GENO AURIEMMA WINNING IS ONLY PART OF A COACH'S JOB - L'Alqueria del Basket
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N.7 SEPTEMBER
OFFICIAL DIGITAL MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2020
GENO AURIEMMA
WINNING IS ONLY PART OF A COACH’S JOB
IT’S SPECIAL DEVELOPING PLAYERS
ON AND OFF THE COURT
Amadou Gallo Fall
THE BASKETBALL AFRICA LEAGUE
A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN
FIBA AND the NBA
giannis SFAIROPOULOS
Pick & Roll Execution
From general to individual
rules vs. switching P & R defense
AdB Hoops Publisher
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Is a digital pubblication of the Alqueria del
Editorial Referees
Basket, C/ Bomber Ramon Duart S/N 46013, Three top people share the cover 5 The devil is in the details 42
Valencia, Spain Giorgio Gandolfi Olegs Latisevs
Editor-in-Chief
Giorgio Gandolfi coaches Rules QUIZ 48
Editorial Office Pick & roll execution 6 Roberto Chiari
Tel.+39-0372-460585
Giannis Sfairopoulos
E-mail: ggandolfi@adbhoops.com Marketing, MANAGEMENT & Digital
Art Director: Lisa Cavallini Olympiacos Development team 14 Social media is a source 50
The magazine is published practices of entertainment and connection
six times per year
Dimitris Tsaldaris Shahbaz Khan
Valencia BC, Alqueria del Basket, and the
Editor-in-Chief Giorgio Gandolfi are not Various topics Alqueria News
responsible for the opinions expressed in the
articles. All rights reserved
geno auriemma - Winning is 20 Basketball, More Active 54
All information in this digital publication are only part of a coach’s job than ever at L’Alqueria del Basket
provided as news matter only and is not to Interview by Giorgio Gandolfi
be used to violate any local or national laws
Alqueria Events 56
Produced in Italy Video library
Copyright 2020 by Alqueria del Basket, Thumb set (Fifth part) 26 Alqueria SERVICES 58
Valencia, Spain
eCoach - NBA Coaches Association
The articles received by the authors, by any Hoops for All - baskin
means (e-mail, fax or by postage) will be Last Second Out-of-Bounds 27 The baskin technique and tactic 60
property of the above Publisher, and the Winning Play Francesco Longhi
authors will automatically granted to the
Publisher the right to publication without
Claudio Cèsar Prieto
asking any fee now or in the future “DON’T GET SCREENED!” 28 Hoops for All
Pascal Meurs wheelchair basketball
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Systems of Play: 64
We would like to thank for their collaboration Mini Basketball Offense (First Part)
All the authors, who, with a great Explosive growth 30
enthusiasm, shared with us their knowledge. Haj Bhania
Ms. Lisa Cavallini as Art Director, Mr. Carles
of Mini Basketball in Denmark
Orive, for the Spanish translation, Ms. Elisa Thomas Johansen AROUND THE COURT
Michel for the English editing, Mr. Alberto The Basketball Africa League 68
Chilet, Media Director of the Valencia BC, Strenght & Conditioning Coaches Interview by Giorgio Gandolfi
for the help and collaboration. Thanks From the quarantine to ACB title 36
to: UConn Ms. Anna Lebonte, Assistant Luka Svilar
Director of Athletics Communications - WBB
for the collaboration and for the photos
of the interview of Geno Auriemma; Mr.
Roey Gladstone, Maccabi Tel Aviv Chief
Marketing Officer and Mr. Omer Geva for
the Giannis Sfairopoulos’ article photos;
for the photos of the Mr. Saeed Marine, the
Danish Basketball Federation, and the De
Danske Gymnastik og idrætsforeninger
for the Thomas Johansen’s article photos;
Mr. Shahbaz Khan for the photos of his
36 42 50
article; British Wheelchair Basketball / SA Strenght & Conditioning Referees Marketing, Management
Images for the Haj Bhania’s article photos; Coaches The devil is in the details & Digital
Basketball Africa League for the Amadou From the quarantine Olegs Latisevs Social media is a source
Gallo Fall’s article photos. to ACB title of entertainment
Luka Svilar and connection
Shahbaz Khan
Ford Focus Active
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Entrada 5.458€. Cuota Final 9.590€. 49 meses. TAE 9,30%
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Tel.: 96 013 04 09
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*Focus Active 1.0 Ecoboost 92kW (125cv) con radio SYNC 3 con pantalla táctil 20,3cm (8") y 6 altavoces, llantas de aleación 43,2cm (17"), modos de conducción seleccionables, luces diurnas LED, asistente de arranque en
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recomienda revisarlo en cada caso), transp., dtos. promocionales, aport. Concesión y dto. por financiar con FCE Bank plc S.E., aplazado mín. 9.000€ y permanencia mín. 25 meses. Oferta de MultiOpción de FCE Bank plc S.E. a
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compatible con otros dtos. ford.es
Giorgio Gandolfi } Editor in Chief
THREE TOP PEOPLE SHARE THE COVER
A
s you will notice, this cover is totally dif- of Olympiacos and two championships with Maccabi
ferent from the last six ones. We were Tel Aviv, is among the elite of the European coaches,
unsure as to which article’s author should yet he remains a down to earth person, and he was
have the cover, due to the importance of extremely glad to share his knowledge with us in
the three personalities, so we decided to this article.
put all three on the cover together.
Finally, we found Luka Svilar’s article to be very in-
Coach Geno Auriemma is without a doubt the No. teresting. Now with UNICS Kazan, he was the stren-
1 women’s basketball coach in the world: 11 NCAA gth and conditioning coach of the Baskonia team
titles, two Olympic Games gold medals, and tens of of Vitoria - Gasteiz, which won the 2020 Spanish
NCAA Women’s Basketball All-Americans are enou- ACB title. He explains how he faced the problem of
gh to confirm this. As with all the great coaches, he COVID-19 and its impact on individual players and
is not only a master of the X’s and O’s on the court, team practices throughout lockdown, as well as du-
but also a leader and an example for his players off ring the final phase of the championship, which saw
the court and in their education. Baskonia beat Barcelona.
Amadou Gallo Fall, born in Senegal, but raised and
educated in the US, is the mastermind behind the
growth and exposure of African basketball.
