The Cross Over Movement Blog

I saw this article linked at TrueHoop about Roger Federer. I apologize for two consecutive non-basketball blogs, as well as the non-stop Federer admiration, for those who read my newsletter.

However, as I argued in my newsletter recently, Federer is the best athlete in the world right now. The article focuses on Federer’s ability to concentrate, or not concentrate as the case might be:

Concentration takes mental energy, as anyone who has fought off five break points before shanking a ball on the sixth knows. And whenever I saw Federer on the grounds, he seemed to be using as little of it as possible. Practicing with Nicolas Kiefer on Ashe a few days before the tournament, he mostly just messed around. He would hit a few familiar Federer shots, the heavy forehand, the penetrating slice, then shank a ball and grin, or yell. Either way, he wasn’t really concentrating all that hard.

Athletes need rest physically, but also mentally. Many athletes overtrain because they try to go hard every day and the high level of concentration it takes to perform at the highest level and to improve burns out the player. Commentators always mention the looseness of a USC football practice with Pete Carroll, especially the day before the game; he is likely conserving their mental energy for game day, while other coaches stress out a team before the game even starts.

Of course, the natural inclination is to say that Federer and USC are so dominant that they can afford the laissez-faire attitude. However, what if it is this conservationist approach which contributes to their greatness, and not vice versa?

The writer also mentions what basketball coaches may term a lack of preparation:

Also, his mentioning how fast it all goes resonated with some comments he made earlier in the tournament, on the subject of how he prepares for opponents - it turns out he doesn’t, much. After Isner: “You can’t prepare for these guys… every player in the top 100 is unique.” And after Davydenko: “I don’t need to sit down and talk about an opponent for an hour. Takes me basically 15 seconds.”

Federer like John Wooden concerns himself with his performance and personal preparation and not that of an opponent. I think this differentiates the good from the best. The best in any endeavor are not concerned with their opposition because they know they are really playing against themselves. They are trying to ellicit their best performance and take their game to the next level. Winning and losing are by-products of the effort to perform one’s best. The competitive element helps elevate a player or team’s performance, but the best know they are performing against their own standards, not playing for a win. As the article concludes:

At this stage of his career, Federer more and more resembles Pete Sampras in his approach to winning. It’s not about the other guy, it’s about what you know you will summon from yourself at times of need. I suppose winning as much as those two guys have builds something more than confidence, something like faith.

Federer has that faith (and so did Rod Laver, judging by some fascinating comments Rosangel put up on the “Simply the Best?” post). And he’s less strategic than many analysts would have you believe. He’s not out there thinking all that consciously about slicing followed by the deep topspin forehand followed by the dropshot. His is an athletic genius, after all, and as he says, “it goes too fast.” Instead, he uses his mind to make sure he’s ready to concentrate at those crucial moments he is so good at identifying, and once there, doing what comes to him. That’s what I think he meant when he said, after Isner, “it’s all in the mind and it’s all in the moment.”

I frequently mention playing to win, but training to improve. Many coaches practice to win the next game (Peak by Friday) rather to develop their players’ skills.

Within the playing to win framework, coaches at a developmental level must remain consistent. While the object of a game is to win, winning cannot replace development.

This week, we had a volleyball game and were down 2 games to 1. This year, we have won one match, which is one more than the school won last season. The goal, as stated in the pre-season, was to develop players’ fundamentals. In the junior varsity games, where I act as the Head Coach, I honestly do not look at the scoreboard; it is not important to me and I think it inhibits the players from learning to play properly because they watch the scoreboard, get nervous and stop trusting their volleyball skills.

In game four this week, with the score tight late in the game, the Head Coach told the girls to bump the ball over the net and send it deep, rather than passing the ball for a set and a spike. Rather than play the right way and play to win, he hoped the opponent would make the mistakes and lose. We lost.

Worse than the loss, in my mind, is the conflicting message. Just bumping the ball over the net is not “real” volleyball: that’s “junior high volleyball,” as I tell the high school kids, though I know that is an insult to junior high school kids elsewhere who play better fundamental volleyball than our players and league.

If the season is about development and teaching fundamentals, how can you ignore your philosophy just because a game is tight? What does that teach a player? Do things the right way unless you cannot succeed and then get it done by whatever means necessary: Is that the message we want sports to send?

