Teaching for the Future

I want to get back to blogging here with  a simple post. A question keeps returning to mind. 

Will what we teach our kids about the nature of the game help them play it better (or at all) in 5-8 years? 

It’s not as simple as you might think. I am not just talking about technicalities. Not just pivot foot and sets and defensive rotations. I am talking about the very nature of the game and the understanding required to play it at a high level. Dynamically. Multi-positional. Offense/defense. Shot-selection.

One example:  do your kids know that a catch-and-shoot jump shot (especially inside-out) is almost always a great shot? 

I am retraining my college players to believe this. Really, really, emotionally/intellectually to believe this. Why? Because as kids they were taught that the closer they are to the rim, the better the shot. But that is not true! Not even close. 

Of course, closer to the rim may help them win now, but it won’t help them win later. We have to educate them on the basis of their basketball future. Take some time to think about what that means for you and for those you influence on the youth basketball front.