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I'm coaching Middle School basketball this year-- advice?

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Keep in mind that something which motivates one kid can demotivate another. Talk to each one individually, trying to figure out what they need to hear.
 
One Brow said:
Keep in mind that something which motivates one kid can demotivate another. Talk to each one individually, trying to figure out what they need to hear.
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c'mon onebrow....... basketball is about feelings... dont get all feely with them dal, teach fundamentals.

teach them the game and let them govern themselves a bit, this is how you find out who is real about it and who is not. remeber as a coach your job is to help them become better, not to suck the fun out of the sport. let them play their game (just like in glory road)
 
If one of the kids has a hot mom find reasons to have sit-down meetings with her or even offer to buy her a cup of coffee so you can discuss her child's potential/issues/how special they are, etc.
 
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That's BAWSE Dal.

Archie's suggestion of pressing if your guys have talent is a good one.

dat jazzfanz.com mobile app doe
 
dalamon said:
are there certain things that your coaches did, that had a huge impact on you?

I'm definitely willing to do the best possible job for these kids. Some come from pretty unstable families so I want them to enjoy this 'exit' and learn lots.
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My advice: make sure all kids have at least some playing time. I myself am a horrible basketball player. I only played church ball when I was a kid, and was probably one of the two worst players on our team. But our coach always made sure I got in for a few minutes each game. In hindsight I really appreciate that--it made me feel like a part of the team. I think that'll be even more important given the family environment you said some of the kids come from.

P.S. good for you for doing this!
 
Thanks for the contributions, and remarks!

It will be a huge time-commitment (on top of a full-course load, and various other extra-curricular work that I'm involved in) but I have always wanted to coach in some capacity, and I really do love working with and motivating young kids. One Brow's comment definitely sheds good insight, and I'm totally the type that will try to stay away from a cookie-cutter coaching approach.


Keep the advice coming!
 
Work on FUNDAMENTALS every single practice. Break any bad habits early on and replace them with correct principles. And give a ton of praise for non-scoring accomplishments (assists, rebounds, setting screens, defense, etc.) to ensure you develop an unselfish team rather than just a bunch of boys all looking to score as many points as possible.
 
Core4 said:
Work on FUNDAMENTALS every single practice. Break any bad habits early on and replace them with correct principles. And give a ton of praise for non-scoring accomplishments (assists, rebounds, setting screens, defense, etc.) to ensure you develop an unselfish team rather than just a bunch of boys all looking to score as many points as possible.
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Pretty much my thoughts. Make sure they understand it is TEAM game first and the most fun they will have if they share the ball. They need to understand their roles and that rebound or steal could be more important that 3 pointer. And what colton said, even if you have absolute useless kids they still are part of the team and need to play, give them roles of screen setting or inbounds plays or whatever just to keep them involved. Most important - have fun! Don't teach or run to many plays - 3-4 basic plays is plenty at this level ( pick and roll, three, horns and zone buster with baseline swinger would be my choices ).
Oh, and if you ever have road trip to Calgary let me know, I will make sure to come and watch them play.
 
These kids old enough to learn by watching basketball? That's always a good tool
 
It's not like I know anything, but I didn't know crap about screens or pick n roll. If I were you It'd be this:

1. FunDamentals
2. Pick/Screen domination
3. Advanced Screens without the ball
 
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