The Cross Over Movement Blog

In the Forum, there is a link to several articles on the FA’s attempts to improve football development in England. One article mentions Manchester United as the club to replicate because of its philosophy.

For those unfamiliar with European football (soccer to us), Manchester United is one of Europe’s most storied and decorated clubs. The English Premiere League is regarded by many as the best league in the world even at a time when England’s National Team failed to qualify for the 2008 European Championships. Some in England believe the number of foreign players playing and dominating in the EPL is one reason England’s National Team is losing and they believe the number of foreigners on the EPL teams should be reduced. Others argue that creating a watered down professional league will not serve the National Team’s best interest.

In some ways, this is similar to discussions in the United States regarding the NBA and USA BAsketball. In England, the FA (Football Association) hired a new National Team coach to restore England’s National Team to prominence, mush like USA Basketball did with Coach K. However, more important, the FA has examined its youth development program and made recommendations which will be introduced nationwide. In the U.S., USA Basketball has not taken this measure, and the only changes at the youth level has been changing the name of Nike’s All-American Camps, changing the marketing of the adidas brand and Sonny Vaccaro searching for a sponsor for his elite academy.

The FA’s report concluded:

The central argument of the in-depth report by Richard Lewis, the executive chairman of the Rugby Football League brought in by football’s governing bodies to advise on producing the next generation of Rooneys, Gerrards and Lampards, is that professional clubs must spend more time working with five to 11-year-olds on technique, rather than obsessing over results.

In Europe, players develop within the youth programs of professional clubs rather than at various rec centers, AAU teams, schools, etc.

In England, Man. U is the model.

This is the United ethos. Backed by Sir Alex Ferguson, an Academy overseen by Brian McClair and Les Kershaw have focused on accentuating first touches in well-coached training sessions, or four v four matches, rather than launching into rivals in competitive fixtures of eight-a-side or more. United are so committed to improving technique that they just cancelled an Academy fixture with another club who wanted to play eight v eight, not four v four.

United even employ one of the world’s foremost skills coaches, the Dutchman Rene Meulensteen, to hone the touch of their youngsters (and also the first team).

Sir Alex Ferguson is the Head Coach of Man. U. Imagine youth basketball programs that employed some of the finest basketball coaches and focused on skill development not winning games. This is the FA’s recommendation for English football; it is also the recommendation made in the final chapters of Cross Over: The New Model of Youth Basketball Development for basketball in the USA.

As I argue in Cross Over, the FA report’s author says:

“I recommend a change in ethos in age groups 5-11 so that much more emphasis is given to skill development and acquisition rather than an emphasis on results in matches,” said Lewis.

When people have disagreed with me about the failings of the U.S. system, I argue that the U.S. should not be satisfied with good results, but should ensure that the U.S., with its financial resources invested in basketball, has the BEST system.

“If football in England wants to be the very best in the world, it must be the very best at every aspect of young player development,” stressed Lewis. “There can be no room for compromise.”

In Cross Over, I argue that the Foundation and Fundamental stages are the most important stages for elite player development, as players need to learn the proper execution of general motor and sport-specific skills during the formative, “skill hungry” years.

The key area of Lewis revolves around what the Dutch call “the golden years” of learning. Skills acquired then, from the step-overs that United youngsters learn from Meulensteen to dragbacks and kicking with either foot, set them up for life.

Lewis underlined how important “the formative years are to the establishment of correct technique”, adding: “Young players must be able to pass, control, kick and shoot correctly, as well as learning how to improve speed, stamina, flexibility, agility and balance. Their mental tool-kit must also be built up in their formative years”

Instead, the great solution in the U.S. has been to add role players to the senior national team and watch Vaccaro search for an elite academy for a dozen 18-year-olds. While the media suggests that players’ readiness for Division I basketball is aided by the constant AAU basketball, I disagree. Too many games at a young age stifles the players’ development, not enhances it.

Skirmishes with local rivals are pointless. “An over-emphasis on results leads to a climate of fear, something remarked on by many in the system,” added Lewis. “I am not advocating the removal of the ‘winning ethos’, nor the downplaying of the very successful FA Youth Cup or the desire to produce winning England Under-21 teams. However, match results, especially at the youngest levels, are not all-important.”

I watched yesterday as an AAU coach yanked players in and out of games whenever a player made a mistake. The kids were 12. The tournament was another meaningless tournament in a long line of tournaments this year. How is a player supposed to improve when he gets yanked out of the game every time he makes a mistake? Why do we expect 12-year-olds to be perfect? A kid I train is looking for an AAU team; he was going to play for the big sponsored all star team, but they don’t even practice and at 12-years-old, the kid thought that was stupid.

Another point I have made on this site and in the book is the disproportionate amount of respect we give NBA coaches versus youth coaches. Few if any major coaching clinics hire youth coaches who understand how to teach youth players. Instead, college coaches are used for name recognition even though many have never taught a child and 95% of the audience works with kids and teens.

The position of youth coach must also be lent more respect, Lewis argued. “The coaching regime required for young players aged 5-11 is a highly specialist area, and coaches of these children must be rewarded appropriately,” Lewis maintained. “Quality coaching is critical.”