I know this is a basketball board, and I am sure there are hundreds of parallels. Maybe the coach preaches team ball all season long, but in the close game in the play-offs, the coach tells four players to get out of the way and allows his star to go 1v5 over and over.

To use the term popularized by Larry Brown, if you’re trying to teach players the “right way to play the game,” you cannot show the lack of confidence in your players to play the right way. It’s a mixed message and will hurt a coach’s credibility and the players’ confidence. If development is the goal, you play the game to win, but not to the exclusion of development.

When I work with players, I try to get player to dip their inside shoulder to turn the corner on their defender and protect the ball. I saw this picture of UCLA’s Darren Collison illustrating it perfectly on Draft Express:

Sonny Vaccaro spoke at Harvard Law School yesterday. I agree with many of the comments from the Washington Post article and even laughed at his comment about Dick Vitale. However, I did not understand his most personal comment:

“I always prayed this would be my ending,” Vaccaro, who will turn 68 on Sunday, said during an interview before Wednesday’s lecture. “I have been working for this day for 68 years. This is the most significant thing I have done in my life, and it is payback for all the kids and parents who have been with me for 43 years. I’m fighting for kids I don’t even know, who have no idea I’m fighting for them.”

What is the most significant thing? Speaking to universities? Arguing against the NBA age limit? Criticizing the NCAA for profiting on the image’s of student-athletes? Writing his memoirs? Or, developing his academy project which is over a year in the making?

How did a career of marketing shoes by taking control of youth basketball and helping it become an out of control free-for-all dominated by profits, not basketball prepare him for any of these endeavors? I understand Eric Prisbell picked some soundbites and hearing the entire lecture might provide clarity, but I remain confused.

Prisbell writes that:

Many college coaches remain reluctant to praise Vaccaro publicly because he is a polarizing figure. Vaccaro said he recently has received the most attention from scholars at prestigious universities.

I don’t understand this either. Why would college coaches praise Vaccaro? When I wrote my piece on Vaccaro and the current development system of which he is the “grandfather,” I received multiple emails from high school and college coaches thanking me for my comments and agreeing with me. They also said they wished more people would speak up, but everyone has their hands tied because the shoe companies are so powerful because of their easy access to kids and money. So, why would they praise a system which many college coaches agree is a detriment to basketball development?

On SocalHoops.com today, I saw a post from a dad asking for a really good trainer for his son (he did not specify his age) and said only a trainer with experience working with college and pro players need apply and he made a derogatory remark toward youth basketball trainers.

On Vern Gambetta’s blog, he has had a series of posts talking about the hype and marketing of some trainers. In one of his posts titled, “For Sale-Latest Training Secrets,” Gambetta writes:

Gotcha – the secret is there are no secrets. The answer is there is no answer. Mentoring , networking, experiences and hard work are the answer, not a $99.95 boxed set of DVD’s

This made me think about some of the basketball trainers and products I have seen hyped recently. I got an email from a guy asking me to be a part of his next money-making product (though he did not want to pay me for my submission). He said he was collecting all the top trainers in the country. I asked for a list. I had never heard of any of them. I hear from a lot of different people around the country about a lot of different trainers, so while my ignorance does not necessarily mean that these are not the best trainers, it creates some doubt.

After the email, and my questions, the guy dropped the name of a certain trainer. I had just seen an advertisement about his product on socalhoops, so I googled him. This is his pitch:

You Might have seen me on T.V., read my articles on the web, or heard about me from a fellow athlete, friend or coach. But… one thing can be certain: you probably haven’t heard of me from the world class athletes and pros I Work With.

I emailed eight trainers and coaches I know. None had ever heard of this guy. He continues:

They hide me away as their secret weapon- because I help them completely transform their game and make them truckloads of money with my complete basketball enhancement system.

