Patosha Jeffery, The Girls Basketball Trainer Blog

“Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.”
-Michael Jordan

You may begin to see posts on Alan Stein on a regular basis because I am really beginning to dig him. We are similar in some ways and it is refreshing to see that from an individual involved in basketball.

I first realized how much we were alike when I read this in one of his blog posts.

….I read a dozen books on leadership and watched numerous DVDs and YouTube clips on performance enhancement. I combed through notebooks of my own notes and took time to reflect and evaluate my entire program. Most importantly, I developed my plan for this coming pre-season.

I thought I was weird that I read self development books on leadership, team work, etc. And I have a library of basketball DVDs. You know I’m on youtube looking at basketball clips. You may not know that I’m always planning for my upcoming training sessions and future events..

So, long story short..I am a fan of Alan Stein.

Here is a nice piece he wrote on his blog about Success:

Success.

People put too much energy in the wanting part. All they do is sit around wishing, dreaming, and hoping for success.

Instead, they need to put their energy into deserving success. They need to put their focus into earning success. They have to put on their hard hat, roll up their sleeves, and work for success.

Don’t get it twisted… there is nothing wrong with having dreams. You should have dreams!

But unless you actively pursue those dreams with effort, determination, and persistence … they are meaningless.

Do you want to make the varsity team this year? Do you deserve to?

Do you want to win a championship? Do you deserve to?

Do you want to play basketball at the next level? Do you deserve to?

Elite level players and championship caliber programs know the difference between wanting and deserving success. Your pre-season program is when you make that distinction. Are you doing everything in your power to deserve success once the season starts?

image from ESPN Hoopgurlz

I knew eventually someone would write about it. I even had a conversation about this with a coach.

WE COULD NOT BELIEVE WHAT HIGH SCHOOL PLAYERS WERE POSTING ON FACEBOOK.

Maybe the words from a former college basketball coach will make players think twice about what they post on Facebook and Twitter. You never know who is watching or reading!!!!

No matter what form of social media you might be using these days, coaching staffs are going to be doing their homework and checking out whatever it is you might be putting out there for the world to see. They’re going to read your posts, check out just who your friends might be, and you can absolutely bet they’re looking at the pictures you’re sharing.

Click here for the complete ESPN HoopGurlz article by Mark Lewis

I sent an email out to my girls basketball tips readers asking How can I help you be successful?

Here are a couple of questions and my response:

Question 1: I was wondering if you had any tips for basketball team tryouts. I have a couple of tryouts coming up I the next week, and I would really like to know anything that might make me feel less nervous. I have practiced and trained all summer long and I think what I need are mental tips and ideas to make me stand out.

Write this statement on pieces of paper and put on your mirror in your room, in your notebook and in your locker.

“I’m prepared to Make the Basketball Team”.

Read it when you get up in the morning. Read it when you open you notebook. Read it when you open your locker.

Question 2: What can be done at the 3rd thru 6th grade level to prepare youngsters for the next level!

At that grade level, I would focus on ball handling with both hands, layups left and right and correct shooting techniques. Show them how to shoot free throws at their shooting range, just inside the free throw line.

That’s what I primarily work on for that age group.

Question 3: Curious question, I have a girls 12under program that I run. I wanted to see if you had anything on top of what I am currently doing that would help my pg’s dribble through contact instead of shying away. I have been successful with a new drill I created but I am always open to new ideas.

Something that my coach in college would do is bump us with a pad while doing layups..

Also, there are some drills in the Chris Paul  Camp video that teaches the players how to play through contact and pressure.. It starts at the 17 second mark of the video..

http://girlsbasketballtrainer.com/blog/2010/06/girls-basketball-guard-drills-by-chris-paul/

I was back in the gym this past Saturday hosting a mini-camp. It felt good getting back in the gym and working with the players. We missed the past 2 weeks because of activities at the facility.

I started the training off with the following motivational quote.

“I advise you to say your dream is possible and then overcome all inconveniences, ignore all the hassles and take a running leap through the hoop, even if it is in flames.”
-Les Brown

I normally have a couple of the players tell me what it means to them, however, today I told them that I would email the quote to them and that I would like for them to email me what it means to them. I’m anxious to see what responses I get.

The theme of the training has been pre-season conditioning. I have this theme because we are getting close to the fall season so I have the young ladies do more full court drills.

I started them with four stations focusing on shooting, free throws, two ball ball handling and agility with sprints. They did some full court zig zag defensive slides. Then we focused on one-on-one defense and ball protection while someone is guarding you.

After that we worked on left and right hand layups, cross over into layups and pull up jumpers. We ended with knock out game with them shooting from the wing areas.

Unfortunately, I will not host another mini-camp over the next 3 weeks.
This Saturday the facility is closed. On September 25, I will be speaking a an EYH Conference at the University of Memphis. And on October 2, I will be hosting my annual Pre-Season Show Off Camp.

I was reading a blog post from Alan Stein. He is the strength and conditioning coach from the video I posted on Conditioning Drills

His post talks about branding yourself. It has some very interesting points and it comes at the right time especially since basketball tryouts and the last NCAA evaluation period of the year are approaching. That means players will be putting themselves in position to impress and stand out so team coaches and college coaches can see them.

Here are some interesting points:

What are your favorite brands?
Nike? Apple? Facebook? BMW? Vitamin Water?

Do you consider people to be brands? Well they are! The most obvious is Michael Jordan (heck, his company is called the Jordan Brand). What about Donald Trump, Jay-Z, and LeBron James? Do you consider them brands? I certainly do. Why? Because the characteristics that come to mind when you think of them as individuals are automatically associated with the product they endorse. Make sense? You won’t see Donald Trump endorsing Wrangler Jeans.

