LATEST STORIES FROM THE X'S & O'S OF BASKETBALL
Emphasizing Tempo and Pace from Stan Van Gundy
April 06, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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From yesterday's game between the Orlando Magic against the Cleveland Cavaliers. I caught this clip just because I think tempo and pace is extremely important in your preparation for a game. The Cavs were playing their second straight road game and so naturally they were tired...
UNC's Outstanding Help Defense Against Villanova
April 06, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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Throughout the regular season, UNC's defense got a bad rap, and rightfully so as they were at times inconsistent and lacking in effort. Throughout the NCAA Tournament, UNC's defense has been the reason why they've blitzkrieged through all the rounds so far and will play...
'Twas the Night Before the NCAA Championship
April 06, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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'Twas the night before the Championship, when all through the gym,Not a creature was stirring, and the lights were still dim.The jerseys were hung on the lockers with great care,In anticipation for the players to change into them there;The fans were nestled all snug in their beds...
ESPN Conversation with Mike D'Antoni
April 02, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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From yesterday, Knicks head coach Mike D'Antoni sat down with ESPN to do a 13 minute interview. They discussed a number of topics including how it ended with the Suns, the Stephon Marbury saga, 2010 free agents, coaching philosophy, expectations and pressure. The full interview...
Improving Defense Has Larry Brown's Bobcats Thinking Playoffs
April 01, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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Don't look now, but Larry Brown and the Charlotte Bobcats are on the verge of making the playoffs for the first time in franchise history (OK, short history), and in Larry Brown's first year as head coach. OK, with a record of 34-40 we're not talking the greatest turnaround...
Talking about Lebron James, 60 Minutes, and the Shot
March 31, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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I watched the CBS special on Lebron James that aired on Sunday night. I thought it was a decent interview but I felt that there was a lot of fluff in it. There is a debate about whether all the commodification has had a positive, negative, or neutral value effect on basketball and...
MSU's Zone Offense Wears Out Louisville
March 30, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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What an impressive performance by Michigan State last night in beating number one overall Louisville. As a coach, you can look at that win and think to yourself, wow, they really executed their gameplan to a T. Now, on the other hand, I thought that Louisville stayed in their half...
Know the Expectations of the Position Before You Accept
March 29, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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I had a conversation with a coaching friend a few weeks ago about coaching positions available as it inevitably comes up at the end of every varsity season. He is thinking of applying to a perennial championship contender. The school is a private school with a long tradition of winning...
Pitt Chooses to Full Court Press with 5 Seconds Left
March 29, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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In watching the big game between Pitt and Villanova, and alot of the pundits on the breakdown of how the game ended. I think as coaches, we can all look at those last 2 minutes and come away with some lessons. Villanova almost gave away the game with an ill-advised baseball play trying...
Michigan St. 1-4 Low ISO with Kalin Lucas
March 28, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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Most of the games today were blowouts, the most surprising was Arizona and Louisville. Arizona had the talent, athleticism, and skill to beat Louisville, but their play was lethargic, they did not look like a team playing in the Sweet 16 against the number one overall seed, but more...
Leadership on Display, Levance Fields of Pitt
March 27, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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I know I wrote about Pitt just a few days ago, but I just thought that last night's win over Xavier was just a great game to follow-up on, especially with the way Pitt finished the game. You know, as a coach, we always talk about building leaders, players who step up and make plays...
Celtics Cannot Stop Magic Penetration
March 26, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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One of the big things that I've noticed with the Celtics this season as compared to last season has been their inability to contain dribble penetration. I watched the early ESPN game between the Magic and the Celtics and was really surprised how Orlando was able to penetrate the...
Dwyane Wade's Long Strides and Minimal Dribbles
March 25, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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I've always liked to watch players and see their tendencies, what they do exceptionally well, what their weaknesses are. I've been meaning to watch some Miami Heat games for a while now since they've been the talk of the pundits. Dwyane Wade specifically has been speculated...
