CAA Coaches,

 

Clearly not the way we wanted to start the season, but hopefully we will be back together in a gym very soon.  In the meantime, I wanted to share thoughts and some resources to help your players get better and thrive during this pause.

 

Before I get into the numerous resources available for the next four weeks, I want to share my approach that I used with my team last night.  The kids were disappointed and we acknowledged that, but we quickly shifted the conversation to our team goals.  Our goals all year have been to have fun, get better and be a great teammate.  I told them that the State Pause does not mean we have to pause our goals and our development.  If anything, this is the time that we can pull ahead of the other communities.  When other teams are playing video games and sulking at home, we are going to get better.  I talked to each player about the options they had at their house to dribble a basketball (usually a basement or garage) and asked if they were willing to spend a minimum of 15 minutes (and hopefully more) dribbling, plus some additional time staying in shape during this pause.  They verbally committed to each other (not me) that they would work hard to get better.  I committed to delivering them videos that they could work on.  One of my assistants committed to sending workouts to stay in shape.  My team manager committed to develop fun activities for zoom meetings once/week for the players to connect as a team.  Lastly, the players and I agreed to talk for 5-10 minutes/week via Zoom just to check in.

 

Do you need to do all of this?  No - and it might not be realistic depending on your team and your team's age/level.  But you do have a unique opportunity to inspire kids.  To give them hope and allow them to move forward with a fun distraction while the world is disrupted around them.  Please do what you can and use your own ideas to inspire your kids and teach resiliency during this difficult time.

 

Thank you all for your hard work and effort during this crazy year.  Below is a lengthy list of resources.  Some may appeal to your players more than others.  Choose whatever you think will keep them active, engaged and learning.  And reach out to me (and your fellow coaches) if you have questions or other ideas.

 

-Steve

 

1. "CAAStormHoops" YouTube Channel:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEDs8BdZIZy62vfhe7PxFUA/featured?view_as=subscriber.
   •  Matt Arnold developed ball handling and shooting drills back in March when schools first went into quarantine.  They have all been categorized within a playlist so you can easily find links that your teams can work on during the pause
   • Prior to the gym closures, Matt developed some additional distance learning drills.  These are labeled as "COVID 2020" in the various playlist
2. External Paid Options
   • Midwest Basketball training is offering some workouts that were fairly successful during the first pandemic wave.  There is a fee for the whole course, but they also have a few free options: https://twitter.com/MWBBallTraining?cn=ZmxleGlibGVfcmVjcw%3D%3D&refsrc=email
   • Reid Ouse - Excellent trainer for NBA and college players and some local high schools.  Reid is offering some paid Zoom workouts for individuals and teams. :https://twitter.com/reidouse/status/1329810922790150148?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etwee
   • Note that these paid workout options would be the financial responsibility of participating teams/families. 
3. Steve's library of free development drills
   •  I've been collecting short videos that I think are fun and helpful for players. Who doesn't want to learn Allen Iverson's Combo Crossover?  My original intention was to send these out weekly as a challenge during the offseason, but I'm sharing in case you find them helpful to use for your team in the next month.
   • My Recommendation: This seems like a lot and I have to admit that this list is lengthy!  So don't simply send the list to players.  Instead, send them 2-3 to work on for the next few days or until the team has mastered them.  Repetition is great for kids because it is what is necessary to learn, but also because they will start to feel what it is like to make progress and get better which builds confidence and inspires the players to continue.
   • Example: You need to make your own routine from this list, but here is an example of what I did for my 5th grade team.  This morning I sent the Collin Sexton link, the second link in the "Ball Handling Moves" section and then the "Hesitation" video.  Each of these videos are short. The first drill was easy and involved an NBA player which the players will enjoy.  The second was straight forward, but challenged them a bit more towards the end when the instructor added combos.  The third video shows how the original pocket pull dribble could be used in a game (and then the video went on to some other moves that might entertain the kids).  I plan on allowing the kids to work on these moves for the next 3 days and then I'll grab a few more from the list below or from Matt's videos from the CAA YouTube channel.  Essentially, I'll do whatever it takes to keep challenging them and keeping them engaged.