I have to admit, I was quite happy to see Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks win the NBA championship.  Although I am not a Dallas Mavericks fan, I have always admired Dirk Nowitzki and found his game pretty impressive.  He possesses the size, athleticism, and skill set that very few players in NBA history ever have, and it is this versatility that makes him great. 

Ever since his coach Rick Carlisle referred to Dirk Nowitzki as one of the top ten greatest basketball players ever, there has been much debate over his place among the all time greats of the game.   Nowitzki is hands down the best foreign player ever to play in the NBA and whether or not he is a top ten player ever is up to you to decide.  What I want to take a look at the root of what makes him such a spectacular player.

Dirk Nowitzki is a multiple skills basketball player, meaning he can dribble, pass, and shoot the basketball, and for someone who is seven feet tall, that is quite impressive.  Nowitzki has the ability to handle the basketball like a point guard while being able to stop on a dime and pull up for his incredibly soft jump shot.  At this point, I am not sure if there is a better jump shooter in the NBA and there is no better free throw shooter as evidenced by his performance from the line througout the playoffs.  Furthermore, Nowitzki has the court sense of some of the great point guards in the game as he has an uncanny ability to pass the ball to the open man when the opposition double teams him.   And let’s not forget his athletic ability that  often is overlooked.  Sure, Nowitski is not one of the high flyers of the NBA, but his ability to change directions, explode past defenders, and run up and down the court are quite feat of athleticism for a seven footer. 

Ultimately, there have not been too many players in the history of the game of basketball that combine Dirk Nowitzki’s skills and athleticism. It should be noted that this is not something that Nowitzki was born with.  He worked and still works for countless hours in the gym with his same boyhood trainer developing all aspects of his game.  His work ethic is admirable and consequently, his ability and versatility are what make Dirk Nowitzki one of the NBA’s all time great players.

The development of multiple skills along with improving athletic performance have long be a fundamental aspect of our training at Elite Basketball Training.  If you ever have any questions on how we develop basketball skills that take our players games’ to the next level please contact me through this website at any time. 

See you on the court!

Rich Stoner, USAW

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

Elite Sports Performance

Knowing how to win Butler style is five players being in a defensive stance for 35 seconds on every posession.  If is five players making the player that they are guarding catch the ball going away from the basket. It is five players boxing out when the shot goes up, every time.  It is five players cutting hard on offense.  It is five players working to get the best shot, from the best player, at the right time.  It is never giving up on any single play or at any point in the game.  These are the little things that make a big difference and the Butler players and coaches know that.  That is why they are able to win in March and April.  It is not because they have an overwhelming amount of talented players. Sure Shelvin Mack is a future pro and Gordon Hayward is a current pro, and Matt Howard might play somewhere, but this is not Kentucky where five players get drafted after one season of college basketball. This is Butler. Take a look around and see how many major programs have accomplished what the Butler Bulldogs (a mid-major) have done in the last two years.  Not many.  Why? Butler, “knows how to win,” with a recipe of many little ingredients that add up to one giant accomplishment each year.

Let me know your thoughts on the Butler Bulldogs and their March to a possible title in the comments section below. 

See you on the court!

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

This “Big Three” mentality is no different than the hyped up AAU philosophy of picking up the best talent from across the country, rolling the balls out and letting these superstars compete together to win glamorous tournament titles week in and week out.  The kicker is that you never know if the same team will be there from weekend to weekend because who knows what dominating player the coaches might be able to convince to play with them on a week to week basis. 