While working with the Dallas Mavericks
he created the SEED Academy in Se-
negal, the first student-athlete aca-
demy in Africa for 20 boys and 20
girls, where they practice both
basketball and academics. He
was then appointed Vice Pre-
sident & Managing Director of
NBA Africa, and was instru-
mental in creating the new
and unique Basketball Africa
League. This is a professional
league with teams from dif-
ferent African countries and
a partnership between FIBA
and the NBA whose season
was postponed due to CO-
VID-19; their debut season will
begin next year.
He served his apprenticeships as
assistant coach with Jonas Kazlau-
skas at CSKA Moscow, with Pini Ger-
shon and Panagiotis Giannakis at Olym-
piacos Piraeus and also with him at the
Greek national team, and briefly with Kevin
McHale at the Houston Rockets of the NBA. Now
Giannis Sfairopoulos, after two titles as head coach
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 5
COACHES} Giannis Sfairopoulos } Maccabi Tel Aviv Head Coach
PICK & ROLL EXECUTION
From general to individual
rules vs. switching P & R defense
C
urrently, the P & R is one of the most com-
mon and popular ways to attack. Guards and
big men are great P & R executors, achieving
this through simple 2 on 2 sets. But because
of the different ways to defend the P & R, the
entire team is actually involved on offense, after the
initial P & R action. In modern basketball strategy,
we use the P & R as the spark to start the fire
on offense. We look to create an advantage
on offense which forces the defense to react
differently. There are also a lot of times that
we continue our set offense with a drive
and kick game. This is the reason why P &
R is so popular in our time, and most of the
teams are using it with a high percenta-
ge of success, as the action to attack on
offense.
BASIC RULES
FOR P & R EXECUTION
• BALL HANDLER
One of our basic rules to execute the P
& R is the SEPARATION. Any good P &
R starts with the ball handler getting
separation from his man. The guards’
role in any P & R situation is to get se-
paration, so that the screener can
come in either through live ball
or off the dribble and set
the screen. So, before the
screen is set, we want
to move the defense, by
doing what we call “rip
the ball through” or “rip
the ball over,” that is,
making a cross over step
at the same moment.
This way, we force the de-
fender to react away from
the side where the screen is
coming. Then the guard brings
6 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM
http://www.maccabi.co.il/
1 2 3
the ball back and we’ve got the separation from our
defender. The screen now is more impactful.
If the guard is in a live dribble situation, he has to try
to do the same thing, by knocking his defender off and
dribbling in the opposite direction from the screener.
He has to try to reject the screen and attack. If his de-
fender stops him, then the screener is setting the scre-
en and the guard gets the separation that is planned.
• SCREENER
Setting good and legal screens is a big part of our em-
phasis. We want the screens to be set properly, crea-
ting an advantage to the player with the ball. One first
basic rule for the screener is to SPRINT TO SCREEN.
We want the screener to “head hunt” and set the scre-
en at the moment that the guard creates the separa-
tion. He has to make a stride stop, having his chest and
his sternum at the defenders’ shoulder. The angle of
the screen should be with the screeners back towards
the basket. This is because we don’t want the defen-
der to have space to go under.
• BALL HANDLER
The ball handler should come off of two dribbles, befo-
re making any decision. From there he can continue to
drive to the rim, to pull up, hitting the role man or kick
out to the shooters.
variety in our P & R offensive strategy. These concep-
• SCREENER ts are as follows:
According to the type of defense, we want our big guy } Transition P & R: All early situations are harder to
to roll in deep, with a quick first step, or to stay at the defend and can create immediate advantage. The-
high post area for a short roll pass. This flexibility of se days when the speed of the game is very impor-
the Roll man gives us different perspective when exe- tant, early P & R options in transition are readily
cuting our P & R offense. welcomed.
} On the run P & R: The screener starts from low,
GENERAL P & R CONCEPTS sprinting up to set the screen and then again to
In building our P & R offense, we have always sought sprint inside to receive the ball. It is very helpful
to create different concepts that will produce a lot of against aggressive P & R defenses to have a delay
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 7
COACHES } PICK & ROLL EXECUTION
4
screen to the screener down low, to take
the defender of the screener out of the
show. The delay screen should be set
either from a guard or the other big
5
TWO TIME man.
} Multiple P & R: It’s also important
ISRAELI LEAGUE for our offense to have a continuous
CHAMPION P & R movement, giving a flow to our
sets. With this concept we want to
have a Side to Middle P & R, or a Side
to other Side P & R, to spread the floor,
to have the proper distances and to force
defense to defend for a longer period and to
a wider area.
Here I would like to categorize the P & R options,
according to the balance and configuration of the
players on the court. So, we divide the P & R action
into six different types:
6
7 8 9
8 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM
10 11 12
13
• HIGH P & R
This is a simple 2 on 2 game on the top of the key, ha-
ving the other three players low, close to the baseline.
TIDBITS
(diagr. 1). He likes to spend
time with his
• STRAIGHT P & R family
The screener comes straight in, right behind the defen-
}
14
der of the ball, and sets the screen directly or changes Reading is one
of his pastimes
the angle at the last moment (diagr. 2).
• SPREAD P & R
A P & R option with three players behind the 3-point
line. It’s the most common P & R situation, having two
players behind the ball or on the view. (diagr. 3-4).
• ELBOW P & R
The last 3-4 years, a lot of coaches started adding the
Elbow P & R situation, more often than before, to their
offensive system. With this formation on the court we
create different angles, lanes and spacing for the of-
fense to attack (diagr. 5). 15
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 9
COACHES } PICK & ROLL EXECUTION
16 17 18
• STEP UP P & R • AND LAST BUT VERY IMPORTANT, SIDE P & R
As an extension of the Elbow P & R situation, what’s This takes place into the free throw line extended and
more common these days is the “Step Up P & R” si- sometimes even lower, having the other three players
tuation. This is when the screener sets the ball screen to the weak side. This formation gives the team con-
to the elbow area giving a driving angle advantage to tinuity and a motion option, moving the ball from one
the player with the ball. Can be with or without a corner side of the court to the other (diagr. 8).
player (diagr. 6-7).
