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

Having a like minded individual to work out with will eliminate the days when you just do not feel like working out.  Each of you can ensure that this never happens by motivating each other from the start.  Once you are at the basketball court or weight room working out, having a training partner will completely change the dynamic of the workouts.  They will be competitive and challenging as you and your partner push each other mentally and physically to make more jump shots, lift heavier weights, run the extra sprints.   This will ultimately make you a much better basketball player and athlete.  Beyond the obvious physical and mental benefits of training with a partner, the workouts will just simply be more FUN.  Having one of your good friends around to train with will make the workouts less like work and more like another way to hang out.  The workouts will be encouraging for all of you and bring you all closer together, knowing that you pushed each other to give your very best during each and every workout. 

With this in mind, Elite Basketball Training and its sports performance training branch, Elite Sports Performance in accordance with the New Jersey Sports Academy will be hosting Bring-A-Friend week during the week of June 13-18.  All participants in any of the Elite Basketball Training and/or Elite Sports Performance programs are encouraged to bring a friend to any of our workouts.  The friend will be able to work out with the group for the hour for FREE and then can earn a discounted rate to any of our programs if they sign up that day.  As a show of appreciation to our loyal customers who bring a friend to the workouts, they will also receive a discount to a future program if their friend signs up.  There will be vendors and contests throughout the week including our athlete of the month sponsor, Muscle Maker Grill of Edison who will be there Thursday evening handing out free samples of their delicious and healthy food.

So how could you possibly say no to Bring-A-Friend week or training with a partner. I encourage you all to go out and invite a friend to work out with you and I guarantee it will help make your workouts competitive, challenging, and fun while making your game Elite.

See you on the court!

Rich Stoner, USAW

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

Elite Sports Performane

THR College Planning and Recruiting

The drill, that I call the “Bird Drill” (don’t ask me why, I have no idea where the name came from) is one of the toughest drills that I have ever done.  It is a five spot drill (both corners, both wings, and the top of the key) that requires the player to make two shots in a row before they move to the next spot.  Right about now, you are probably asking yourself where the difficulty lies.  Two shots in a row is no big deal. Well, it is if you only have two minutes to get around and back.  That 20 total shots in under two minutes (four shots from the far corner before you can start your way back). If you are thinking this is still no big deal, give it a try.  I have seen really good players shoot really well and this drill and never make it back around because of the fact that you have to make two in a row at each spot.  Nonetheless, the “Bird Drill combines two challenging components, shots made in a row and time. I encourage you to do this drill shooting off the catch and off the dribble. And of course, keep track of your progress, it is the only way to get better.  

Hope you enjoy this drill. Let the us know some of your most challenging shooting drills by describing them in the comments section below. 

See you on the court.

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

Let’s use our best of 30 shots contest as an example.  We competed in this event three different times.  The first time around, I made 67% of my shots.  I decided that that was not good enough and new I could make more so when my turn came around again, I buckled down, focussed a little more and made 73% of my shots.  However, I was still left wanting a higher percentage.  This is part who I am, but also partially because I knew I missed a few shots last round that should have gone in.  So for the third round I zeroed in and lit it up for a whopping 80% from the floor!

Honestly, my point is not to tell you how well I can shoot that basketball with no one guarding me.  It is actually to get you into two habits for your shooting workouts.  First, keep track of how many shots you take and how many shots you make.  Not everyone has access to fancy pieces of equipment like the “Gun” but last I checked, a note pad and pencil worked just as well. 

My second point is to make sure that you are competing and constantly changing the game.  Incorporate various games/competitions into your shooting workouts, even when you are alone.  Examples of this include:

1.  A total number of shots made in specific period of time.
2. Making a certain number of shots in a row from varying spots.
3. Making a certain number of shots in a row before you move your spot.
4. Number of mades shots out of a specifc number (like out of 30 or 50)
5. Setting a specific number of shots to make in your workout, either as a total or from varying spots (ex. from three point range, off the dribble, in the lane, etc.

These two items, charting your progress and making your workouts competitive may seem simple but in all honesty, how often do you do it?  I would venture to guess that the average player would answer that question with a, “not often.” Yet this is a necessity to improving your shooting workouts.  Competitions will add a challenge, alleviate monontony, and make the shooting workout as difficult or more difficult that an actual game.  While charting your progress will show improvement.  So next time you head out to the court to practice, preplan a list of shooting competitions for yourself in your notepad and chart your progress and I guarantee that you will see results.

See you on the court!