Ultimately, the big question is does this philosophy work?  It is honestly too tough to tell.  At the AAU level, yes it does as there are just not enough great basketball players out there to compete with some of the glitsy AAU teams that have been created.  At the NBA level a case can be made either way.  In the case of the Celtics, the “Big Three” won the NBA championship in their first season together.  This is in large part due to the other players playing their role around the original “Big Three” especially Rajon Rondo and his point guard abilities.  However, in the case of the Heat, only time will tell.  As of right now, it does not look promising.  The Heat are 5-13 in games decided by five points or less this season and have yet to consistently win against any of the top tier NBA teams.  The reason…superior talent does not always outperform a good team.  Take the Chicago Bulls who this off season chose not to go the AAU route and instead added the necessary pieces to complete their puzzle.  Now the Bulls have an MVP candidate in Derick Rose and are a true title contender.  They are a good team that includes eight to 10 players playing and contributing on any given night.  They are not a combination of three superstars that do not compliment each other’s game and therefore have trouble working together.

It might appear that I am anti AAU but I am not as it does have its value in moderation.  However, the notion of the Big Three could ultimately hurt the NBA as it creates a huge divide in talent between the top teams and the lower teams. 

Let me know your thoughts on this in the comment section below.

See you on the court!

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

Free throws are shots that should be so simple, but they give so many players, even good ones, a hard time.   This difficulty increases exponentially in late game situations.  A perfect example of this was the same game the other night my opponent’s best player missed at least five free throws down the stretch.  Missing free throws in late game situations is not a physical mistake, it is a mental mistake.  It has nothing to do with him being a good or bad shooter (he had made his free throws up until that point).  Practicing free throws are a necessity especially when developing and training for basketball, but with late game free throw shooting, it becomes about consistency and focus.  It is about taking a deep breath and visualizing the basketball going in the net. It is about blocking out your surroundings and ensuring that your focus as a basketball player is on that rim and making that particular free throw. 

So why did my freshman basketball player make those two clutch free throws in such a crucial situation of the basketball game?  Simple, he was mentally focussed.  It was the same situation that he had been practicing for years at the park or in his driveway.  It was him, the rim, and no one else…swish.

As always, let us know your thoughts on free throw shooting and any other aspects of the game that you find players making mental mistakes by writing in the comments section below.

See you on the court.

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

Throughout the basketball season my assistant coaches and I have many opportunities to discuss basketball.  Not just our basketball team and the players on it, but other high school basketball teams and players as well as college and pro teams and their personnel. 

This season,  I have a pretty talented backcourt and this weekend at our basketball team’s pre-game shoot around, I spent some time talking to my guards about their shot selection on their drives to the basket and when they get into the lane.  The discussion was mainly on finishing around the rim based on different defensive situations.  The purpose was to get them to understand when to go all the way to the basket, when to take a pull up jumper, when to use a jump stop, and when to use a step back jumper, etc. 

This type of decision making is all part of basketball skills training and is worked on in all our Elite Basketball Training sessions.  Finishing around the rim is a skill that needs to be practiced through drills and recognized through playing and watching basketball games.  In order for them to see what I was talking about in a real game situation, I told my guards, to watch Villanova’s mens basketball team.  Villanova’s guards posess great ability to make the correct choices (shots) when driving to the basket and getting into the lane.  Corey Stokes and Corey Fisher are two of the best in the country at their position and Jay Wright is one of the best coaches in the country when it comes to developing his guards. 

As I was telling them this, it occurred to me that perhaps today’s players do not watch as much college basketball as I did when I was growing up or currently do now.  So when I explained this scenario to my long time assistant and a coach who has about triple the years of basketball coaching experience I do, he mentioned that he felt that today’s players were not students of the game like we used to be or currently are.  Sure they might watch some games here and there, but if they do, are they really taking notice of how the players play? 

On the surface, it would appear that today’s players do not take notice of the game’s nuances; how the players cut, how they set up to shoot the basketball, how they drive to the basket and finish at the rim.  If this is truly the case, then they are not students of the game, and this is most unfortunate.  In fact, it is a direct reason why the basketball acumen of many of today’s basketball players has dropped considerably.  A low basketball IQ can lead to poor on court decisions not just when driving to the basket, but in any on court situation.

