Game On: The All American Race to Make Champions of Our Children

By Tom Farrey

 

In my quest to read 50 books in 2009 I have come across some excellent ones; most of which just reinforce stuff I have read before.  Looking back, I have come across a few books that were real eye openers; ones that caused an infamous “Ah hah!” moment. Game On: The All American Race to Make Champions of Our Children was one of those books. One of my friends in Nike Basketball recommended it to me and I am so thankful he did. Before going deeper, let me say I wholeheartedly recommend this book to any parent, trainer, or coach who has or works with youth athletes. This book is an absolute must read for anyone who cares about the youth of today.

 

Given my line of work; I have been around elite level athletics my entire life and have a finger on the pulse of youth grassroots basketball.  I work with players as young as 9 years old and have both seen and experienced the positives and negatives of competitive youth sports; so this book most certainly hit close to home. In addition, I hope to have children of my own in the very near future and the insights from this book will most certainly dictate some of my own parenting and coaching decisions.

 

This book should change the way the American culture looks at youth sports. From nationally ranking basketball players while they are in elementary school to holding golf events with a 5 year old division; we have taken the competitiveness of youth sports to the extreme. We have created a win at all costs mentality for kids who should be playing for fun. We have deteriorated the proven processes for developing fundamental skills and we are rewarding the kids who mature early (in all of the years of the Little League World Series, in which we have seen thousands of kids play, only 30 have made it to MLB!).  As a culture we are rewarding performance over participation with kids who still drink Juice Boxes and watch SpongeBob SquarePants!  And what have we gotten from this approach? A majority of kids who quit playing sports by age 13, testy sidelines with lunatic parents and coaches, steadily rising obesity rates, and US national teams that rarely win world titles.

 

The best part about this book is the variety of solutions we can implement to help fix this; realistic ways to change our current model. By studying the methods of countries like Australia, as well as reorganizing the governing bodies we have in the US, we can take powerful steps to getting back on course.  We need to launch a movement to protect our children!

 

Along the lines of correcting our youth development model and teaching and coaching our children in a systematic, age appropriate manner, I fully endorse an e-book by Brian McCormick (who was quoted a few times in Game On) entitled Cross Over: A New Model Of Youth Basketball Development. I have a tremendous respect for Coach McCormick’s work. In addition to his book, he has an excellent “Hard2Guard Player Development Newsletter” I recommend you subscribe to. Coach McCormick has several sites; but visit www.TrainForHoops.com.

 

I will post a similar book review each week; so make sure you check back often. Next week I plan to review an insightful book I read two weeks ago at the beach; Know Yourself As A Coach by Denny Kuiper. I got an opportunity to meet (and work with) Coach Kuiper at the NBPA Top 100 Camp earlier this summer.  His book is an absolute must read for any level basketball coach.

 

I am not going to post an NBA player interview this week; but have my fingers crossed I will be able to sit down with Chris Paul in two weeks when I work his CP3 Elite Back Court Camp in Winston Salem, NC.

 

And don’t forget to check out and subscribe to www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom for the latest exercise of the week.  And if you want the inside scoop on the summer training scene, as well as daily inspirational quotes, follow me on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/AlanStein.

 

Train hard.  Train smart.

 

Alan Stein

www.StrongerTeam.com

As we enter the last week of July we can see the “end of summer” finish line.  Whether you are in high school or college, the fall semester will be starting in roughly 4-6 weeks with pre-season team training workouts soon to follow.  Hopefully you have been putting in work all summer and are prepared to make a great impression on your coaching staff upon your return to school.

 

This blog is collection of thoughts and suggestions to make sure you maximize your workouts over the next several weeks.  For those of you in high school, most of the premier camps and AAU events should be winding down; which gives you the month of August to focus on your training.

 

First and foremost, before we talk training, you must acknowledge and address any nagging injuries you may have.  You don’t want to ignore something little and allow it turn in to something big.  Now is the ideal time to address these issues.  As a general rule, if a little rest, ice, and Advil don’t do the trick – please go see a doctor or physical therapist immediately. Whether you suffered a minor ankle sprain in an AAU game two months ago or you tweaked your groin at camp last week; go get a professional opinion on your condition and then follow their advice.  Don’t wait until school starts; do it now!