This is ridiculous. I know some players do not want to tell others about their trainer. Heck, parents have done it to me. However, if he works with as many players as he claims, the hat is out of the bag:

Since I am regarded by all these pro athletes, top division one players, High school all Americans, the best of the coaching world, an over 5,000 regular ballers just like you

So, over 5,000 people regard him as the “best of the coaching world,” but not one will talk about him. It’s possible, but hard to believe. Next, he says:

as the hands down, only go to guy, completely unique, undisputed Basketball performance Expert,

This is too much. He calls himself the “best of the coaching world” and the “undsiputed basketball performance expert” (and he has typos in his hype, too!). And, none of my friends, all of whom spend hours talking to basketball people and researching training methods have heard of this guy. Just as an example, no fewer than 10 people I trust have told me that the Denver Nuggets’ Tim Grgurich is the best in the world and I have received emails from people about plenty of trainers, from David Thorpe to Jerry Powell to Kevin Cantwell.

The problem is that this is exactly what people want to hear. It’s the perfect marketing pitch. People want to be good, but they do not want to work hard. They want some magic formula. I read one his articles on the three biggest secrets to success or something like that. His secret was to bend your knees. He’s selling some super-hyped product and calling his training “unique” and labeling himself the best in the world and his secret is to bend your knees. Revolutionary!!

I have not seen this guy’s product just as I have not bought any of the products about which Gambetta is writing. However, I know that there is no short cut to success. It takes work and effort. Trainers and coaches can assist, provide motivation and feedback, teach skills and more, but, in the end, players dictate their success through their effort, commitment and dedication.

There is nothing new in basketball. Different people have different approaches and innovation occurs when coaches or trainers take the old and tweak it or improve it. However, regardless of tweaking and improving, it is still about the fundamentals. To be successful, you have to do the work on the court; you have to be coachable; you have to eat right; you have to hydrate; you have to listen to your body and rest when appropriate; you have to be in good shape; you have to have a dedication to the details.

If you do all these things, success is likely regardless of whose program you use or how much money you spend. If you ignore these things, no amount of money in the world is going to buy you success. These marketing pitches are all hype and gimmicks. In the case of the comments on Gambetta’s site, I swear several personal trainers became “experts” by mentioning each other over and over in newsletters and blogs until people started to become so familiar with their names that they are now considered experts. One of them is famous for his business product which he sells and promises to make trainers a bunch of money. These are gimmicks. They may make the trainers rich, so they accomplish their goals, but what about the clients?

I don’t really like to criticize or call-out other trainers because people will suggest it is jealousy or whatever. I emailed eight colleagues and several replied and said I should go after this guy because consumers are unaware. So, take the comments for what they are. Buyer beware.

As for the post on socalhoops, training a child is a way different animal than training a pro. Just because one is good with pros does not mean he is good with kids. Pros already possess skills and are at an autonmous level. They train. Their trainers mainly work on their physical tools, like strength, stamina, etc. Kids need teaching. They need to learn good habits and develop skills properly. These are not the same processes.

Power Basketball has a pretty good article about what coaching is versus what coaching is not. Naturally, I have a problem with the article.

According to the article, coaching is:

1. Coaching IS teaching and adjusting during practice and games.
2. Coaching IS patience, knowing your players’ strengths and weaknesses.
3. Coaching IS fitting a system to your players, rather than having a system and hoping that your players fit in it.
4. Coaching IS changing the momentum of a game by having the overall knowledge and guts, to alter your offenses and defenses during the game.
5. Coaching IS executing your knowledge in a common sense way. Drills repeated over and over, the right way, are the only way to assure that your team will perform in the “clutch”.
6. Coaching IS playing the player who gets the job done. (Don’t play politics)

I do not disagree with any of the comments. However, they are all tactical in nature. And, everywhere I go on the Internet and at coaching clinics, tactical and strategic dicussions dominate. On message boards, questions about drills or plays dominate. Searches for basketball plays dominate any other subject related to youth basketball.

I think the discussion misses the important elements of coaching, especially for youth players. The game is more than performing in the clutch or changing the momentum of the game. What about inspiring a love of the game in players? What about teaching players a work ethic? What about teaching elements of sportsmanship? What about teaching players to be leaders? What about teaching basic athletic skills, not to mention fundamentals? What about teaching players how to think on the court?

These are the questions most coaches ignore. However, I think these answers are far more interesting than discovering a system for your personnel or changing the momentum of a game with a press or a timeout.

The descriptions in the article create a coach-centered environment; what about creating a player-directed environment? Unfortunately, most coaches start coaching because they want to test their coaching skills, which usually translates to the tactical skills which are most evident in games. After all, coaches are evaluated during games because games are public, while few people attend practices. However, most coaching occurs outside of games, during practices, in the locker room, on the team bus, in the coach’s office, etc.