Consequently, I encourage all of you in the Elite Basketball Training community, as part of your basketball skill development, start taking in more basketball games.  Doing so will help players and coaches once again become students of the game, learn as much about basketball as they possibly can, and increase their basketball skills and IQ.

Are players today students of the game?  Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.

 The clip below is flat out awesome as it touches upon whether or not second place is no big deal. 

Is second place a big deal for you?  If not, keep sitting around watching clips on youtube.  If it is, then use those clips to go out, and bust your tail in order to make sure that you do NOT end up in second place.

Do you have any clips or quotes that fire you up for a game?  If so, share them with the Elite Basketball Training community in the comments section below.  Thanks.

See you on the court!

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

The big question is when do they find the time to do this.  I firmly believe that there is plenty of time in any day to accomplish all that you need to as a basketball player.  If you have a Saturday morning practice, ask your coach if you can come in early or stay later.  If you have a day off, take an hour or two to go to a local gym or park to work on your game.  The fact is, basketball skill development and training can take place on many days and times during the season and it should.  Players with better skills will make the team more successful because team success is dependent upon the overall skill of your players. 

If you are looking for basketball drills that will help you improve your game use the search engine on this site or visit the Elite Basketball Training youtube page.

As always, share your thoughts on basketball skill development during the season in the comments section below. 

See you on the court!

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

As a valued member of the Elite Basketball Training community, I am seeking your help.  I want to know what topics you would like to see covered more often in the form of blog posts and products.  To better serve you, I have created a brief survey that I would like you to fill out.  Please take a moment of your time as filling out this survey would be greatly appreciated and benefit the entire Elite Basketball Training community.

Click here to take survey

Thanks.  See you on the court.

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

There is also a new testimonial below from one of my most recent trainees, Kevyn Douyon who is a starting guard at Bishop Ahr High School in Edison, New Jersey. 

The Star Agility Drill: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_oQ35ySpLc

Sports Performance Training: http://www.youtube.com/user/elitebasketball?feature=mhum#p/a/u/1/16JPNwHbak0

Box Agility Drill: http://www.youtube.com/user/elitebasketball?feature=mhum#p/u/3/F18OSmX5eRg

Coach Stoner -
 
We would be remiss if we did not take the time to THANK YOU for the time you spent with Kevyn during the last few months during the Elite Basketball Bootcamp. During that time Kevyn has seen and felt tremendous results from your training sessions. If you recall at the start of these sessions we identified all of the areas of his training that would be targeted to specific aspects of “his game” on the court. Suffice it to say, the training has exceeded all of the objectives we identified at the start of the training. The results are evident in his play – he is quicker, more explosive, and stronger. The overall training has help him elevate his game and prepared him for the rigors of varsity high school basketball. In addition to the positive results you can see, the training has made him more confident both on and off the court. He did not miss a single session and enjoyed every minute of the training. He is definitely looking forward to starting the next session with you in the spring immediately after the end of the basketball session.
 
Thanks again and looking forward to working with you again very, very, soon!!!

Hope that you enjoyed the videos and let me know what you think in the comments section below. 

See you on the court!

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

The Corner to Wing Shooting Drill allows coaches to work on getting shots from the wing out of a typical cut in a motion offense. 

Purpose of the Drill:

The purpose of this drill is to work on shots coming off a cut from the wing to the corner.

Instructions

• The player makes a pass to the coach and then takes a few steps down, jams to get open and comes around the top cone for a series of shots.
• Shots include: off the catch, head fake one dribble pullup (both directions), rip back through for a one dribble pullup, run through with extended dribble into the lane for a jumper, finish at the rim, finish at the rim with a reverse, jump stop in the lane step across and finish (both directions), and a floater in the lane (both directions).
• Repeat the drill on the opposite side of the court.

Points of Emphasis:

• receiving the ball low and with your hands ready.
• finishing low to high.
• pushing past the defender on all dribble moves.

Motivation/Teaching Tips:

• Make a set number of shots before moving onto the next shot type.