AGAINST SWITCHING P & R DEFENSE
During the last few years, the switching P & R defen-
se, started to be executed by a lot of teams. Many co-
aches have added the switching defense to their P &
R defensive philosophy. This is how they attempt to
stop the flow of the offense and the continuity that a
multiple P & R offense is providing. We’ve seen a lot
of instances of teams struggling against this particu-
lar defense and players that were going out of their
regular way of attacking the opponents. It’s true that
when the defending team turns the defense from re-
gular man-to-man to a switching defense, we have
to change the offensive approach of the game. We
should “read” the weakest parts of this defense and
attack them from there, because when the defense
switches the P & R, it immediately creates misma-
tches, inside and outside. That’s why the smarter re-
action of the offense should be to read exactly where
the advantage is and immediately attack it. Therefo-
re, our directions offensively against the P & R swi-
tching defense are:
} Attacking the outside mismatch
} Attacking the inside mismatch
TWO TIMES } Continuing to execute the offensive plays, no mat-
ter whether they switch the P & Rs or not.
GREEK LEAGUE
ATTACKING THE OUTSIDE MISMATCH
CHAMPION Teams that have versatile big men, who are good ath-
letes and can defend on ball against guards, have an
advantage in executing this defense. They put the best
X5 defender on the offensive big man, so after swi-
10 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMtching the P & R, the X5 defends on ball. One very easy A lot of teams are using
reaction of the offense against this move is to execute the “triple switch” op-
the P & R with the 4-position player, if the X4 is not so tion to cover the insi-
good a defender as the X5 (diagr. 9). de mismatch with a
bigger player (diagr.
TWO TIMES
An alternative option should be to run, after the first P & 18). In that situa- EUROLEAGUE
R with 5, a second P & R with the weakest defender on
the team (even if this player could be a guard) (diag. 10).
tion our reaction
has two directions.
FINALIST WITH
First, to find the of- OLYMPIACOS
On our team, when we attack the outside mismatch, fensive player who is
we also organize the formation of the players so that at the side of the triple
they’re away from the ball. Some coaches like the trian- switch, and attack during
gle and one (diagr. 11), and some others the one – four that small period that they
formation (diagr. 12). We like to have both options, so
the ball handler would have different options to attack
the big man 1 on 1.
In both situations, while the ball handler is starting to
attack the big men, we can have the other players set-
ting screens away from the ball (for example, flair scre-
ens), to gain advantage for a good shot (diagr. 13-14).
Another reaction of the defense to the player who is
attacking the outside mismatch, is the run and jump to
him, to try to get the ball out of his hands, helping the
big man who is defending the guard (diagr. 15). In that
option, the ball handler should be ready to make the ri-
ght pass and the easy pass, to move the ball and to put
the defense under a running close out situation (diagr.
16) until the moment that the offensive team finds the
open player to execute.
ATTACKING THE INSIDE MISMATCH
Another option of our offense against the switching P
& R defense is to attack with the big man from inside.
After the defense switches the P & R, we want our big
man to dive deep into the paint, seal the guard and get
the ball to finish easy under the rim (diagr. 17).
19 20 21
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 11COACHES } PICK & ROLL EXECUTION
switch the match ups (diagr. 19). And second, to keep player they trap (baseline, strong side, top of the key)
the second, bigger defender (who most of the times and then to organize how we have to attack against
is X4) at the strong side, in order not to be able to get the low post trap (diagr. 21).
involved in the triple switch situation (diagr. 20).
CONTINUING TO EXECUTE THE OFFENSIVE PLAYS
Some other teams like to trap the inside mismatch. In that situation, we have some offenses that we
In that option, our reaction is to know from which know from before and we’ll continue to run, even if
12 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMthe defense switches the P & Rs against us. These of-
fenses are mainly motion offenses, with a lot of pas-
ses and cuts and movement in general, that against
the switching P & R defense, keeps the flow of the
game. In these particular offenses, we are mainly
trying to find the weak side players to have a close
out offensive option and a drive and kick game.
Career These are the ideas that we have for our offensive
game against switching P & R defense. We are trying to
1997-2005 2009-2010 be smart, to read and attack the weak parts of this de-
Paok Assistant & Interim Greek National Team fense. We have organized the ways and the directions
to attack, so all the players should be on the same page,
Coach Assistant knowing what they have to do at every moment of the
2001-2004 2011-2012 game. Of course, it’s obvious that we want the players
to bring their individual talents and skills to bear in each
Greek National Team CSKA Moscow Assistant game. Their personalities and correct decisions are so
Assistant important for the success of our offense. Their creativi-
2012
ty and the imaginativeness that they bring to the game
2005-2008 Houston Rockets are always welcome as they give us the necessary in-
Olympiacos Assistant Assistant gredients for that extra push so vital to our game.
2006 2012-2014
Cleveland Cavaliers Panionios Head Coach
https://www.facebook.com/giannis.sferopoulos/about/
Assistant
2012-2018
2008-2011 Olympiacos Head Coach https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/sfairopoulos/
Kolossos Rhodes
Head Coach 2018-Present
Maccabi Tel Aviv #sfairopoulos
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 13COACHES } Dimitris Tsaldaris } OLYMPIACOS PIRAEUS DEVELOPMENT TEAM HEAD COACH
OLYMPIACOS DEVELOPMENT
TEAM PRACTICES
Weekly cycle and how we implement a new play
A
s you all know, time is running during a se-
ason and it's very important how you utili-
ze time to schedule your weekly cycle, add
new things such as a new play or a defense
and maximize your team’s potential. Be-
low, I will analyze how we are planning a weekly cycle
of practices and how we implement a new play that
we want to use in our next game. , Bear in mind that
the period is the second half of the first round and our
team plays one game per week.
Our week starts on Monday morning with
weightlifting and individual workouts.
Our players are separated into groups
of big men and guards using two
baskets and in the first part of
the practice they are wor-
king on fundamentals 1
vs. 0. We use the se-
cond part to work 1
vs. 0 (still in the same
groups) on our exi-
sting play options or
to introduce a new
play by working dif-
ferent options of the
basic execution of
the play. Generally, all
of our individual wor-
kouts are based on
dribble, drive, finish
situations as much
as on read/react and
spacing drills. We fi-
nish the practice with
spot shooting, coun-
ting the makes and
free throws. Practice
is going to last for 1
hour and 15 minutes
at most.