 

Hopefully, sometime after your season ended or sometime at the beginning of summer, you sat down (preferably with your coach) and evaluated every aspect of your game to get an accurate feel for your strengths and weaknesses.  While certainly a good portion of the evaluation should have been directed at your fundamentals; shooting, ball handling, etc. However, in this blog we will focus on the qualities of strength, explosiveness, agility, flexibility, reaction, and power (after all, I am a strength & conditioning coach!).  It is important you honestly evaluate each of these components so you can better prioritize your training.  Regardless of your strengths and weaknesses, I firmly believe in having a comprehensive training program and recommend you address all areas of performance on a consistent basis; but accurately knowing your strengths and weaknesses can help you prioritize each component of your workout.

 

With the exception of individual differences, at this time of the year you should be putting most of your focus on increasing full body strength and power.  There are numerous strength training philosophies and the goal of this blog is not to ignite a debate on which is the best.  However, there are several fundamental rules most quality strength & conditioning coaches will advocate:

 

·         Work your entire body; address every muscle group from head to toe including the legs, hips, core, and upper body.  Have proper muscular balance by addressing areas around each joint; ankle, knee, hip, shoulder, and elbow.

 

·         Work your body through all three planes of motion; choose exercises that go front to back, side to side, and rotating/twisting.  Go through as many angles and alternative ranges of motion as possible.  For instance, there are 5 primary angles for an upper body pressing motion: overhead, incline, horizontal, decline, and vertical. Same angles for upper body pulling motions. You can also do lunges and step-ups through several different planes and ranges of motion (forward, backward, lateral, cross over, step behind, plus several additional angles).

 

·         Work within an appropriate repetition range. For basketball you should work roughly between 6 and 15 reps.  While there are certainly instances when it is appropriate to perform more or fewer reps, 6-15 is a good rule of thumb for most sets.

 

·         Work progressively to add resistance over time and always use proper technique with every exercise.

 

In addition to those universally accepted fundamentals, I also offer the following recommendations:

 

• Give special attention to your feet; they are integral to staying injury free and maximizing performance on the court.  I currently have my players do one or two (appropriate) exercises barefoot every training session.  Basketball shoes are designed to be very supportive; thus they limit mobility. One of the goals of training is to improve mobility.  With that said, basketball shoes are not ideal for strength and conditioning workouts. Do a set of walking lunges with no shoes on and you will see what I mean!

 

• Make sure you work your core thoroughly as it is the center of all movement and is actively involved in almost everything you do.  I will define your core as everything from your chest to your knees; hips, glutes, low back, abs, obliques and everything in between! The day and age of lying on your back and doing crunches is over! You need to incorporate a variety of methods; throwing (and catching) medicine balls from every conceivable angle and motion, twisting with cables or power bands, static holds, etc.

 

• At least once a week, work your body unilaterally, meaning “one side at a time.”  This is especially important for your lower body; make sure you throw in exercises that must be done one leg a time like lunges and step ups.  Again, try to go through a variety of different angles and motions when performing.

 

• When performing plyometric exercises; pay close attention to your landing technique (not just your jumping technique).  Try to land with your weight evenly dispersed over your entire foot, use your entire body to absorb the impact, land “chest-over-knees-over-feet”, and land “quietly” (soft landing; like a cat).  Make sure your knees don’t buckle in and don’t land straight legged.  Creating solid landing habits is important for injury prevention; especially for females in preventing ACL injuries.  While I most certainly recommend incorporating some type of appropriate plyo exercise in to your workouts; don’t overdo it.  Limit your volume!

 

In addition to paying close attention to gaining strength; there are several other areas you need to address:

 

• Flexibility and mobility: I suggest doing more of an active warm-up and dynamic stretch prior to your workout and save static stretching for afterwards.  Remember, stretching is not just for the hamstrings (although that is what 90% of folks focus on).  Make sure to do appropriate movements to improve flexibility, mobility, and posture in your shoulders, core, IT band, groin, low back, and Achilles.

 

• Conditioning: At this time of the year it is not imperative for you to be in great basketball shape; so don’t worry about killing yourself with intense court conditioning workouts (yet).  You should be getting some decent conditioning with your skill work as well as when you are playing pick-up.  You can also mix in some cross training (biking, pool, Stairmaster, jump rope, etc.) to keep things fresh and fun!  When you do cross train, I recommend doing interval type work as opposed to slow and steady. Go hard for :20-:30 and then go slow for :30-:40 (and repeat for 10-15 reps). While being in top notch basketball shape is not urgent, you do want to show up on day one with a high level of overall fitness. That will make getting into actual basketball game shape much easier.