Looking back on your playing career, what do you remember most about your coaches? Their use of timeouts? My dad coached me from 5th - 8th grade and if he called a timeout in four years, I don’t remember it. But, I remember our warm-up routine at practice; I remember making 20 lay-ups in a row on each side; I remember practicing our UCLA press; I remember talking with our two coaches after try-outs in eighth grade; I remember so many things from grade school basketball, and very little of it occurred during the games and none of it involved the coaches during games. I remember plays that happened in certain games, I remember teammates doing things, I remember shots, moves and passes. Is my experience unique? I remember our record in 6th grade only because we went undefeated; we won the championship in 8th grade, but I don’t remember our record and I have no idea how we did in 5th or 7th grade, outside the one tournament we won, and I don’t even remember who we beat in the championship game, though I vividly recall the semi-final because it was such a big upset for us.

My point is that youth basketball, for the players, is about so much more than the coach’s strategy. Unfortunately, in an effort to be good coaches, we often forget this. We coach in an effort to impress the other coaches and parents. However, we fail to put ourselves in our players’ shoes. And, the game, after all, is about the players, not the coaches or the parents. We need to remember why we have the games and what the purpose is, and coach in a manner to enhance the players’ experience, not detract from it or ignore it.

Through my books, articles and training, a lot of people have my email address. I get a lot of emails from people asking for help or advice with different situations. I try to help as much as possible. The email below is from a father who emailed about his son’s summer experiences. Unfortunately, the themes in the email are fairly common and echo those that I receive on an all too frequent basis. I edited names to protect the identities of the coaches, the father and the player:

He played with Joe [a small-time AAU coach who I dislike personally and professionally and advised his son not to play with this summer] and I didn’t like it at all. There were problems with the money, problems with him cussing out players and talking about parents, problems with showboating his son instead of letting them play, problems with other coaches…you name it. We finished our committment with him even though I wanted my son to quit at the beginning and at the next to the last tournament, he wanted to quit.

Joe merged with [a shoe-sponsored AAU program] (lots of controversy there also) to create a team for next year and I told him that we won’t make any committments this early …he still sends emails with my son’s name on it for the 2008 roster. It makes me so angry!

David [an AAU coach I don’t know] runs [another AAU team] and he is a trip…my son played for him to play in Vegas and because of that him and Joe got into it. At one point David wanted my son to join his team and me to serve on his board. No thanks. The more involved I get, the more I find out way too much about them and can’t respect the games. He’s not a great coach but he had a good team so my son liked playing for him until we heard some of the problems with him and his organization.

Matt [another high school and AAU coach with a mixed reputation] had talked to my son about trying out…it’s the same old thing. Who would have thought that out of everyone he would be the one that seems to be the most reliable? You may remember he was working with my son on his shot.

To be honest we are not looking forward to high school basketball this season. Playing with Joe exposed my son to other players and he gained confidence. He was the leading scorer as he was fed the ball in the post…He also made allstar at an observation camp this summer.

Anyway, he played summer league for his high school coaches and they wouldn’t pass it to the post and he has to trail in transition. He’s in top shape but they want to hold him back. It’s frustrating for him. His coach told him the majority of his points will come from put backs.

Anyway its a small world…I had coaches asking my son to play for them and then I had coaches talking about how the high school assistant coach was telling people that he didn’t think that we knew that that my son hasn’t improved…very ugly scene. It was so ugly that we don’t know if he will play basketball next summer or focus on football. He loves the game, don’t get me wrong, but none of the coaches are teaching him anything.

I don’t talk to him about my frustrations with adults or the problems with these coaches but he’s not stupid and sees things for himself. Between you and me, he has told me that he does not want to play for Joe. The only person he would logically play for next summer would be Matt (he talks to him a lot). I don’t think he wants to play with his high school coach anymore because he tells me that he doesn’t think the coach believes in him–I dunno.

To clarify, I am not anti-AAU, as I have seen myself described on a couple web sites. I am an advocate for a better environment for players, whether within the AAU environment, a high school program or a new system. I think the examples above illustrate the problems, from the poor coaching, the “drama” with many programs, the jealousy, etc.