14 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMhttps://www.olympiacosbc.gr/en/
1
2
Before afternoon practice, there is our first video
session that includes the feedback from our
previous game. At the beginning of the after-
noon practice, we introduce in 5 vs 0, the
new play, by emphasizing what we want HE PLAYED
and what will be our response in any de-
fense. After stretching, we use teams of
IN DIV. I AND II
3 vs. 0 with three balls and two coaches TEAMS
and we are working on the play, running
different scenarios (all three players have to IN GREECE
score). This will take up 10 minutes before we
move into conditioning and the main structure 3
of practice that includes 1 vs. 1, 2 vs. 2 pick & roll
defense, shell drills and a part of 5 vs. 5 half-court,
running the new play. Practice is going to last 1 hour
and 30 minutes (diagr. 1, 2, 3, 4).
Moving on to Tuesday, we start the practice with 3
vs. 0 full court with one ball, running different options
of the play. That will take eight minutes of the time.
After stretching, we stay on half-court working on 4
vs. 0 options of the play, focusing on game-like speed,
strong passes and setting screens with the right an-
gle. This will take eight to 10 minutes before we move
into 5 vs. 0 from half to full court, asking the same key
points from the players as off 4 vs. 0. We then move 4
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 15COACHES } OLYMPIACOS DEVELOPMENT TEAM PRACTICES
on to the practice that includes transition and condi-
tioning drills based on our identity and how we want
to play on both ends. We use competitive shooting
drills to slow down the pace and then we move on 4
vs. 4 and 5 vs. 5 drills working on our defense. We fi-
nish the practice, working on our offense 5 vs. 5 from
half to full court, focusing on the new play and its key
points but also on the pace, because for us pace mat-
ters. The scheduled time for the practice is 1 hour and
45 minutes (diagr. 5, 6, 7, 8).
On Wednesday morning, we have our second
morning practice that includes weightlifting and
basketball drills. The team is working individually in
groups of big men and guards, parts of our plays are
in two baskets. We finish the practice with spot sho-
oting and free throws. The practice will last 1 hour
and 15 minutes.
In the afternoon practice, we start working pairs 2
vs. 0 (one guard, one big man) with one ball for each options of our plays or we go with the 3 vs. 0 (three
pair. While the team is warming up, we execute on balls + two coaches) working with high intensity.
the lines and the angles of the play that we added. When we finish that part, we focus on the scouting
After stretching, we continue with about 10 minu- of the opponent by working on their plays and how
tes of 4 vs. 0 drills (half-court) focusing on different we want to defend them. We go 5 vs. 5 from half to
HE ALSO
PLAYED IN A1
TEAMS IN ITALY
5 6
7 8 9
16 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM10 11 12
full court, working on the scouting on half court and
our transition on full court. After we are done with
the defense, we continue with competitive shooting
drills before our time-out. Our rule is that losers run.
We finish our practice by working on our offense or
by playing scrimmage for two to eight minutes. The
total time will be 1 hour and 30 minutes (diagr. 9, 10,
11, 12).
On Thursday, we have our second video session fo-
cused on the team characteristics of the opponent.
That will take us about 30 minutes. We then move
to practice and we start by working individually in
two groups of big men and guards, separating them
using two baskets and working on options of the
play that we added. After stretching, the practice is
focused on the defensive scouting and our offensive
adjustments. We emphasize the pace and the inten-
sity as much as the details of the execution of our
offense. The total time of the practice is 1 hour and
45 minutes.
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 17COACHES } OLYMPIACOS DEVELOPMENT TEAM PRACTICES
OLYMPIACOS B TEAM WEEKLY SCHEDULE TIDBITS
Day 1 - Monday Day 4 - Thursday He studying
for a Minor
9:30 - 10:45 Morning Practice 17:50 - 18:20 Video Session,
Degree in Sports
18:00 - 18:25 Previous Game Feedback opponent team’s characteristics Management
18:30 - 20:00 18:30 - 20:15 Practice
}
Demo new play/drill 3 vs. 0 + two His hobbies are
Day 5 - Friday
coaches reading and
17:50 - 18:20 Video Session watching movies
Day 2 - Tuesday Opposing Players
18:00 - 19:45 18:30 - 19:45 Practice
3 vs. 0 full court with different options
Day 6 - Saturday
Day 3 - Wednesday 17:00 Game
9:30 - 10:45 Practice
Day 7 - Sunday
18:30 - 20:00 2 vs. 0, warm up + basic
Game Analysis
execution of the play/ 4 vs. 0 play’s diffe-
Evaluation of the new play
rent options
On Friday, we have the third video session that is fo-
cused on the opponent players’ personnel. Generally,
on Friday we keep the pace low because we want our
players to be fresh for Saturday’s game. Our practice
starts by walking through the opponent’s plays and
concluding with how we are going to defend them.
After stretching, we work on 5 vs. 0 for 15 minutes on
our plays and offensive out of bounds. The next part
of the practice is focused on special situations and
after time-outs that we will use, or we might use in
the game. We finish with competitive shooting drills
and we are ready to go for the game. Scheduled time
for the practice is 1 hour and 15 minutes.
On Saturday, our game is at 17:00 (5pm), so we don’t
have time for a morning shoot-around. On Sunday, we
do our game analysis and we also evaluate the effi-
ciency of our plays, including the execution and effi-
ciency of the newly added play, by keeping stats of
every play and action that we had in the game. We
finish our game week by preparing the video feedback
that is going to be shown and discussed with our
players before Monday afternoon practice.
Career
2018 - Present 2019 – Present
https://www.instagram.com/dim_tsaldaris/
Olympiacos Piraeus Olympiacos Piraeus
Academy Director Development Team
& Head Coach U 18 Head Coach @dim_tsaldaris
18 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMFOLLOW US
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ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 19VARIOUS TOPICS } Geno Auriemma } University of connecticut Women's Head Coach WINNING IS ONLY PART OF A COACH’S JOB It’s special developing players on and off the court INTERVIEW BY GIORGIO GANDOLFI 20 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM
L
uigi “Geno” Auriemma is
the winningest coach in
the history of women’s
11 college basketball - yet
he does not like the term
NCAA “women’s basketball,” because he
says that he coaches “basketball
CHAMPIONSHIPS players.”
