Well don't take my comments the wrong way. Darn near everything you say in regards to basketball and the fundamental's are spot on.....If you coached at a middle school my hats off to you. I think its a totally different world than AAU.

 

Hopefully your still coaching somewhere.

Totally agree with 2. Some kids become "robots" or appear to be "leashed." Running plays all the time is like playing zone all the time. When plays break down many kids don't know what to do, just like when zones break down many kids struggle to understand proper rotations.

 

I personally like sets that allow for multiple options and allow the kids to play the game based on what the defense is doing. Though, I think many coaches are pressed for time for this. If you drill something enough, kids can pick it up, especially on the "almighty" offensive end.

 

There is certainly room for plays, don't get me wrong.... Quick hitters, OOB's, against zone, situational and time dependent, etc. I just see so many back cuts that clog the lane because the kid who's supposed to get the ball, didn't.

 

And, let's not get this wrong, I certainly didn't wanna put this on coaches. I think there is a lot of good MS coaches out there, sometimes the kids don't listen, or try to comprehend what the coach is teaching.

 

The bold is huge! You have to make them 1) use the skills you are teaching them and 2) make them make decisions on the fly. If you don't do number 2, they never really learn the game and will only be productive in a very structured environment. Which can work in some systems, but really limits the player to adapt to different coaching styles.

Well don't take my comments the wrong way. Darn near everything you say in regards to basketball and the fundamental's are spot on.....If you coached at a middle school my hats off to you. I think its a totally different world than AAU.

 

Hopefully your still coaching somewhere.

 

AAU ball and school ball are typically very different. Night and day, depending on the coach and his philosophy. That said, kids playing AAU is important in my opinion because of that difference. With the right coach (and I don't think just anyone should coach AAU, or any sport, which is what you get in AAU sometimes...) kids can learn a different style of play which can make them better as long as they can compartmentalize the differences in style between what an AAU coach wants, and what your HS coach and team need you to do.

 

At the very least, I think AAU makes you tougher because it is officiated differently. They allow kids to really play, in most cases.

 

Kids should NEVER play zone in an AAU game (press excluded)!!! But, again, I have seen it quite a few times.

Nice read and exactly what most of us are talking about.

 

The Enemy of Excellence in Youth Sports | Changing the Game Project

Nice read and exactly what most of us are talking about.

 

The Enemy of Excellence in Youth Sports | Changing the Game Project

 

Like I tell all our MS coaches, it is not about winning at that level but teaching the fundamentals to succeed in HS. If they win that is great but don't get worked up about it.

 

I also tell them I will replace you for not teaching fundamentals but not for losing.

Like I tell all our MS coaches, it is not about winning at that level but teaching the fundamentals to succeed in HS. If they win that is great but don't get worked up about it.

 

I also tell them I will replace you for not teaching fundamentals but not for losing.

Why is middle school about preparing them for high school? Is high school about preparing them for college ball?

Why is middle school about preparing them for high school? Is high school about preparing them for college ball?

 

HS is preparing them for college. I didn't say it wasn't.

 

the thread was about MS sports.

HS is preparing them for college. I didn't say it wasn't.

 

the thread was about MS sports.

I know it is about MS sports. I asked the questions to get an answer, I didn't say you said anything.

I know it is about MS sports. I asked the questions to get an answer, I didn't say you said anything.

 

No problem. HS sports are both: preparing them for college and for winning.

 

HS coaches can get fired for not winning and most MS coaches won't. But part of winning is teaching those fundamentals and skills that will help them both in HS and in college.

No problem. HS sports are both: preparing them for college and for winning.

 

HS coaches can get fired for not winning and most MS coaches won't. But part of winning is teaching those fundamentals and skills that will help them both in HS and in college.

And a lot of the time, if you are good at teaching the fundamentals you will win more than you lose.

And a lot of the time, if you are good at teaching the fundamentals you will win more than you lose.

 

True

And a lot of the time, if you are good at teaching the fundamentals you will win more than you lose.

 

This is the premise of it all and the result of teaching fundamentals. More times than not, if you teach fundamentals they translate in to more wins...at least at some point.

As someone who have been coaching kids for about 10 years now from 5th grade on up to high school, here's my thoughts on the subject.

 

I used to teach and play m2m defense exclusively. The only time I would play zone is at end of game if blowing someone out or maybe for just a possession or two to try and give a new look, throw the other team off. I was so stubborn about playing m2m, nothing else would do. I could have every kid get beat badly, be out matched tremendously...and still I wouldn't come out of man. About two years ago I had an epiphany...this is stupid. Zone defenses are a part of basketball. Why am I not teaching these kids that too? I mean, UK plays zone...UofL plays zone...and hey, those teams have the BEST college players in the land. Heck, even the NBA is allowed to play a type of zone now.

 

Sometimes I think we belittle or look down at the zone d. And quite honestly, if you don't get after it in a zone, especially as you get older, then it probably isn't very effective anyway. A player STILL has to get after it and play hard. Yes, for the little kids to sit back and play zone all game...I get that and that's not a good thing.

 

So, what do I do now? I teach man to man right out of the gate every year. I usually keep my younger teams in it longer (5/6 team) because they are usually the ones that need more work on it, some not knowing anything about it when I get them. As a matter of fact my 5/6 team played a double header last night and didn't play 1 second of zone. The second game I don't think the other team play a second of man until the very end when we were up and they were trying to get back in the game. As I go up the ladder, I will play more zone with the older teams if/when need be, and with my varsity a 1-3-1 zone is a base defense for us with both a zone and m2m press and straight man d.

 

My 7/8 team is fairly un-athletic and we will play quite a bit of zone defense too. Again, they know and have been taught man, but it's hard to watch kids constantly get beat in some games simply because they just aren't very good athletes. So yeah, the kids need to be taught and learn m2m for sure, but lets not make it the end all be all either.

Saw quite a bit of zone in the Sweet 16 last week.