I advocate for a better environment for players, which requires a more committed effort from those who run athletic programs, leagues, tournaments and club programs, as well as the coaches who coach teams, whether school or private. Examples like the above should not happen. We should demand more. But, unfortunately, this scenario is fairly common.

Can it be that basketball coaches and teachers committed high treason by divulging U.S. basketball knowledge to the rest of the world. I have often wondered about this.

The Tournament of the Americas placed the world on notice: CUJO is back. And he is hungry for gold (and, perhaps, Mr. Michael Vick.) I’m reasonably certain that the divisions of FIBA (Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania) watched with glee and cups of Earl Grey as USA Basketball executed ‘Shock and Awe’ a the Thomas and Mack Arena.

These games, indeed, represented the worst possible denouement for USA Basketball. The domination will allow those associated with our sport to take a deep breath and exhale, thinking: How do you spell domination: USA Basketball.

Forgive me for sounding like Dave Chappelle’s ‘Negrodamus,’ but I remain nervous and worried. Not because of Messrs. Krzyzewski, Kidd, Bryant and Colangelo– but, instead for what I know about International Basketball’s elite. These are wily, clandestine operatives who are, as we speak, devising a protocol to uncover the ‘Achilles Heel’ of USA Basketball. To wit:

1.) We are, as a nation, possessors of Short Memories.
2.) Team USA’s core will not practice together again until just before Beijing.
3.) Jason Kidd’s knees will age one year for every 33 games he’ll play this season.
4.) The 2007 performance notwithstanding– the only Olympic qualifiers afraid of Team USA are in the ‘just glad to get an invitation’ category.

The medal round–like March Madness– is an asphyxiating ‘one and done.’ That means the most talented team doesn’t necessarily win. The best team ‘on that day’ wins. Team USA, just three scant years ago, caught an inferior Greek team (from a talent perspective) on a night when that team ‘made it rain.’ In a bestof-seven series, Team USA beat the Grecians 4-to-2. But, there is
no best-of-seven cushion in the Medal round…it is the full-on expression of ‘all we have is right now.’ Italy and Spain are for real– and, Argentina without Ginobli and Nocioni (as they were in
this tournament) are like a rum cake sans the rum.

A rotating collapsing defense preventing dribble penetration and dunks– combined with a ‘hard-deny, no catch’ tactics on Michael Redd– followed with concomitant shot-making — and, guess what: Team USA is in a close game.

Now, what do we know about basketball? IT IS A GAME OF HABITS.

Moreover, all players revert to dominant habits in moments of anxiety. A two possession quarterfinal game–down by five with 0:44 remaining– defines anxious.

And, there is another variable: Officiating. In the eyes of the men and women who call the Olympics, the NBA is to basketball, what “Ice Road Truckers’ is to “Ice Skating.” (There is a layer of ice beneath you, and that’s where the similarities end.)

Team USA’s Bronze medal in 2004 was — to me at least- a source of pride. I am amazed at how often that accomplishment is derided and scorned. Team USA fought and competed for that Bronze medal. It meant something.

Now is the time for USA basketball to work harder– to be earnest in their committment to not ‘let-up.’ The Achilles Heel is ‘HUBRIS,’ with equal parts comfort. Fans, coaches and and player
should spend the next 12 months studying the nuances of the International game and understanding how well the Big Four (Italy, Spain, Argentina and Lithuania) make plays when it matters.

No squad will will lay down for Team USA. I am concerned that we’re being hoodwinked and aren’t wily enough to know it. The rest of the world will say: “We may as well concede the gold to the Americans…they are unbeatable,” or, “Let’s face it, we’re all playing for second place.” Note to USA Basketball: “When you hear such cries from the rest of the world, DON’T BELIEVE IT. It’s a setup.

The gold medal is an accomplishment to be earned, not the divine right of USA Basketball. Let’s rally around USA basketball now– and prepare ourselves — as a country– to win the gold. It’ll be sweeter.

Lindell Singleton coached high school basketball for ten seasons in the Fort Worth/Dallas metroplex. His teams made four appearances in the State Final Four. Coach Singleton’s book,
‘RAIN: A workbook for Players Who Want to Score,’ will be available in October, 2007. Contact him at: thegamematters@gmail.com