WITH UCONN His road to fame began in the vil-
lage of Montella, in the province
of Avellino, located in the region of
Campania, Italy, where he was born in
1954. At the age of seven, his parents,
Donato and Marcella emigrated to the USA,
and they settled in Norristown, Pennsylvania.
Being an Italian, as a boy in Montella, he played soccer,
a sport virtually unknown in the US at that time. As a
result, when he arrived in the US, he started playing
baseball, and then basketball, which soon became his
great passion. Following his experience as a coach at
the high school level, he began his college coaching
career as an assistant at St. Joseph’s University, and
then at the University of Virginia, from which he made
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 21VARIOUS TOPICS } Winning is only part of a coach’s job
3
OLYMPIC the big leap to head for every minute of practice so they can be on for all
GOLD MEDALS AS coach at the Univer-
sity of Connecticut
40 minutes of a game.”
UNITED STATES in 1985. Which coaches have had the greatest influence on
your coaching style, and why?
And since that time,
HEAD COACH UConn and its coach “I think the coach Buddy Gardler at Bishop Kenrick
have become legends, High School, was obviously a huge influence. He
winning 11 NCAA wom- coached a really old school, tough way of playing,
en’s titles, as well as three focus on the fundamentals. I played for him and he
Olympic Gold medals with gave me the first opportunity to coach when I was in
Auriemma led USA teams, and two college, so everything kind of started there.“
FIBA World Championships Gold Medals with the USA
Senior Women’s National teams. How would you describe your style of play on of-
fense and defense?
Mr. Auriemma, in an article you were described as “Ball movement is really important on offense, mak-
“controversial, confrontational and driven.” Could ing sure we’re always looking for the next pass to
you kindly go deeper into these traits of your per- have the best shot available. We spend a lot of time
sonality? And how does your personality exhibit it- working on defense, especially man-to-man. Every-
self on the court, in practice and in the game? one wants to score, but you need to be really solid
“I’m Italian, I have roots in Philly, so I think I just have defensively to win consistently.”
a gritty, outspoken mentality. I’m going to be really
honest with you about what you’re doing right and When you recruit players what are the most im-
wrong. I expect the best out of my players and staff portant non-technical aspects of their personali-
22 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMties that you are looking for in order for them to
become part of the UConn team?
“I think body language is huge. How they react to a
good play, a bad play, their team winning or losing.
How they treat their teammates, coaches and op-
ponents. I want them to be as happy for their team-
mate making a great play as they
are for themselves.”
Focusing instead on basketball
TIDBITS
skills, which features are you He has been
looking for the most in a recruit? married to his
“I like kids who love basketball. wife Kathy since
You can tell who’s staying in the 1978
gym and putting in extra work.
}
The ones that want to learn more He owns a
and keep developing when they restaurant Café
get to college.” Aura and he
produces pasta
Once you told in an interview- sauces and wines
er that you were praying to lose
}
a game finally, because it could He played soccer
help the team. Would you please in Italy and then
explain this concept? baseball and
basketball in the
United States
}
Favorite
basketball team
NY Knicks of
the ‘70s
2
FIBA WORLD
CHAMPIONSHIPS
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 23VARIOUS TOPICS } Winning is only part of a coach’s job
[laughs] “That must’ve been the 2016-17 season. from your players?
We had just come off our fourth straight national “I don’t think any competitor wants to lose. That’s
championship, Stewie [Breanna Stewart] left college never the goal. So I personally always want to win
as one of the best collegiate players ever, along with and to do it while playing the best basketball we can.”
Mo [Moriah Jefferson] and [Morgan] Tuck as the top
three picks in the WNBA draft. So the last couple How do you motivate your players in practice and
years, we hadn’t had a lot of adversity, it was easy. in a game?
And I felt like the team we had that year, they were “I think it’s important to know your players and as
young and had relied on the three that just graduat- time has gone on, it’s gotten harder to figure out
ed, so a loss would help them kind of wake up and how hard to be on certain players. Kids want to come
learn what was needed to keep to practice and they want to go at their pace, But I
competing at the highest lev- think the expectation is that you’re going at my pace.
el. And we just kept win- You’re here to be coached and to learn, so you need
ning that year, we got up to bring the right attitude and work ethic every day.”
8 to 111 straight wins be-
fore losing in the Final In the 2016, at the Indianapolis Final Four press
NAISMITH Four.” conference you said that while looking at the game
video you also take note of the body language of
WOMEN’S COACH What does “the burn- the players on the bench. How do you react if you
OF THE YEAR ing desire to win,”
mean for you and do
detect a wrong attitude or poor body language? “I
think a lot of it starts in practice. It’s just like basket-
AWARDS you require the same ball - once you get into the game, you’re not learning
anything new, you’re doing what you practiced. So
making sure you’re high fiving your teammates, tell-
ing them when they made a good play, picking them
up when they’re down. It’s a team sport, so it’s im-
portant to be a good teammate.”
There are some past players, both superstars and
reserves to whom you are particularly tied? What
are the reasons for those strong connections? In
general, how are your relationships with players
once they leave Uconn?
“Well at UConn I’ve had the opportunity to coach
some really, really special players. And then with
U.S. Basketball, I got to coach some of them again,
Dee [Diana Taurasi], Sue [Bird], Tina [Charles], Stew-
ie [Breanna Stewart], Maya [Moore]. I think there’s
a lot of respect both ways that I’m going to expect
them to put in their hardest effort every single day,
and they’re going to expect the same out of me.“
Have you ever been contacted by a men’s team, ei-
ther college or NBA to coach? If so, why did you de-
cide to refuse their offers?
“I have, and I just didn’t feel like the timing or oppor-
tunity was right. I think I would enjoy doing it, but for
me, it’d be like starting over as a coach. And I think
there’s an idea that coaching men is the pinnacle for
a coach, but I’ve been able to coach some of the best
players and teams in the world.”
Looking back on a long and successful coaching
24 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMcareer, which are your greatest satisfactions and
why?
“I think seeing players develop on and off the court.
I think that’s something that’s what’s special about
being a college coach, you set them up for the rest
of their lives. So getting the best out of them on and
off the court over four years and then seeing them
take those skills and become successful after they
leave UConn is really something special.“
Career Are there any outstanding regrets?