 

• Skill work: I have always said it doesn’t matter how strong or fit or explosive you are; if you can’t shoot, pass, defend, rebound, or handle the ball you will never be a high level basketball player!  While I (obviously) know how important the strength & conditioning portion is; training for basketball players is a means to an end, not an end itself.  You must work on your fundamentals, especially shooting and ball handling, most days of the week.  Repetition is not a form of punishment; it is the only way to get better!  Your skill work sessions should be intense and game like, which will not only make you a better player, but will help you get in basketball shape as well.  “Social shooting” won’t get you to the next level.  Shooting game shots, from game spots, and game speed will!

 

• Nutrition: You are what you eat.  If you eat like crap, you will look and play like crap! Most basketball players are looking to gain bodyweight; which means you have to take in more calories than you burn.  This can be very hard to do without proper planning and discipline.  For a player looking to gain weight; you should aim to gain 1 lb. a week for the next 6 weeks and show up on day one with 5-10 additional pounds of muscle.  This will be like putting a bigger engine in a car! You will be able to run faster, jump higher, and block out harder! 

 

• Rest and recovery: Do not neglect the role rest and recovery plays in maximizing your performance.  If you are going to be on an intense training program this August, you need to make sure you are allowing your body to recover. I suggest doing everything possible to get 8 hours of sleep each night and sneak in a quick 20-30 minute power nap if possible.  I also suggest taking one full day off from all intense activity per week.  You can shoot some free throws and stretch on that day, but nothing too strenuous.  I also recommend taking 3-4 days off right before school starts; to really give your body some extra recovery before your team pre-season workouts begin.  Don’t worry, you won’t “lose anything” by taking those days off, I promise. Whenever possible you should ice ailing areas after every workout (usually knees and low back) as well as use foam rollers and massage.

 

Please share this blog with any player or coach you know as my goal is to reach and impact as many players as possible.  If you would like some additional FREE information on proper training footwear, a basketball core routine, a killer iso-lateral leg workout, post workout stretches, or some nutritional guidelines, please email me at Alan@StrongerTeam.com.  Please specify in your email what you want.

 

For exclusive insight to upcoming camps (like the Chris Paul Backcourt Camp), as well as daily coaching points, motivational quotes, and videos of the “exercise of the week”, please follow me (and subscribe) to:

 

www.Twitter.com/AlanStein

www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom

www.Facebook.com/AlanSteinJr  

 

Train hard.  Train smart.

 

Alan Stein

www.StrongerTeam.com

 

Height/Weight:                    6’3”, 175 lbs

Current team:                      Portland Trailblazers

Years in NBA:                      6

Previous teams:                Washington, Denver, Milwaukee

College:                                Maryland

 

Last week I was invited to speak to the campers at the Steve Blake Basketball Camp in Germantown, MD.  After I did a 15 minute demo and got the entire camped warmed up and stretched out; I had a chance to sit down with Steve and talk about his training.  Steve is a class act and a great guy.  I have always admired the way he plays because he is unselfish, fundamentally sound, plays to win, and he makes those around him better. Please note, I have paraphrased his answers, these are not verbatim.  I didn’t use a recorder; I merely scribbled notes as fast I could when writing down his answers!

 

Q: At what age (or grade) did you first start lifting weights?

 

A: I actually started a program my freshman year in high school because I was always pretty skinny and thought adding muscle would help my game.  I really started to take it serious my junior year of high school.  Our whole team lifted then; we were on a pretty structured program.  I continued to lift whenever I could my senior year at Oak Hill.

 

 

Q: How do you feel like it helped your game?

 

A: The added size and strength helped me compete against older players and prevented me from getting knocked off the ball.  I only weighed 155 lbs in high school!  I am only 175 lbs now (note: this makes Steve one of the lightest players in the entire league).  But don’t let my weight fool you; I am pretty strong!

 

 

Q: Why do you think strength & conditioning for basketball players is important?

 

A: Proper strength and conditioning can help in every area of basketball; improves quickness, the ability to jump, gives you a quicker first step, and makes you tougher on defense.  It also helps to ward off injuries.

 

 

Q: What does your off season training program consist of now?

 

A: I had shoulder surgery about a month ago; so I have been taking some time off.  Normally I only take a few weeks off. But my off season program consists of a lot of balance/stability work and a lot of core work.  I work closely with Bob Medina (Trailblazers’ strength & conditioning coach) as well as take some martial arts classes.  Martial arts helps with everything; flexibility, balance, and core strength.  I also work with our shooting coach.  In the Blazers’ offense I only get shots, and they are spot up shots, from a few specific areas on the floor.  So I shoot hundreds and hundreds of spot up jumpers from those spots every day. I try to practice smart as well as hard!

