Exploring basketball's best ideas, strategies, and coaches around the world

Happy Sunday and welcome to all the new subscribers from around the world! We're excited to have you as part of the community 🙏

ICYMI: Last week, we looked at how a defense can guard the Spain PNR with an aggressive hedge on the ball and "x-out" from the corner. View the newsletter HERE.

This Week at a Glance:

🔒 SG Plus Content: Modern Game Truths - Finishing Under Pressure​

🎁 PDF: ​​​​Finishing Under Pressure Drill Guide​

🎤 Slappin' Glass "Titans" Podcast: Colton Houston {HD Intelligence}

🥇Best of the Week: Late-Clock & Flex Step Up Screens​​​

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Let's dive in...

Finishing Under Pressure

Finishing under the stress of a high-performance environment is rarely static or repetitive. Players are constantly required to interact with the environment, teammates, and opponents during a game to identify and execute high-value solutions. Each finishing opportunity varies as players adapt to defenders, defensive coverages, fatigue, time, score, and other factors. Therefore, when training players to become better finishers in a practice setting, context, constraints, and variability can be powerful tools in creating a representative environment that simulates the challenges presented in live games.

Today's latest "Modern Game Truths" installment is meant to act as a menu of elements a coach can implement into a player development session, a pre-practice "Vitamin" session, or a practice setting to better prepare players to find finishing solutions under pressure.

About the Project

A quick recap, in our collaborative "Modern Game Truths" series with Drew Dunlop and Jake Grossman of the Pro Lane, the objective is to stimulate thought and foster ideas on practical training methods that bridge the gap between the controlled training environment and the dynamic game environment, highlighting the skills, movements, and decisions that occur most frequently in a game and help stitch skills and systems together.

This year-long series will explore ways to prepare athletes for the unpredictable and chaotic nature of basketball, moving beyond training in "perfect" circumstances and creating environments that reflect the challenges presented in the game itself.

Today is the fifth installment in this series, if you need to get caught up, the other four videos on SGTV include:

1. ​Dynamic Decision Based Warm Ups {🔒}
2. ​Opportunistic Movement - Off Ball Shooting {🔒}
3. ​Opportunistic Movement - Off Ball Cutting {🔒}
4. ​Shooting Under Pressure {🔒}

Let's dive into today's Finishing work...

Short Reps

In this episode of our series, we categorize our drill design into two main sections: Short Reps and Full Reps. In the "Short Rep" section, our aim is to distill finishing down to its essential elements and challenge players to explore various solutions within a given context. By removing extraneous elements, such as the need to find or create the advantage or initiate from the perimeter, players in this segment of drills are solely tasked with finding the best finishing solution "post-advantage" within the confined space of the paint. This involves utilizing various footwork techniques to create and exploit space within a limited area and employing body control to maneuver into space and absorb contact effectively.

Zooming In: In the drill "1v1 - 2 Step Finishing," the offensive player's objective is to finish against a rotating defender using only the two steps allowed after picking up the ball. This setup compels the offensive player to demonstrate adaptability in their footwork, as they must seek space within the constraints of their two steps when finishing against a rotating defender.

Full Reps

In the "Full Reps" drill segment, we introduce the next layer of complexity to finishing: the ability to perceive and exploit an advantage. In these reps, players are challenged to identify and capitalize on an advantage before executing a finishing solution. Beginning with straightforward scenarios and progressing to more intricate ones, each drill presents a progressively tougher context for the offensive player to attack an advantage and penetrate the paint for a finish.

Zooming In: Starting with a less complex start, in the drill "1v2 Reactive Partner Handles," on the offensive player's trigger, that player must turn to locate and attack the rim defender on the catch, with a recovering defender closing from behind. With the variability of attacking from a different position every time and starting blind to the rim and defender, the offensive player is challenged to find a finishing solution under the constraint of a recovering defender closing off the advantage and space.