“Maybe little things here and there, but I’ve been
1978 - 1979 1981 - 1985 pretty fortunate to have a lot of great moments,
St. Joseph’s University University of Virginia more than bad ones.”
Assistant Coach Assistant Coach
1979 - 1981 1985 - Present www.genoauriemma.com
Bishop Kenrick H.S. University of Connecticut
Head Coach Women’s Head Coach uconnhuskies.com
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 25VIDEO LIBRARY
THUMB SET (FIFTH PART)
T
erry Stotts, the head coach of the Portland Trail
Blazers since 2012, teaches another solution
from the several which can be generated out of
the “Thumb Set”: the “One Chest Wheel.”
“Always start in a box set, with two big men at the
corners of the free-throw lane, the two perimeter
players down in the lane, and the point guard in the
middle of the court. This set gives us the chance to
begin the play on either side of the court. The point
guard starts to dribble to one side of the court, and
this is the signal to begin the play. We have the big
man on the ball side to screen down for the wing,
then we run a first flare, followed by a turn out. Next,
we run a second flare and a second turn out to give
one of our best outside shooters the chance to get
free, receive the ball and shoot.”
eCoach is the official technical video company of the
NBA Coaches Association (NBCA, www.nbacoaches.
com). Several NBA head and assistant coaches share their drills and plays. There are different sections of
the library, from children, to youth, to pro level. You can obtain more information about the company and
its services by going to www.ecoachbasketball.com
26 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMLAST SECOND OUT-OF-BOUNDS WINNING PLAY
K
yle Lowry was the inbounder, Marc Gasol made
a first screen for Fred VanVleet, who is one of
the Raptors’ best three-point shooters, and
who dragged two defenders. Gasol, after a screen
for Pascal Siakam, dragged another defender who
was a potential threat in the lane. Having all three
of the potential receivers guarded, Kyle Lowry
saw that OG Anunoby was incredibly alone on the
opposite corner of the court and made a cross court
pass to him. He received the ball and made the
winning shot. On the Boston Celtics’ side, perhaps
the only unfortunate defensive detail was confusion
in the peripheral vision at the moment when the
visual contact was broken (when a single member
disconnected), resulting in a short circuit in the
Celtics’ team defense.
Claudio César Prieto the staff of the Michael Jordan Brand Classic in
Argentine professional coach who also holds Barcelona. He has coached Catalan teams, has
Spanish citizenship, he has attended many clinics the FIBA and top Spanish and Argentine coaching
and been the guest of teams worldwide, including licenses, and is an expert in video analysis.
the San Antonio Spurs of the NBA. Prieto was on www.thecoachclaudioprieto.com
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 27VIDEO LIBRARY
“DON’T GET SCREENED!”
W
hen guarding the ball in a pick-and-roll defenders involved, etc.
situation, priority no. 1 is not to get screened. In the video I break down some of the ins-and-outs
Whenever the screen can hit and hold you by one of the best PNR defenders in the EuroLeague.
on the shoulder, this will result in a 2-on-1 situation Some of these crucial fundamentals are discussed
in favour of the offense. Additionally, it is important and highlighted: hip to shoulder to pass the screen,
to keep pressure on the ball as much as possible and when to use a spin move to go under, when to cross
limit the vision and decision making of the playmaker. your legs…
In order to avoid getting screened, the best ball
defenders at the highest level seem to soar lightly
over the floor. In this video I highlight Facundo
Campazzo (Real Madrid) who moves like an
Argentinian dancer over and under the screens. Unlike
the old-school textbooks, the best defenders are not
too low on their legs and move on the balls of their
feet.
Whether to go OVER or UNDER a pick is a decision
that depends on several factors: personnel scouting,
exact location on the court, floor balance (spacing)
of the opponent, previous action and timing by both
Pascal Meurs is currently the head coach of Sparta Bertrange (Luxemburg). Recently, he worked for six
months as the head coach of EuroProBasket International Academy for professional players in Valencia,
Spain. He has experience as a head coach at the highest level in Belgium, The Netherlands and France.
Pascal is an expert in advanced basketball analytics and a skilled speaker at coaching clinics. He also runs a
coaching website and newsletter: www.pascalmeurs.com
28 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMFOLLOW US
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ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 29MINI BASKETBALL } Thomas Johansen } Danish Basketball Federation Head of Development
EXPLOSIVE GROWTH OF MINI
BASKETBALL IN DENMARK
TREMENDOUS STRIDES
IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS
WE HAVE
A MINI BASKETBALL
PARTNERSHIP
WITH THE ITALIAN
BASKETBALL
FEDERATION
30 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMT
he Danish Basketball Federation is one that work with basketball. Our biggest and most
of the smaller Federations in Europe, in a important strategic goal is to have a higher volume
country where football and handball dom- of basketball players.
inate the landscape. Yet, we have made So how do we implement this strategy? We needed
tremendous strides during the last five to look at all aspects of our Federation and, in spe-
years and have gone from 11,000 members to over cific, at all aspects of the U12 mini category, which
15,000 during this period. In acknowledgment of is where we have focused our efforts.
this, we were named the Sports Federation of the } We looked at all organizations around us that have
Year in Denmark in 2018. The biggest reason for this the same goals as we do, for healthy collabora-
has been a very sharp strategic focus and positive tions.
collaborations with clubs and other organizations } We changed our tournament format for the young-
est players.
} We changed the rules for the youngest players.
} We implemented a new children’s referee educa-
tion program.
} We are implementing basketball concepts for the
U7 and U5 categories.
} We are encouraging clubs to focus on volume rath-
er than talent identification and elite projects.
VOLUME INSTEAD OF SELECTION
For our Federation to be successful in implementing
a strategy, we are, in the end, at the mercy of the
clubs. They are the ones who will essentially be do-
ing most of the work, with the children, in schools,
in practice, and with the volunteers executing the
strategies of the Federation. One of the reasons
that Denmark has had an explosive growth in bas-
ketball, is because many of our clubs have agreed
that it is better to focus on volume. The best exam-
ple of this, is that the biggest club in Denmark with
over 1,000 members has no elite men’s or women’s
team. Also, no money goes from the youth depart-
ment to the senior department. This offers huge
opportunities to hire good coaches for the youth
teams and to create a solid environment for the
youth department. This is a path that we can see
more clubs starting to follow. For many years our
biggest clubs had just under 500 members, but now
we have two clubs with around 1,000 members and
a few others right behind with around 650 mem-
bers. Bigger clubs have more energy and are more
likely to have continuous stability.