 

 

Q: What is the biggest difference between playing in college and in the NBA?

 

A: Everyone in the NBA is big, strong, and very athletic and the game is unbelievably fast. 

 

 

I would like to extend a special thank you to Steve for taking the time to speak with me.

 

Don’t forget to check it out and subscribe to www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom and check out the latest exercise of the week.  And if you want the inside scoop on the summer training scene, as well as daily inspirational quotes, follow me on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/AlanStein.

 

Train hard.  Train smart.

 

Alan Stein

www.StrongerTeam.com

 

 

Outliers: The Story of Success

By Malcolm Gladwell

 

One of the things I enjoy most about working the Nike Skills Academies is talking shop and learning from the coaches who are there.  We exchange ideas and thoughts on everything you can think of.  At the Vince Carter Skills Academy several coaches where raving about the book Outliers: The Story of Success (by Malcolm Gladwell).  Given my enormous respect for these coaches; I knew I had to read it as well!

 

I believe I have mentioned in previous posts that I am a huge fan of Audiobooks; a new age “books on tape” approach using iTunes.  While I still believe in the dying art of actually reading, I find listening to books is just as valuable and makes car rides and plane rides not only more enjoyable, but productive as well. I listened to Outliers a couple of weeks ago traveling to and from Ocean City. It was captivating.

 

I have always been fascinated by successful people and intrigued by what makes them tick. I have studied the decisions they have made in their life to enable their success.  Malcolm Gladwell takes traditional theories of success head on as he studied several groups of outliers; people far from the norm on a standard bell curve. He examined many of the worlds’ brightest, most famous, most successful, and wealthiest to devise a theory on why folks reach uber-success. His goal was to answer the question; what makes super high achievers different?  What did he find? We pay too close attention to what successful people are like and not enough attention to what opportunities they have had, their culture, age, and where they come from.  He proves without doubt, those characteristics are just as important to being successful as the standard ones we all know and preach; hard work, intelligence, etc.  His findings are fascinating and eye opening.

 

Among many others, he explains why most professional hockey players are born in January, February, and March, why Bill Gates is Bill Gates, why Asians are superior in math, and why the Beatles are arguably the greatest rock band in history. 

 

I highly recommend this book, or Audiobook, as the theories and stories are applicable to everyone.

 

I will post a similar book review each week; so make sure you check back often. Next week I plan to review an amazing book I read on my way to and from Jamaica; Game-On: The All American Race to Make Champions of Our Children. 

 

And don’t forget to check out and subscribe to www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom for the latest exercise of the week.  And if you want the inside scoop on the summer training scene, as well as daily inspirational quotes, follow me on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/AlanStein.

 

Train hard.  Train smart.

 

Alan Stein

www.StrongerTeam.com

I have been writing a weekly blog for almost two years and have covered a variety of meaningful topics such as personal branding, leadership, as well as a myriad of topics related to success. I have offered behind the scenes views and detailed summaries of every grassroots event I have worked; including the McDonalds All American Game, Jordan All American Classic, NBPA Top 100 Camp, CP3 Elite Backcourt Camp and Nike Skills Academies for Kobe Bryant, Amare Stoudemire, Paul Pierce, Steve Nash, Vince Carter, and LeBron James. I have offered insights to several renowned players I have been so fortunate to work with prior to their superstardom; guys like Kevin Durant, Michael Beasley, Stephen Curry and Tywon Lawson. And while all of those experiences were remarkable and certainly memorable; I really believe this is my most significant blog post yet. Why? My involvement with the Nike Star Search Camp in Kingston, Jamaica over the past two years has been a life changing experience. 

 

 

Three years ago at the Jordan All American Classic I was introduced to Stephen Johnston, the legal guardian of Jamaican native, Samardo Samuels, who currently plays for Rick Pitino at the University of Louisville.  Stephen told me all about a camp he runs every summer in Jamaica for underprivileged kids and we immediately began to plot a way I could get involved. 

 

 

Long story short, last summer (2008), I boarded a plane to Kingston Jamaica to volunteer to work the 8th annual Nike Star Seach Basketball & Life Skills Development Camp held at the G.C. Foster College of Physical Education & Sports, which is one of only two indoor courts in the entire country. My experience in 2008 had such a profound experience on me I made sure to return in 2009 for the 9th annual camp. This blog is a summation of both trips.

