Well, I went into this clinic not knowing anything about the youths I would be teaching, but I have to say overall I thought they did very well. They listened and worked really hard on the drills we were working on all night. We covered basic principles on defense, did quite a number of drills to work on shooting. Then we finished up the night with two practice games.
At first I was disappointed in the blue teams` lack of help(no screens, bad passing, etc ) to one another…..so I mentioned my displeasure with that, and after that they started to do the things I asked of them…..and started to turn the game around on the yellow team. That made me happy to see they took what I said to heart and then did something about it. So hopefully in the future they will continue to work on their teamwork skills and in the process become a tighter team.
After it was all said and done I worked with the team`s big man (almost my height) all we worked on was the basic drop step move with a baby hook at the end of the move. I told him it will be a unstoppable move IF he works on it every day they get in the gym…..and work on using both(he is left handed) hands around the basket. At his age and that level (high school) that is really the only move he needs for starters. So long as he gets as deep in the post as he can…. Every time down the floor! If he can do as I asked of him (practice every day) that team will be a 100% better with him on the floor than they have been in the past. I hope he comes to that realization soon, because it will benefit the team and more importantly himself in the long run.
Late Mr. Fury
Well I must say I was much more pleased this week than last one…folks came through this time. Had about 15 people slide through and it went quite well. Games went smoothly and I felt that overall everyone that was there chipped in.We mixed the teams up right from the beginning and that went well, Japanese ballers played with foreign ballers, therefore the people who have never done so before….got the opportunity to do so. Good for the experience of the novice, good for a ballers growth overall, and good for the quality of the game themselves. I hope that everyone that was there can come back many times after this, because this is the only way a person`s game can grow in my eyes. Like I`ve said before and will continue to say……. Experience goes a long way!
There is one funny story to share from the other day…..the big fella who happens to be a wrestler, first time down the court stops me(and actually the run for a minute or so) and says “this is my first time doing this” and that he had only been playing basketball for a month. So I looked at him replied SO……?? You see, my opinion is this if you show up, you should play! If you don`t think your skills are up to par, then maybe you should sit down and watch, or get better, and then come back. However, if you`re on the court, run, compete, and figure out just how good you are.Only then will you truly know where you are at game wise. Wouldn`t you know it though, he actually did very well…..he used his body to grab ALL the rebounds and he even had a nice catch (I put the heat on a pass to him to get through several players hands…..and he caught it) and finish. I was impressed anyway! All he needs now is to continue to come out…..and maybe if he wants to really get better come to one of my clinics so I can teach him how a big man should play. Yet this is the point with pick up games, this is how we all get to the point where we are now….. living and learning, growing and having fun playing the sport we love! That`s all there is to it.