DEVELOPMENT IN VOLUME IN THE U12 CATEGORY FROM 2014-2019
Age Gender 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Diff. Diff. % Diff. %
’18 -’19 ’14 -’19 ’14 -’19
0-12 Girls 1.039 1.066 1.152 1.447 1.661 1.751 90 5,42 68,5
0-12 Boys 1.948 2.432 2.677 3.009 3.292 3.368 76 2,31 72,9
0-12 Total 2.987 3.498 3.829 4.456 4.953 5.119 166 3,35 71,4
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 31MINI BASKETBALL } Explosive Growth of Mini Basketball in Denmark
PARTNERSHIPS
In 2014, an organization called “Børnebasketfonden”,
“The Children’s Basketball Foundation,” was founded
in Denmark. In collaboration with the Federation, the
organization works exclusively on recruiting U12 play-
ers through school partnerships. The idea is to bring
organized sport to the children, so they can experience
basketball.
A classic concept would be sending a coach to teach
basketball to a class of 25 pupils for a six-week pe-
riod. Afterwards, the school gets 25 basketballs they
can keep. For this there is a fixed price. The timing for
these school activities was perfect as there was a new
school law being introduced, that required schools to
open up and collaborate with local clubs, cultural in-
stitutions etc. This made it easy for us to implement
our concepts regarding basketball as the schools were
looking for partnerships. There are a few strategic
points that we stress when cooperating with schools.
} We work with schools that have a basketball
club nearby, so if they like the game the children
have a place to play.
} We push cooperation in areas/cities where the
sports attendance in the U12 category is low. Co-
penhagen is a good example of this.
} In areas with lots of children who are not active
in sports, we will also open our own U12 clubs.
The FIBA “Youth Development Fund,” as well as “Her
World, Her Rules” have been key factors in our being
able to reach out and disseminate high quality con-
cepts that have made a big impact for us. This contin-
uing collaboration with FIBA is especially important for
a smaller federation like ours, as their contributions
have a deep impact, as reflected in our member num-
bers year after year.
Another organization we reached out to is DGI Bas-
ketball. DGI is a large sports organization
in Denmark that focuses on am-
ateur sport. Together we now
work to develop our education PARTNERSHIP WITH THE ITALIAN
system, and to intensify our BASKETBALL FEDERATION
“VOLUME focus on the youngest play- About five years ago, FIBA visited the Danish Basket-
ers. They are also a big fac- ball Federation. Our Board Member and Chairman of
INSTEAD OF tor in helping clubs setting the Coaches Committee, Mads Christensen, had a
up clinics and camps, and conversation with FIBA representatives, and asked
SELECTION” IS OUR more importantly, they who in the world works most intensely and progres-
GUIDELINE have expanded the number
of consultants who can visit
sively with youth basketball. The answer was Maur-
izio Cremonini and the Italian Basketball Federation.
and advise our clubs. And, 98 After that meeting, I contacted Maurizio with the in-
% of the Federation’s member tention of establishing a partnership that would help
clubs are also members of DGI. us educate and change the way our coaches work
32 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMwww.basket.dk www.facebook.com/thomas.johansen.5623
with mini basketball players. This ongoing partner- has also inspired us to work on programs for the U7
ship has proven to be a fantastic educational tool for and U5 children, with an Italian development focus.
us. Over the years we have sent about 60 coaches
to Italy and we have had Maurizio and his staff in CHANGES IN OUR MINI BASKETBALL RULES
Denmark three times to do clinics. The first clinic had To make sure that players enjoy basketball and
over 70 participants, which is still a record for a clinic come to embrace the game, we needed to encour-
in Denmark. age some changes in the way that players are treat-
The Danish Basketball Federation has also bought and ed. This has been a big challenge, especially for the
translated the “Italian Mini Basketball Book” and uses coaches, to change their level of ambition for the
it for courses and clinics. The Italian partnership and youngest players, but we really feel like it is going in
friendship is still a big factor in how we are changing the right direction. Some of the rules that we have
the way we work with our mini basketball groups. It for the game are:
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 33MINI BASKETBALL } Explosive growth of the Mini Basketball in Denmark
in the mini basketball category as well. We have
} All players must play the same amount of time. If
changed that, so now all mini basketball tourna-
players are to love the sport, we must give them
the opportunity to play. ments with 3-4 teams are played once every 5-6
} No scores are shown. We have eliminated the weeks. This way we make it easier for the parents
who don’t have to drive every weekend, but only
running score during games, so that focus can be
once every 5-6 weeks.
on the development of skills and not on the out-
come of the game. We also created a platform during the tournaments
for coaches and referees to network. We believe that
} An extra point is given if you are 10 players or
a positive network is one way of keeping volunteers
more in the higher level. This is to emphasize the
in the sport.
importance of focusing on recruiting, rather than
winning. The tournament structure also gives coaches a
} Commenting negatively on players can give a chance to work with their players during practice
for a longer time before having to focus on playing
coach a technical foul. This rule is to stress that
we want coaches to focus on their own playersa game. We used to experience situations where
and on developing their skills. coaches were more focused on the game next week-
end, instead of the long-term development of their
CHANGING THE TOURNAMENT STRUCTURE players. The longer periods between games offers
For many years we had a traditional tournament an opportunity to focus on development, rather than
structure where we played home and away games, winning.
34 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMTIDBITS
He lived in
Tanzania for
nine years and
speaks fluent
Swahili
}
For two years
he worked as
a professional
coach in
Iceland
}
He runs
basketball
development
projects in
Zanzibar,
holding
basketball and
handball camps
REFEREE EDUCATION referee education protocol that emphasizes a more
If our youngest players are to enjoy the game, they pedagogical approach to communication with the
need to understand what is going on, especially in the players. The referee becomes more of a helper than a
first phases of game play. The initial encounter with a referee. In real life terms, it means explaining to play-
referee must be positive. Therefore, we created a new ers what they did wrong and how they can change it,
but with a smile and a helping hand. Our experience
is that players and parents really appreciate it when
Career referees are focused on giving the players a positive
take-away experience.
