“A hero is no braver than the ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

 “I fear not the man who has practiced 10.000 kicks once; but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” –Bruce Lee

The idea is that it’s always basketball season: we want to stay ready, not get ready. Physically fit people are not doing something magical to have the results that they do. They never stop. It’s a lifestyle. Consistency and self-discipline are far more impactful than high intensity and intense difficulty every now and then. The elite however, consistently push themselves past uncomfortable with regularity. Most of physical fitness, self-discipline, and consistency are matters of mental toughness and mental stamina—the mind goes far before the body. How do we build up mentally tough players who consistently work over the summer? Where do we start? Cardio and calisthenics. If we have an easily repeatable and excuseless regimen, our players of all different fitness abilities can consistently and persistently work within the grip of mental fatigue and build mental fortitude. Not only are results addicting but they are a gateway to more easily transitioning toward strength training with weights. We also know that the best teams are made up of individuals who independently work outside of practice hours… “From tiny acorns, mighty oak trees grow.” 

Keep the main thing the main thing: FUNDAMENTALS!  We can never focus enough on footwork, ball handling, shooting, finishing, etc.  We have to be on the cutting edge of skill development. Basketball is the most complex sport there is when it comes to the different skills it takes to be a basketball player where a lot of off-seasons I have witnessed do not focus enough on the fundamentals and technique. It takes TIME and thousands upon thousands of repetitions to make something habitual and second nature. The difference between Middle School, Freshmen JV, Varsity, College Women’s, and Professional Women’s Basketball is not substantial when it comes to X’s and O’s; when it comes to fundamentals and technique? It’s nearly a different sport at each level…We must prioritize the minutiae of the game. We as coaches can’t just be mentors, tacticians, teachers, strategizers—we must also be skill development trainers on par with these trainers getting paid. If we don’t, we will get left behind…