Mike Dunlap

St. Johns, Associate Head Coach NABC Final Four Convention March 30, 2012 Collection of Thoughts on Coaching Basketball
Goal for attending coaching clinic: take the speakers ideas and make them fit your system and culture o Most important, though, is to always keep an open mind Spring Cleaning o Evaluate every aspect of your program (system and personnel) every Spring o Always evaluate your thinking Creating a Defensive Mindset 1. Philosophy Know it backwards and forwards St. Johns Defense Philosophy: Extreme ball pressure Rotate not help/recover Rebounding become obsessed with it 2. You are what you emphasize Take inventory of practice plan How much time are you spending on defense? Cover defense first in practice 70% of practice should be on defense Forces you to simplify offense 3. Create your own Defensive Chart Chart: Tips Tip Backs Charges Drawn 50/50 Balls Contested 3s Box Outs (Converted vs. Missed) 4. Transition Defense Become obsessed with shot balance The Big Stop The winning team in any drill must validate their victory by getting a stop in transition defense ***Many more games will be decided by transition defense than a game-winning FT 5. Limit Easy Baskets Lay-ups Open 3s FT Attempts 2nd Chance Shots Memphis vs. St. Louis (1st Round of 2012 NCAA Tournament) o Best tape on defense this season o Break it down and show it to your teams

Six keys 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

to create your own drill: Advantage/Disadvantage Know rotations of personnel Never interrupt player until he rotates off Time Score Winner/Loser

4 Stages of Learning 1. Tell 2. Show 3. Have them show you 4. Repetition Pick & Roll Defense o There are at least 12 different ways to defend ball screens o You need to choose 3-4 for your team to practice and master o Be create go to zone if need be Use film every single day with your team o Film sessions should be short o Can work into practice plan with either whole team or small groups o Film your practices! This is often more valuable than game film o Stats accuse, film convicts. Read: o o o

Good to Great by Jim Collins The Four Purposes of Life by Dan Millman Daily Reading: NY Times USA Today SI & ESPN Magazine Ongoing book

Verbals o You and your coaching staff need to decide on a common language to use with your players Habits o o

So important that your programs culture be full of routines You are your own habits!

Drill work o Favorite Practice Drill: 3-on-3 OR 4-on-4 Defensive Cutthroat Whistle does all the teaching Give 4 rules to govern the drill (i.e., must point out the assist) Change these rules daily o Coaching staff needs to hit the mute button sometimes Designate one drill every day the coaches cannot speak Coaches kill their own drills all too often with incessant talking o Always validate Big Stop Execute a special situation (Tom Izzo) Practice Time o During grueling stretches of the season have a running clock for practice Start practice counting down from 90:00 for example Helps players mentally Only stop the clock for lack of effort and add more time