2007 - 2008 Lemvig 2012 - 2014
Basketball Club Danish Basketball THE BOTTOM LINE
Head of Basketball Federation The strategy of the Danish Basketball Federation has
been a four-year plan that ends in 2021. The execution
Operations Development Officer of the strategy has been very successful, but there
2008 - 2012 2014 - Present is still more work to be done. The increase in the vol-
ume of players has put more strain on the clubs and
Various Clubs as Danish Basketball the Federation. The challenge going forward is: How do
Head Coach & Consultant Federation we handle the extra volume of players, and how do we
Head of Development help the biggest clubs manage all their new players?
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 35STRENGTH & CONDITIONING COACH } Luka Svilar } Unics Kazan Phys. Performance & Rehabil. Hea
FROM QUARANTINE
TO ACB TITLE
THE ANALYSIS OF BASKONIA’S
PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE
INTRODUCTION
During the month of March 2020 most of the Euro-
pean sporting competitions were halted due to the
pandemic of COVID-19. Everyone in Spain, from team
administration to coaches and players, was bound to
comply with the ensuing lockdown, and no one knew
exactly its duration and possible outcomes. Howev-
er, some teams believed that the championship of
the 2019/2020 season would be played to comple-
tion at some point. Baskonia was one of those teams
whose coaching staff and players stayed in Spain,
in Vitoria-Gasteiz, where every player received
, basic equipment to work out at home. Three
months later, together with 11 other teams
from Liga ACB, Baskonia found itself in
Valencia for the Final Phase tournament,
played in two groups of six teams where
the two best representatives met in
the semifinals. On June 30th, Barcelo-
na and Baskonia played a great final
game, after which Baskonia’s cap-
tain, Tornike Shengelia, lifted the
trophy high in the air and cel-
ebrated with his teammates
HE WON
2019 - 2020 ACB
SPANISH TITLE
WITH
BASKONIAwww.unics.ru
ad
the fourth ACB title in the history of the franchise. ment they needed in order to continue their rehabili-
Success in team sport such as basketball comes from tation with the team’s rehab coach.
many factors including quality of players and their op- This phase lasted for a month, after which the team,
ponents, team cohesion, head coach communication especially the head coach, decided to start daily online
and tactical knowledge, as well as the type of compe- video sessions, from Monday to Saturday, where each
tition, the crowd and, of course, physical performance. player would participate in complex strength and con-
The latter is the factor which is the main focus of this ditioning activities. In the last week or so, players (as
article, and it is a retrospective analysis of the most everyone else in Spain) were allowed to run outside in
important components that had a positive impact on the evening, so video sessions became focused main-
the team’s physical readiness and performance. ly on injury prehab, stability and strength work, while
conditioning was organized by individual running ses-
1. DO WHAT YOU CAN - WORK DURING QUARANTINE sions. Running outside was a very important activi-
During the first week of the quarantine, the club made ty prior to returning to court, as players were able to
sure that each player received basic equipment to experience once again the mechanical stress of run-
work out at home - stationary bike, mat, foam roll- ning, a key basic element that was missing during the
er, a pair of heavy and light dumbbells, medicine ball, home “cardio” sessions that were based on running-
bumper plate and a basketball. At the beginning, as no in-place and jumping jack exercises.
one knew the exact duration of the lockdown, I had
decided to provide players with individual programs. 2.RETURN TO TRAINING - BENEFITS OF SAFETY
The goal was to stay somewhat active, minimizing the REGULATIONS
impact of detraining. Healthy players received extra When the club got government approval to start
prehab programs, and players who recently had minor training again, very clear protocols were established
issues, such as plantar fasciitis or knee tendinopathy, in order to provide safety for all players and staff
got an individual rehab protocol. Players who had suf- members. The safety regulations stated that play-
fered major injuries were provided with extra equip- ers needed to start with individual training sessions
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 37STRENGTH & CONDITIONING COACH } From Quarantine to ACB Title
followed by team practice without contact. The third team started training with contact, scrimmage games
stage allowed team practice with contact. All these were easily organized with 5 + 3 players on each team
regulations were perfect progressions in terms of allowing for frequent substitutions. Again, these were
factors such as training volume, training intensity, brilliant conditions to be able to work under for com-
movement complexity etc. For a strength and condi- petitive endurance together with improving offensive
tioning coach, it was basically the perfect scenario to and defensive strategies organized by the head coach.
gradually and safely build stability, strength, power,
specific and competitive endurance. 4. SHORTER TRAINING SESSIONS -
FROM LIFTING WEIGHTS TO TEAM WORK
3. BIG TEAM - ADVANTAGE IN SCRIMMAGE GAMES Greater volume of work and longer training sessions
Another big advantage that Baskonia had was a long are often needed to build good stamina. However, a
roster with 16 players. This definitely decreased the great volume of work, especially after longer periods
risk of overloading certain players during team prac- of accumulated higher loads can lead to overload,
tices, especially those who needed a bit more time increased soreness and fatigue. This is the thin line
to get back on track with specific intensity. Once the between the adaptation for greater physical perfor-
38 ALQUERIADELBASKET.COMmance and increased injury risk, especially to soft tis- and team (second and third phase) training, while du-
sues. This preparatory period after the quarantine was ration was short, 20-30 minutes.
not the same as one in regular pre-season, as a ‘to be
or not to be’ competition followed, and lasted for only 5. FIRST TWO GAMES -
two weeks. Missing players for some games due to PERFECT DISTRIBUTION OF PLAYING TIME
overload-type injury would have been a major prob- The group phase of the tournament was organized in
lem. Therefore, Baskonia’s weeks and practices were a way that each team played five games every second
generally organized in moderate volume which was day. I honestly didn’t worry about physical perfor-
enough stimuli for positive adaptations and physical mance in the first three games, as I believed that all
improvements coupled with moderate to minor injury of our players were capable of maintaining high per-
risk. Of course, there were ‘shock’ days of greater vol- formance even by playing an average of 35 minutes.
ume but in general, intensity was a more important However, my main concern was the last two games,
variable, and accumulated days of very high volume as accumulated fatigue would definitely have taken
were generally avoided. Strength and power training its toll on players who played an average of more than
was always organized prior to individual (first phase) 30 minutes. Team performance in the first two games
ALQUERIADELBASKET.COM 39También puede leer
