Tips on Running a High School Basketball Practice

No matter what level you are coaching, practice is everything. Organizing yourself, your assistant coaches, your players and your managers every day will help make your programs chances of success much higher. Coaches who choose not to plan out their practices all too often get beat by those who do. Lack of preparation is the quickest way to a losing season, parent complaints and a very short coaching career.

When planning your practice be sure to take into consideration a few key points. Look at your talent level, your players' maturity, number of players, number of assistant coaches, equipment, gym time and most important your season goals. After considering each of theses ingredients start preparing your practice plan to best utilize what you have and what you want.

Planning your practice is not a difficult task. Sticking with your plan is the difficult part. Many coaches will sit down for a few minutes before each practice and jot down a well organized and efficient plan for that days practice. Then twenty minutes into the practice they will veer of course and the practice is a loss. There are times when a coach needs to change or adjust their plan to fit the mood of the players, adjust for an injury or an unforeseen absence. However, most coaches just simply get lost or run out of time.

Running a drill to long is a mistake that is made by many coaches. When a drill is going bad most coaches will stick with it hoping their players will eventually clean it up. Cutting the drill short and moving on can and usually is the best choice. On the same hand a drill that is running well should not be ran to long either. It is always a good choice to stop the drill at the end of the allotted time before it starts to get ugly. By doing this your players will stay positive and take that attitude into the next scheduled drill.

Most programs have to share their gym time with other programs so making the most of every second you have on the floor is crucial. To do this, coaches should look at other ways to accomplish tasks off the court. For example consider having your players do their stretching and warm up running in a hallway. Use classroom time to introduce new drills and strategies. Look for other times to have your players' workout. Morning and lunchtime shooting practices will free up a lot of practice time and will help keep your players away from outside distractions.

Make the most out of your help. Assistant coaches need to stay busy during practice. Coaches that stand around not doing anything tend to feel left out and are often shown less respect by your players. When running drills have your coaches spread out on the floor. Assign each coach a player or a certain point to focus on. Also, organize your practice and give your coaches opportunities to run a portion of practice. Furthermore, if you are lucky enough to have managers, use them. Have them rebound, clean the locker room, keep practice stats and or what ever busy work you may have. Managers are just like players if they have nothing to focus on they will soon lose interest and will become a distraction. Then when you need them they will not be there.

Most coaches will spend the first half of their practice running a lot of drills then working on offense and defense at the end. Consider changing things up from time to time. If every practice is the exact same every day players will tend to get board. Also, when teaching new strategies it is often a good idea to teach them early in practice before your players run out of gas. Athletes tend to retain more when they are fresh. Furthermore, look at using your drills for conditioning. Running lines to get in shape is a waste of valuable gym time.

Practices need to be as intense as possible. However, insert enjoyable drills and maybe a fun competition from time to time to help keep your players balanced. Almost every player you have plays basketball because they enjoy it. Do not take this away from them. With a little thought and organization every coach has the ability to work their players hard and still have them leave the practice with a smile. Players who leave practice with a good attitude tend to return the next day with a good attitude. Players with a positive attitude are much easier to coach than those with a bad attitude.

Finally, keep records. Keep attendance, track free-throw shooting, keep practice notes and always keep a copy of your practice plan on file. You never know when something may come up and you will need that information. Also, never run late. Rarely do players and parents complain when you let practice out a little early, but you are almost guaranteed to hear some complaints if you run late. Remember, your preparation and organization is crucial to your programs success. Take it seriously and good luck.