The FA saw a problem, hired someone to examine it and now is charged with implementing the changes. In the U.S., no organization is examining the problem or implementing solutions. I know. I have approached Nike, adidas, NBA, USA Basketball, NABC, AAU, BCI, YBOA, ESPN and others about my book and the change in philosophy necessary in the U.S. in regards to youth basketball development. Thus far, nobody has shown any interest. However, I have heard from coaching directors in Scotland, Australia, Canada, Italy, Slovenia and more who are interested in the book, its philosophies and concepts. It is disappointing that nobody in the U.S. is willing to examine the problems and make the effort to change the system, while other smaller, less basketball rich countries are moving forward with more progressive plans for youth basketball development.

A friend forwarded an article from the City of Palms Tournament which featured some of the top players and teams in the nation. The article interviewed some of the top coaches about their perceptions of the youth development system.

Holy Cross High School (Flushing, N.Y.) Head Coach Paul Gilvary:

“It’s a lot different now than it used to be,” he said prior to his team winning the City of Palms’ third-place game, 74-56, over Helen Cox High of New Orleans. “I think the NCAA has caused the whole situation because of the different times of the year they allow the recruiting. The NCAA has really made the summer very, very important to the kids.”

Montverde Academy (Montverde, FL) Head Coach and Athletic Director Kevin Sutton:

“We have our players in summer school and we try to look at everything as to how they do at the collegiate level academically and athletically,” Sutton said. “I feel that 85 to 90 percent of a player’s improvement takes place during the summer. We try to structure our summer around our team’s improvement. If our players continue to improve, that will attract the attention of the college coaches.

“We have 18 to 20 players on Division I or Division II scholarships,” he added. “Exposure, to me, is sometimes often overrated and overstated. As a former college coach, I think it’s better to go see a kid when he is in his more natural environment. That way, I can get a more accurate evaluation of him.”

Head Coach Matt Herting of Bishop Verot in Fort Myers, FL:

“A lot of people say, ‘Well, you get to play against great competition in the summer.’ I think you get to play against some great competition, but a lot of times you play against bad basketball, which is a problem. AAU coaches are at a disadvantage. A lot of the time, they don’t get much time for practice. And it’s so liquid. If a kid gets mad at me, he can’t just leave Bishop Verot and go play somewhere. In AAU, you can do that.”

Tom Tietze, publisher of Kansas City Basketball Abstract:

“One of the problems we’ve got in this country as far as basketball goes is that kids are playing too many games. They don’t do enough practicing. I’m not sure if that’s gonna change.”

Memphis beat Georgetown yesterday in the battle of the two highest profile teams running versions of the famed Princeton offense. Neither looks like the old Princeton high post offense, but each uses some of the same philosophies. However, Princeton used the back door, high post offense to offset its disadvantages against bigger, quicker teams, while Georgetown and Memphis are among the biggest, most athletic teams in the country.

Georgetown uses the Princeton concepts with a bigger emphasis on low post play, since the Hoyas have Roy Hibbert inside. Memphis runs an up tempo version of the Princeton offense with his athletic guards and wings. Each teams uses dribble penetration and back door cuts to set up more dribble penetration and open three-pointers.

Memphis won the game, but its win resulted more from its defense than its offense. Memphis plays great defense and uses its length to make it hard for opponents to run their offense. Georgetown struggled to run its offense and never established Hibbert, who should have been the Hoyas’ biggest advantage, at least on paper, because of his size. Memphis’ quickness, and Joey Dorsey’s power, made it hard for Hibbert to play and utilize his strengths and skills.

The problem with both offenses is they get stagnant and rely on too many outside jump shots. Memphis has stretches of the game here it has no movement and players just pound the rock on the perimeter. Georgetown goes through spurts where it settles too much for outside shots and, especially against Memphis, struggled to get timely baskets. And, neither team shoots free throws well, which does not bode well for their championship aspirations.

I like the ideas behind the Princeton offense and the Memphis system, as my Blitz Basketball system draws on a similar philosophy. However I think the offense as I see it played at higher levels lacks consistency and can be easy to guard, especially if a team lacks outside shooters. So many high school teams are moving toward the offense, which I like for certain reasons, but I also question whether teams have the personnel to run the offense well, or if coaches are using it because it is the latest fad in coaching. I did not watch Memphis play G’Town and think that the Tigers’ offense was one I hope a lot of teams emulate. Instead, I saw a lot of what used to be termed “bad basketball” when I was playing.

I write to make people think. And, since publishing Cross Over: The New Model of Youth Basketball Development, one of the greatest points of contention is static stretching. Coaches and players swear they need to stretch to prevent injury. But, and nobody wants to acknowledge this, static stretching does not prevent injury.