If you want to be successful, both on and off the court, you need to start viewing yourself as a brand as well. Think of it as “brand you.” Everything you do affects your brand in some way (either positively or negatively). The way you dress, the way you act, and even the way you play. You need to take your brand very seriously if you want to make it to the top. And just to clarify, I believe in being authentic. I am not telling you to act like someone else or to try to please others just for the sake of it. You need to be real. You need to be genuine. You need to believe in your own brand, and equally important, set the standards of your brand. You need to decide what characteristics you find most important and then live up to them every day of your life.

Is your goal to play college basketball? Then carry yourself as if you already do! Hold yourself to the same standard of excellence as an elite college basketball player would… now… don’t wait. Carry yourself with the same honor, character, humbleness and work ethic as college superstars Evan Turner (Ohio State) or Wesley Johnson (Syracuse). Those two represent everything that is right with college basketball. Evan and Wesley know the importance of their brand. And now both are surefire lottery picks.

What do you want people to think about your brand? What would you want them to say when describing your brand? Hard working or lazy? Coachable or a hard-headed? Energy giver or energy taker?

What makes your brand unique on the court? Are you a great passer? Or are you a ball hog? Are you a lock-up defender? Or do you only play one end of the floor? Are you a good teammate? Or are you only focused on getting yours?

What makes your brand special off the court? Are you a good student? Or are you a class clown? Do you do what is right when no one is watching? Or are you always looking for a short-cut or an easy way out? Nike cares about what people think of their brand. So does Apple. So does Vitamin Water. So does every other big time brand. So should you.

If you don’t think these things matter, then honestly, you don’t have a clue. They matter more than you know. What people (coaches, teachers, scouts, parents, friends, etc.) think about your brand has a direct impact on the opportunities you will have in life. You only buy brands you like and trust, right? Why would people be any different? Would you buy an iPod if there was a good chance it would break? Would you drink Gatorade if it tasted like vinegar? Absolutely not! So why would a college coach want to give you a scholarship or an NBA general manager give you a contract if they didn’t have full confidence in your brand (both on and off the court)? The answer is… they wouldn’t.

Everything you do reflects your brand – everything! The way you dress, your email etiquette, your Tweets, your table manners, your voicemail message, your eye contact… the list goes on and on.

I roll my eyes when a player sends me an incoherent email full of grammatical errors and spelling mistakes asking me what they need to do to be successful on the court. Especially when it is sent from ChocolateAdonis@aol.com (which actually happened!). How am I supposed to take them seriously? If you don’t have the personal pride to use spell check or punctuation, why would I think you have the discipline to follow my recommendations? Please don’t waste my time. Same goes for someone who has a 5 minute rap song full of foul language on their outgoing voice message or a Facebook profile full of inappropriate pictures. These folks just don’t get it.

Research has shown it takes less than 30 seconds for someone to form a lasting impression of you. If you make a poor first impression, it can take up to 21 follow up impressions to change that person’s opinion. First impressions are a big deal. Remember, whether it is right or wrong, people will always judge you and judge your brand. What do you want them to think?

One of my favorite stories of first impressions and building a strong brand is when Michael Redd met Jerry Colangelo. Back in 2006, USA Basketball was in the initial stages of putting together the “Redeem Team” to compete in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Jerry Colangelo (managing director of USA Basketball) arranged individual interviews with every potential player. He wanted to meet with them prior to deciding who to put on the team. He wanted to look them in the eye to get a sense of their character and commitment. Michael Redd drove straight from his practice with the Milwaukee Bucks to a hotel in Chicago for the interview. When Mr. Colangelo answered the door, Michael was standing there in his team warm-ups with a garment bag on his shoulder. After shaking hands, Michael asked if he could be excused to use the rest room. When he emerged a few minutes later he was dressed in a full suit and tie. Now he was ready for the interview. Now he was ready to show Mr. Colangelo what his brand was about.

Michael Redd’s actions landed him on the team that eventually won the gold medal. Putting on his suit and tie for the interview showed respect and professionalism. You see, Michael Redd gets it. He understands the importance of his brand. It is not an accident he plays in the NBA and has an Olympic gold medal.

What is Your Brand?

Hello Friends of the Internet Capital of Girls Basketball.

I’ve decided to start writing about my experiences as a girls basketball trainer. Hopefully through my writings, you will learn more about me, my love of basketball, new basketball drills, basketball tips and more.

Today I really don’t have much to write about. I’m actually a little disappointed. I did not get to train or host my mini-camp last Saturday because their was an activity at the facility I train at. Then this Monday, I received a phone call that I will not get to train this upcoming Saturday because their is another activity.

So instead of having the players go through 2 weeks of no activity, I decided to create a workout for them to do on their own.

Here’s the workout:

Ball Handling:
Wrap ball around waist 20x
Change directions and wrap another 20x
Wrap Ball around head 20x
Change directions and wrap another 20x
Wrap Ball around knees 20x
Change direction and wrap another 20x

Dribbling
Left hand dribbling at knee level 25x
Break – count to 10
Right hand dribbling at knee level 25x
Break – count to 10
Left hand dribbling at waist level 25x
Break – count to 10
Right hand dribbling at waistlevel 25x
Break – count to 10
Left hand dribbling at shoulder level 25x
Break – count to 10
Right hand dribbling at shoulder level 25x
Break – count to 10

Shooting (popo25):
Start inside the paint and with a bank shot. If you make the shot, take a step back. If not, attempt to make another shot in the same spot. Work your way out and around the basket until you make 25 shots.

Free throws:
Make 10

Layups:
Work on the techniques of left and right hand layups.
Use left hand on left side and Right hand on right side.

Also, I recently added a Pre-Season Workout to the GirlsBasketballResources.com site. The emphasis is on conditioning through ball handling, defense and shooting drills. Get more information here.