Challenging the player further, in "1v1 + 1 Downhill Attacks" the offensive player is presented with a perimeter defender to beat before reading the next line of defense at the rim for a finish...

Zooming In: With the perimeter defender assigned to backpedal at the start and defend solely along the 3-point line, the offensive player will be uncertain whether their finish will take them left, right, toward the middle, or toward the baseline. As their attack unfolds randomly and in real-time, the offensive player is challenged to read the available space and defense to identify an effective finish.

Today's video underscores the dynamic nature of finishing in basketball, emphasizing the importance context, constraints, and variability can provide within a training segment or drill. By incorporating short and full reps that simulate game-like scenarios, coaches can help players navigate the complexities of finding finishing solutions under pressure, ultimately enhancing their ability to perform in live game situations with adaptability and precision. For much more, please enjoy this week's breakdown on SGTV...

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Slappin Glass Podcast

We returned this week to our ongoing mini-series on the podcast, "Titans", exploring the best and most innovative companies basketball, and welcomed Co-Founder of the rapidly growing analytics company, HD Intelligence. In the episode we dive into a variety of relevant topics with Colton including:

• The hole in the world of college analytics, and where HDI fills in
• Getting better data and turning it into usable information
• The future of analytics and tracking player movement
• And much more

Listen to the entire episode here...

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Together with Hudl

We're proud to partner with one of the best tech companies in the world of sports, Hudl! Every play, every stat, every breakdown. On their own, they’re essential. But all together, they’re undeniable. Hudl recently introduced their newest product, Hudl Instat – a new advanced data platform that integrates with Sportscode and every Hudl product you rely on to create an all-in-one data powerhouse. Hudl Instat’s advanced tagging and next-level stat reports help you develop your team – and its global film library helps you find the missing piece to get the most out of every second of film. Visit ​hudl.com/slappinglass​ to learn more.

Tactical

📺 Tasmania JackJumpers - Late-Clock Step Up Hammer ​

"A well paced and executed late-clock Step Up Screen with a backside Hammer Screen to close quarters."

✚ Pair With: The JackJumpers use of spacing and pace in executing their elbow catch brush cuts.

🔒 SG Plus Content: Our "Inside the Set" Film Room session with Australian Coach Simon Mitchell on his Transition "Bolt" Offense.

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📺 Seattle Storm - Flex • Boomerang • Step Up​

"Seattle Storm executing a quick hitting Flex Screen into an empty side Step Up Screen."

✚ Pair With: Manresa 2nd cutting the trailer off a 45 cut for easy lay-ups behind the step up screen.

🔒 SG Plus Content: Manresa's Empty Side Step Up Flow Offense.

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Interesting Reads

📚 My Dad Once Told Me "By Age 35 You Should Be Smart Enough to Realize This"​

"...No one will ever come save you. Your life is 100% your responsibility.

...If you find someone smarter than you, work with them, don't compete. Competition is a weakness."

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📚 The Dumber Side of Smart People​

"Being smart is almost a tribe in itself, and like all tribal affiliations it becomes hard to view outsiders as equals.

The amount of time, money, and stress it takes to get a degree, or become senior vice president, or win an award, can lead you to believe that others who lack those accomplishments cannot offer valuable insight. Doing so makes you question why you put so much effort into your credentials to begin with. It’s amazing what happens when you become open to the best ideas, rather than the most credentialed voices."

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📚 The Four Horseman of Mediocrity ​

"Deniability–'They decided, created, commanded or blocked. Not my fault.'”

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Join the conversation, gain insights from others, check up on previous newsletters and help your fellow peers! As we use this community of coaches to make ourselves and our teams better, get caught up on some of the latest conversations in the Coaches Corner. If you have not already joined the Coaches Corner, please check your initial welcome email for the invitation. Can't find it? Feel free to reach out to us, and we will promptly resend the invite.

Quote of the Week

Thank you for reading and have a great week coaching,

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Dan and Pat

info@slappinglass.com

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