I practice and train players in a giant, public facility and cannot believe how much static stretching other teams do. It makes no sense to me. Now, some of my players need to stretch more after practice because we need to work on their flexibility, but stretching is not a warm-up. For further proof, here is Vern Gambetta’s take:

I mentioned that static stretching during warm-up was a waste of time. The predictable reaction was one of how I can do that we will have a explosion of injuries if we don’t static stretch in warm-up. Wrong – the 15 minutes of static stretching actually may be causing injuries. That time could be so much better spent actually warming up and for preparing for the workout or competition. I don’t understand the infatuation with pre-exercise static stretching. It has no place. Static stretching and warm-up are not the same. Static stretching in warm-up has a calming effect, the opposite of what you want in warm-up. Warm-up should be active and dynamic; it should activate and prepare the body for the subsequent workout. Static stretching used to enhance flexibility should be placed at the end of the workout. It is placed there when the body is warm so that maximum return from the stretches can be achieved. Also that is the time when you want the body to be relaxed and calm.

Andy Katz has an article on the Australian Institute of Sport. While it is not my vision for a new American system, it shares some of the same concepts, mainly the top players praticing and competing against the other top players under top coaches.

When I first started to research for Cross Over: The New Model of Youth Basketball Development, I emailed Martin Clarke, as I know Randy Bennett at St. Mary’s whose program depends heavily on AIS players. Unfortunately, we never managed to get a productive dialogue to produce anything worthwhile for the book.

As Clarke mentions in the article, the AIS is possible because there is not a depth of talent like in the USA. How would such an Academy work in the USA, when you could argue 50 different players could be the most deserving 12 in any given year.

Unfortunately for players in other countries, Australia has managed to find a way to play within the college scholarship rules in the States, while European clubs rely on the professional club system to develop players and the United States relies on heavily sponsored AAU programs.

Having played within a European club program on a second division team with a DI recruit and also helped several European female players secure DI scholarships, it is unfortunate how the NCAA polices foreign kids who have no other choice and, in many cases, receive fewer benefits than an American kid who plays for a Nike or adidas AAU team. While these AAU teams fly cross country for tourneys in brand new gear, we took vans cross country, played in old uniforms and bought our own shoes. Yet, technically, the kid could have been ruled ineligible for playing with 2 players who received money and thus he chose to sign a pro contract rather than attend Georgia Tech (mid-nineties).

The AIS probably gives players more benefits than most youth teams affiliated with professional clubs, yet it follows the US procedures to keep players eligible, which is smart on their part. However, would something similar work here? I think there are too many players. I believe in a more European club system, which is what I outline in the book.

San Diego’s radio station selection is poor. Fortunately, my car has an Ipod hook-up, so I plug-in my Ipod and listen to my old CD’s. I have realized that today’s hip-hop is terrible compared to the late 90’s and early 00’s: Gang Starr, Peanut Butter Wolff, Dilated Peoples, Jurassic 5, Souls of Mischief, Del the Funky Homosapien, Planet Asia, Haiku D’Etat, the Pharcyde, Roots, 4th Avenue Jones and others.

Many of these artists complain about other artists in their music: Peanut Butter Wolff asks, “Do you know what I really hate?” and answers, “Fakers.” Jurassic 5 asks, “Are you in with your heart or are you in it for the funds?” Gang Starr and Dilated Peoples criticize rappers interested in the bling and the cash and not the music.

Several trainers have emailed me about posts on this blog, complaining about me calling them out. In some instances, I did not even name names, so the trainers simply have a guilty conscience about exploiting a market and offering a sub-standard product. However, in the one case where I named names, the “trainer” emailed back and accused me of jealousy becaue of the dude’s expensive house.

This is the problem with the basketball training industry. Most people view it as an easy way to make cash. There are no standards or qualifications, so anyone who can talk a good game can call himself a trainer, get a ball and find some kids with a dream to exploit. Few are the trainers who are in it for the players, the game and the love.

I write about the problems with basketball trainers not because I am jealous. I don’t even want to own a home. I’m not in it for the money. Defending yourself by name dropping or talking about money does not impress me or convince me of anything. In any industry, the highest earning businesses do not necesarily offer the best product. McDonald’s has several billion served; but, does anyone want to argue that it makes the best burgers? If in San Diego, try Hodad’s in Ocean Beach, Fatburger in Pacific Beach or Nicky Rotten’s downtown and then tell me McDonald’s makes a better burger.

Like the hip-hop artists, I hate the fakers and the guys in it for the dollar, not the game, the players or the love. I hate watching bad trainers basically stealing from kids and their parents. It doesn’t really affect me, but it bothers me nonetheless because I love training players and value the impact a good trainer can have on a player.

Kevin Armstrong has an interesting look at John Reik, the seven-foot Sudanese sensation playing post-grad ball in the Northeast.

The relevant aspect, to this site, is an innocuous paragraph near the end of the story:

On Nov. 17, at the National Prep Showcase in Lowell, Mass., Riek was scheduled to play against fellow unsigned recruit, Tyreke Evans, a shooting guard for American Christian (Aston, Pa.). Just days before the contest, Riek aggravated his knee trying to do leg presses on an antiquated machine too small for him. He would have to bow out of the much anticipated battle.

Forget that the machine was antiquated, why is a basketball player doing leg presses? Basketball is played standing upright, so players should train standing upright and incorporate single-leg and double-leg exercises to develop functional strength which translates to injury prevention and enhanced on-court performance.

On another note, Dave Eggers’ What is the What is a gripping tale of the civil war in Sudan.