Knowing the Time and Score Situations
March 24, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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Still stuck on that Pitt game from Sunday. One of the things that stuck out at the end of the first half was this play where on the 1-and-1 free-throws, OSU (and Pitt too) falls asleep, and the shooter (Levance Fields) rushes in to grab the rebound and call timeout. This is precisely...
Pitt's Offense Against Oklahoma State's Matchup Zone
March 23, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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The weekend was just a cornucopia of frenzy, intense excitment, excruciating moments of anticipation, disappointment, and euphoria -- that is the opening rounds of March Madness. I caught most of the Pitt versus Oklahoma State game. It was a pretty close game throughout due to OSU...
Louisville's Run and Jump Matchup Press
March 21, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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Another great day of first round action last night, better than Thursday with the Siena vs OSU game going to 2OTs, and what about Wisconsin beating FSU in OT, you can't under-estimate a Bo Ryan coached team. I watched most of the Louisville vs Morehead St. game and credit to Morehead...
Walberg-Shyatt-Katz 4th Annual Ontario On-Court Coaches Clinic
March 20, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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We're coming into coaching clinic season. Feel free to email me if you want to promote your coaching clinic. This one looks to be a good one:4th Annual Ontario On-Court Coaches ClinicJune 5-6, 2009St Denis Centre, Windsor, Ontario(1 minute across the Ambassador Bridge from Detroit...
LSU Converts Rebounds and Turnovers Into Points
March 20, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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The first few days of the NCAA tournament are always the most exciting but also the most overwhelming, too many games, too many teams. There were some great games and even an upset or two. The only game I watched beginning to end was between LSU and Butler. I picked LSU to be the sleeper...
Have a Football Mentality Like Lebron James
March 19, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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Big showdown between potential Eastern Conference finals opponents, the Cleveland Cavaliers versus the Orlando Magic last night. It was a close game all the way throughout. The Cavs are just unbelievably good at home, but the Magic played well, they just came up a rebound, a stop,...
Lakers Handoff to UCLA Cut Play
March 18, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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Went through some recorded NBA games from over the weekend. From the Lakers versus Mavs game, I liked this one play because I think every team should have a UCLA cut somewhere in their offense. It's one of the great half-court plays in basketball. It's so simple, and yet it...
Rockets Double Stagger to Curl Set
March 17, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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I've been following the NBA off and on in between college and high school games and took in my first full game in a while tonight between the Houston Rockets and the New Orleans Hornets. It's amazing how in the Western Conference, 2 thru 8 are all bunched up between 4 points...
Bill Self on Why Things Changed This Season
March 16, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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Well, the tournament of 65 is set, as always, there are some teams who probably deserved to make it and others not so much. I watched a bunch of coach interviews on CBS and ESPN today and this one with Coach Bill Self of Kansas really stands out. The reporter asks Coach Self, "...
USC Gets Two Big Defensive Stops in Win Over ASU
March 15, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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Another big day, switched between college games and some high school as well. I think I'm suffering from basketball overload, but it's all good, it's good to be a basketball fan in March. The Arizona St. versus USC game was by far the best. USC was behind but 10+ at halftime...
Mizzou's Soft Press Forces Bad Shots From Oklahoma St.
March 14, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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It's a crazy time to be a basketball fan. Lots of local varsity hoop watching along with all the college action with the conference championships going on. I want to give props to Vancouver College Prep and specifically Junior guard Phil Scrubb for an outstanding game and the game...
Gillispie and Kentucky, a Work in Progress from ESPN
March 12, 2009 by
The X's & O's of Basketball
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If I ever get the chance to, I would like to dig deeper, do an academic study into the human psychology and sociological aspects of coaching. It fascinates me to see how coaches motivate, gameplan, and deal with winning and losing. From over the weekend, ESPN got an inside look at...
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To spread the knowledge that I have on coaching basketball. I feature college basketball plays and individual NBA players and their fundamentals.
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