players (regardless of position) must have a solid grasp of. However this post is not about passing as such. It’s about the mentality of those players that are on the floor running your offense.
Coach Eastman uses the term ‘late passer’ to describe a player who does not hit a shooter as soon as they become free. This is a point that we must emphasise during drills to make sure it is embedded in the mindset of our team. Too often shooting drills are treated as a catch-and-shoot drill by players. Coaches must make sure players know they are a pass-catch-and-shoot drill. Without a great pass into the shooter’s ‘shot-pocket’ (the area just above his hip on his strong side where he would usually begin his shooting motion) the chances of the shot being released in time with a crisp motion are decreased. As the level of competition increases, the demand on the quality of the pass also increases.
It is easy to see why Eastman has identified this as a key aspect in his coaching role. He is constantly working with arguably the greatest catch-and-shoot player in the history of the NBA in Ray Allen. The Boston coaching staff compiles huge amounts of information on the mechanics of Allen’s shot and his particular quirks that can be honed further and further to improve his already legendary jumpshooting ability.
At the level I am working at this area is less important because defenses are slower at chasing around screens and closing out shooters. However I include in my definition of ‘late passers’ another problem which I think is vitally important to eradicate at lower level basketball and is even possibly inspired by the greatness of many of today’s premier passers.
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