Quote of the Day:

"In basketball -- as in life -- true joy comes from being fully present in each and every moment, not just when things are going your way." -Phil Jackson

Quote of the Day:

"Over coaching is the worst thing you can do to a player." - Dean Smith

How to Develop Mental Toughness

How to Develop Mental Toughness on the Court By Alan Stein, CCS, CSCS, StrongerTeam.com A couple of years ago I was fortunate enough to meet Graham Betchart, a brilliant performance coach who specializes in mental skills training for athletes.

After numerous phone conversations and email exchanges we finally connected in person at a Big East college basketball game.

I

Quote of the Day:

"Once practice starts, we work hard, and that's the best conditioning there is. Everything counts. Every little thing counts. Run hard, play hard, go after the ball hard, guard hard. If you play soft, you won't ever get into shape." -- Coach Pete Carril

Do you deserve to win?

Rick Pitino opens his book Success is a Choice with the following: "Winston Churchill's rallying cry for the British people during WWII was simple and succinct: hoping and praying for victory was fine, but deserving it was what really mattered.

What does it mean to 'deserve victory'?
According to Churchill, victory comes only to those who work long and hard, who are willing to pay the price in

Quote of the Day:

"Everyone wants to win, but not everyone is willing to prepare to win." -Coach Bobby Knight

Tex Winter: Essentials of Coaching

 Read this post on another great blogger's website. Enjoy!





What makes Tex Winter so great is that his principles regarding the game of basketball remain true no matter what era. Because of his principles, he was able to remain influential as a coach his entire career which was over 50 years. Here are Tex Winters Essentials of Coaching:




A. The answer to success in coaching does not

Quote of the Day:

"If we're playing hard in practice, under gamelike conditions, then we're just naturally going to play smarter and better during a game. That's why all our practice drills are as gamelike as possible." - Mike Krzyzewski

Bob Knight on Ball Handling

Great, quick video on Bob Knight's philosophy for practice and ball handling.

Take action. Today.

Great article from "The Success Professor" (blog).


What is it that you want to take action on? Is there a goal you want to pursue? Is there a habit you want to create? Sometimes it seems like a mystery as to how people are able to accomplish some things and other things they leave to procrastination or simply don’t ever get started.

Understanding the “Theory of Planned Behavior” developed by

Quote of the Day:

"In close games, when the pressure intensifies and the margin between who wins and who loses can be as thin as an eggshell, we believe that all our hard work, all the long hours, and all the perspiration will enable us to come out on top. Why? Because we deserve it. We deserve our victory!'-- Rick Pitino

Role of Team Captains

 One definition of captain is "the person in charge of and responsible for a vessel". Is your captain steering your team the right way?

A misguided or uninformed captain can have negative ripple effects on your entire program- it's important to clearly lay out your expectations about a captain's responsibilities.

Here's a great handout for team captains:







1.     Be on time for all classes

Quote of the Day:

"The trouble with referees is that they just don't care which side wins."  -Tom Canterbury

Get in the "Zone" Part VII

 Part 7 of a 7 part series on helping athletes and coaches get focused, achieve flow and "get in the zone".