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

Ps. If any of you have any other ways to improve your shooting workouts or just your basketball workouts in general be sure to let the Elite Basketball Training community know by commenting in the comments section below.

As always, let the Elite Basketball Training community know your thoughts on the drill and any other competitive drills that you use by commenting in the comments section below. Thanks.

See you on the Court!

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

In the following video, you will see a series of fundamental drills that I use all the time for my post players and sometimes even for my guards and wings.  These drills work on footwork, finishing, hand-eye coordination and many other fundamental aspects of the game of basketball.  To view this video, please click on the following link: Fundamental Post Drills Video.

Remember, let the Elite Basketball Training community know what you think by writing in the comments sections below.

Also, Elite Basketball Training and Elite Sports Performance has many basketball skill development and sports performance training programs available right now at the newly renovated New Jersey Sports Academy in Edison.  Please contact me for more information. 

See you on the court!
Rich Stoner, USAW

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

In the meantime, I wanted to get you a quick post on a drill that I like to use at the end of a workout.  I particularly like to use it for post players but it can be used for any type of player.  The drill is called make Five in a Row.  For this drill, the player should flash to the short corner and shoot a jumper.  If the ball goes in the basket, it counts towards the five in a row. If the shot misses, the player must rebound the ball before it bounces and score for it to count towards the five in a row.  Once the player misses, they restart at zero for that spot.  This process is then repeated at the foul line and the opposite short corner. 

This drill is great because it put pressure on the player to make shots, but also hustle after a rebound on a miss and concentrate on the follow up.  Here is a video sample of the drill in action =>  Five in a Row Drill

 I apologize for not having the video right in the post.  For some reason, I am having some technical difficulties embedding it.

As always, let us know what drills you guys are doing at home and whether or not you like this one. 

See you on the court!

Rich Stoner

Elite Basketball Training, LLC

To view this video, click on this link: Fundamental Ballhandling Drill (Video)

As always, if you have any drills please share them in the comments section below.

See you on the court.

Rich Stoner
Elite Basketball Training, LLC

Last week, I was fortunate enough to attend the basketball game that saw Rutgers shock then number 10 in the country, Villanova.  I was invited to the game by Dallas Ouano who is a walk on at Villanova and trains with me in his off months from basketball.  It was really exciting to attend a high level Big East basketball game, especially one that ended like this game did (sorry Dallas). 

The first thing I noticed after I received oxygen and the burning sensation in my legs wore off from climbing to my seat in the rafters was how hard the players were working on the court.  I could seriously touch the roof of the RAC but was still able to hear the sneakers squeak on the basketball court below.  That is not by accident.   That is straight up hard work!  There is something to be learned from the sounds of the game of basketball and squeaking sneakers is definitely a sign of effort.  This effort was exuded by both teams and it was Rutgers who gave just a little bit more down the stretch to earn the victory.

After the game, I hung around to talk to Dallas about how things were going with college and basketball.  He came out noticeably disappointed and justifiably so.  We got to talking about things and I was telling him about my team and how we had lost six straight games at that point.  I asked him what coach Jay Wright had to say after a devastating loss like this.  His first response was quite simple;  that they needed to take it on the chin and get back to business the next day.  However, he further went on to explain that at that level, everyone is really good and the pace of play is extremely fast, and that ultimately, it is the team that plays the hardest for the longest wins.  Dallas places the responsility for such losses on his own shoulders as it is the scout team’s (which he is a part of) responsibility to prepare his teammates for each and every game.  Dallas told me that they work so hard to beat the first team every single practice and if they do not, they are not doing their job. 

I was so impressed with this advice that I relayed it to my own team.  This information is not something that is new to them, as we emphasize effort and execution daily.  However, the source from which it came is.  What I made clear to them was that Dallas has very little to gain from busting his tail day in and day out.  As a walk on, he will very rarely, if ever play.  This makes his perspective on hard work and effort very selfless and team oriented.  His selflessness was reiterated in the following text that he sent me after the game:  “Tell your guys that it doesn’t matter if you look bad. Some of them will stop playing ball after high school and some might have college on their minds, but in the end, guys on good teams get looks. You have to sacrifice your personal agenda for your team, and in the end it will help each guy reach his personal goals.”  As a long time coach and trainer, this says it all.  The concept of working hard for the name on the front of your jersey is not a new one, but it is sometimes forgotten when the going gets rough.  Dallas’ insights served as a reminder of this for my team with the hope that it will provide new life for my them going forward in the playoffs.

Let me know what you think on this topic in the comments section below or by weighing in on this discussion on my Elite Basketball Training Facebook Fan page.

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