 

 

 

Before I start, quick trivia question. What type of defense do most teams in Jamaica play? Mon to Mon!  Yes, I wrote that joke myself, actually thought of it on my plane ride home.  I may quit strength & conditioning and start writing for David Letterman. For those that don’t get it, Jamaicans say “Hey, Mon!”… a lot.

 

 

There are two distinct “sides” to Jamaica.  There is Montego Bay; which is the white sand, blue ocean, resort side of Jamaica (which is actually where I spent my honeymoon 4 months ago).  And then there is Kingston; which is with all respect, an impoverished, 3^rd world country. I have never seen poverty like I saw there.  Most houses were nothing more than four pieces of upright sheet metal with a plywood roof and several cinder blocks holding it down.  I saw kids playing soccer, barefoot, on dirt fields, kicking around a make shift ball.  There were dogs, cats, and goats walking around everywhere.  It was really heartbreaking.

 

 

During both of my visits I noticed everyone in Jamaica is on the hustle; the airport alone is full of folks trying to help you with your bags, give you a ride, or sell you something.  No one stands around begging for money or for a handout; they are all trying to earn their keep by hustling. Much respect.

 

 

The camp itself, both years, was incredible. Although my time there this most recent visit was very brief, it was well worth going back. I am going to do my absolute best to return every year. The interaction I had with the kids and staff was extremely humbling and helped me sharpen my perspective on life. 

 

 

Last year one kid showed up on the first day of camp wearing a pair of beat up dress shoes and no socks; which is what he was going to play in.  I didn’t see anyone with dress shoes this year; but did see several kids who had literally worn through the front of their shoes (I could see their socks).  To try and help in a small way, I brought a huge duffle bag of Nike basketball shoes (ones I had only worn maybe once or twice) to give to the campers; assuming they could fit in a size 11.  All twenty pairs were gone in about 4 minutes.  Lord knows those kids needed them more than I did.

 

 

There were about 160 kids in the camp this year, about 20 less than in 2008 (which was the biggest turn-out ever).  That is a lot of kids to fit on only two courts and six baskets.  4 of the 6 baskets were nothing more than a square piece of plywood with a rim nailed to it. The floor had more dead spots than a cemetery and was very slippery, and the lack of air conditioning made the gym oppressively hot. Amazingly, no one got hurt or sick. Not one kid.  Despite the sauna like conditions, slippery floor, worn out footwear, and very physical play, not one kid got hurt. A far cry from the NBPA Top 100 camp; where 20-30% of the kids were always seeing the trainer. 

 

 

Another point of interest is the campers got up at 5:00am every morning (yes, 5:00am) and ended their day at 9:00pm.  Now that is a full day of camp!  Despite the long day the kids had an energy, an enthusiasm, and an overall appreciation that was downright palpable.  Granted the players had very, very low skill levels (the only players who have sound skills were in their early 20’s.), but they more than made up for it with their pride and toughness.  And no one ever complained.  The kids were more appreciative of the 1% they have in life than most kids in my area are of the 99% they have.  Seriously, how many kids in the US today would go to a camp with no A/C?  How many would even consider getting up at 5:00am?  Not many. And like I said, the most refreshing part was, they never complained.

 

 

As far as this year’s camp, I spoke to the campers about the importance of taking advantage of opportunities and being competitive.  To see a video clip of that speech, please visit www.YouTube.com/StrongerTeamDotCom. Later in the day I did a demo and stressed the importance of creating and maintaining good work habits. After each time I spoke to the campers, at least 25 of them approached me individually to ask questions and ask for help.  The kids craved improvement.

 

In addition to the folks of the JBD (Jamaica Basketball Development, Inc.); most notably Mike Minto, Terry Calnek, and Stephen Johnston, the folks at Nike Basketball (lead by Jeff Rogers and Mike Hackman) need to be commended for their unbelievable generosity.  Nike Basketball supplied shorts, t-shirts, reversible jerseys for every camper and shoes for almost half of them.  The smile on the faces of some of the underprivileged kids who just got some fresh Nike gear was priceless.

 

Being a part of the Nike Star Search Camp for a second straight year reminded me how truly fortunate I am. 

 

This camp is making a difference and changing lives.  Please check out www.JamaicaBasketballDevelopment.com for more info and please contact them if you want to get involved and either volunteer or make a donation for next year. 

 

Please share this blog with any player or coach you know and for exclusive insight to upcoming camps (like the Chris Paul Backcourt Camp), as well as daily coaching points and quotes, follow me on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/AlanStein.

 

Train hard.  Train smart. Be thankful.

 

 

Alan Stein

www.StrongerTeam.com