Nike Coaching Clinic review...

A week ago, me and a few other coaches went to the Nike Coaching Clinic at Turning Stone Casino/Resort in Verona,NY where there were coaches from around the country who spoke on different topics such as defense, transition offense and other practice drills. There were a lot of othere High school coaches in attendence from all over the eastcoast that were eager to learn more just as much as I was. Excited to see and listen to some of college basketballs best coaches from Chris Mack, head coach of Xavier University to the most intimidating man to coach the game, Mr.HuggyBear himself, Coach Bob Huggins of West Virginia. He had some great stories that he shared about practices and players who didnt give it their all and was asked to go home, not just back to their dorm but like ALL THE WAY home (lol). I have heard stories of the "treadmill" thats to the side of the court during his practices. When a player doesnt make the time for sprints or isnt going hard or is messing up in a drill, he sends them to the treadmill. He says "you cant cheat the treadmill". He sets it at 17mph and when you get on it, if your not ready to go, it will throw your ass right off. He shared some of his bloody stories that i thought was pretty funny. He is a great guy that has a no nonsense attitude when coaching. I picked up a couple of interesting drills from him. One of my favorites is the Iron man drill, where the player denies the wing, then sprints back to the paint for help side defense, then takes a charge, then he rolls the ball to one side of the court and after taking the charge, the player has to hustle to his/her feet to dive and try to save the ball before it goes out of bounce. I feel thats a good drill to do if you want to have a tough minded defense. Its always good to have players that are willing to hit the floor for a loose ball, or be able to take a good charge. Hard nosed players are my favorite. I will take a player who is willing to do all the little things over a scorer who doesnt help the team defensively anyday. Another one of my favorite coach/speakers was Coach Bruce Webber of kansas state.I have been a fan of his since he was the head coach at Illinois, when he coach Derron Williams. His style of coaching is something that I have picked up. He likes to set high goals and has a vision that focuses on team goals more than individual goals. Your best player must believe in you. He or she must buy into the system and your ways. Once that happends and the other players on the team see that, it becomes a better team, and they are willing to "share the juices". Everyone must be assigned a role and must be willing to accept it. That gives you your best chance to compete. Other coaches who spoke included Drexels head coach Bruiser Flint, Gonzaga's Mark Few, and Leonard Hamilton, Coach "Ham" from Florida State. Coach Ham used to be the head coach at University of Miami while my good friend Clint Hurtt coached football there, so we shared some stories after his lecture. Coach Ham is a defensive mastermind. He went over some close out drills and team defensive schemes that you can practice. He highlighted practicing good habits and always being ready to anticipate. I always tell my players, "dont let the offense do whatever they want to do, dont let them go wherever they want to go". Coach also talked about accountibility which I think is big in a team game such as basketball. (Speaking of which, I need to email his assistant coach Dennis for this checklist worksheet we were discussing.) Defensively, your goal should be to prevent easy fastbreak points and keep the ball out of the "redzone" (inside the arch) as much as possible. It was interesting to hear that his teams have always been in the top5 for least points allowed, holding teams to 35% shooting. Pretty damn impressive. All in all, it was a great clinic and I learned a lot of little things and lets not forget the casino. Of course I played..lol. Started out on the bottom and was down a good Hundred but went back and made all that money back, plus some. Now thats whatsup. I cant wait to incorporate some of these drills and lessons into my practice plans. Im always looking to get the best out of my players and after this clinic, I have more ways to do so. SO until then, no days off. The season starts now.

#DoMore

~Coach T

Welcome Home

This past weekend was a great one for hoops, well minus my NYKnicks losing to the Pacers(lol),  but after my daughter and her AAU team won both of their games yesterday in the Empire Dragons AAU tournament, some of the girls went to School #9 to meet a great icon and role model from right here in their own backyard. They were part of a crowd of many people who came out to show love and support for Rochester's own and WNBA player ,Shenise "MoMo" Johnson. She is a graduate from Rush Henrietta High School who went on the play division I basketball at the University of Miami. She was the leader of that team and scored 2,000 career points and was the 5th pick of the 2011 WNBA draft. She was selected by the San Antonio Stars. During this off season, she went to play ball overseas in Hungury where she says, she had to go and find herself and her game. Shenise said that she was just a spot up shooter for the San Antonio Stars and she said "thats not my game". "I needed to get back to doing what I love to do, get the ball and go". Shenise loves playing a fast pace game, pushing the ball up the floor and playing at a high tempo. This will be her second year playing in the WNBA and she hopes to get back to playing her style of play. She interacted with the young girls who are now looking up to her as a role model. The young ladies saw first hand what a professional ball player looks like. Not only that, but a female pro ball player. "She was cool and had big hands" said one of the girls and while the other ones giggled, they all realized that this to can be them one day, with dedication and hard work. But I also reminded them that you have to have a love for the game to make it that far. There will be hardships and bumps along the way and they need to perservere and climb many mountains to get there. But anything is possible if you believe. Shenise was a good inspiration to these young ladies on their way up the ranks. Keep working ladies and good luck. You are our future.

~Coach T
#DoMore

Basketball Dreams Skills & Conditioning Training Service

Basketball Dreams Skills & Conditioning Training service is committed to coaching youth about basketball, sportsmanship, hard work and dedication; teaching fundamentals of the sport, teamwork, and character, and providing them with the tools to become successful and productive citizens. This training offers an in-depth approach to effectively prepare players to compete at a high level on their select or school team. Coach Terry Nowden (Gates Chili Varsity Boys Basketball Asst.) is the instructor for all skill sessions which are held at any available facility that has a safe and controlled enviorment for the youth. Ball-handling, shooting, offensive moves, post moves and defensive skills are some of the areas covered in the skills sessions. Coach T also trains in life Skills, education and college preparation and can guide them in these areas as well. We do accept all ages, male or female. Please feel free to call or email Coach T to set up your training session today. Pricing may vary. $10 for a single session or $40per month. Locations are Mondays 6:30-7:45pm at the Gates YMCA and 10-12Noon on Saturdays (no sessions June8th, 15th and 22nd)

A New Beginning

I am an aspiring coach and have been an assistant coach at the varsity level for the past 4 years.
Lately, I have been thinking about all of the different ways that I can tap into my passion of coaching. I have had some great experiences and some not so great but that's what excites me about coaching. Its definitely a challenge and I love a good challenge. Working with the youth has been a passion of mine for quite some time. I have coached kids ages of 7 years old, all the way up to the high school level and they all have had pretty much the same reaction to my coaching style. I am able to tap into their potential and get the most out of them as athletes as well as young men. They are comfortable with me and will share any stories outside of sports (girlfriends,social activities,music ect) with me and I can share my own experiences with them. I relate to them in many ways and have been down the same path as most of them, single parent home, not so good grades in school, cool, popular, good at sports, but like me, most of them don't have a mentor, someone to look up to. So what I find is that a lot of these kids are learning from street experiences and listening to music and following the sterotype of what is deemed to be "cool". Like smoking weed, drinking, partying and just enjoying life. But they don't realize that there comes a time when you must grow up. Must become an adult and take care of their own self once they are out of their parents house. Some even give up and revert back to the streets because that's where they feel accepted. Little do they know, the streets have an expiration date. As does life. I often encourage them to find their passion and do something with it.. Tap into their power. Sometimes I have to ask them, If you are not getting better, you are getting worse, so how much time are you wasting? Success means doing the best we can with what we have!! Next season starts now!. You can't build a reputation on what you're going to do. Dont let someone dim your light simply because its shining in their eyes.... blind they ass!!!!
 #DoMore
~Coach T