Whether you are just beginning your basketball coaching career or whether you are a seasoned veteran one of the most significant things you can do to directly influence the level of success your team reaches this upcoming season is to define or possibly refine your offensive philosophy. Defining and developing an offensive philosophy is going to give your athletes a definite direction and will help you and the rest of your staff plan effective practices in order to accomplish your desired outcome.

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How to Develop Your Offensive Philosophy-hoopskills.com
How to Develop Your Offensive Philosophy
-by Coach Dave Stricklin
http://www.hoopskills.com
Whether you are just beginning your coaching
career or whether you are a seasoned veteran
one of the most significant things you can do
to directly influence the level of success your
team reaches this upcoming season is to
define or possibly refine your offensive
philosophy.
Defining and developing an offensive
philosophy is going to give your athletes a
definite direction and will help you and the
rest of your staff plan effective practices in
order to accomplish your desired outcome.
However, after talking to multiple coaches over the years about offensive
philosophy, I am surprised at how many really don't have a clear and precise
viewpoint.
If you as the coach are unsure of what your own expectations are I can guarantee
that your players won't have a clear understanding of what you want either!
Below are 5 questions to consider when determining your offensive philosophy:
Are you being true to yourself?
Every single person/coach has had different experiences that have all helped
shaped who they are today regardless of whether or not those experiences
happened on or off the court. As a result you are who you are and you shouldn't
try to be something or someone that you're not. Being honest with yourself about
your personality and previous experience is the first step to defining your
philosophy.

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How to Develop Your Offensive Philosophy-hoopskills.com
The two most common examples I see of coaches not being true to themselves
include:
1. Coaches trying to act more intense on the sideline than fits their personality.
Being a yeller and constantly getting in your players' faces isn't the only way to get
your kids to respond. Nevertheless I see many coaches trying this tactic because
they think that is what coaches need to do to be successful.
Ask yourself this: Why are there so many more "intense" high school coaches than
college coaches? Why are there so many more "intense" college coaches than NBA
coaches? Sure, they might have better talent but they are also coaching against
better talent and so the competition is all relative.
2. Instead of running what a coach knows how to teach he decides to install the
latest offensive trend year after year. As a result the players can never benefit
from the coach's experience with a style or system because he doesn't have any! If
you think the latest fad will help your team then by all means run it, but if you are
using just because everyone else is that's entirely different.
Are You Trying to Fit A Square Peg Into a Round Whole?
We all would love to have an ideal roster so that we could run our ideal offense.
However for most of us we are not fortunate enough to do this. Yet coaches still
try to run sets in the half court that don't play to their team's strengths. Sit down
with other coaches (either your own assistants or coaches who have seen you play)
who are familiar with your team, ask them questions and compare notes! Take
what your team's strengths and weaknesses are and plan accordingly. One of the
best examples of doing this successfully is Phil Jackson who ran the Triangle
offense his entire coaching career. However, the Triangle with Bill Cartwright at
center was much different than the Triangle with Shaquille O'Neil at center. Same
system but much different emphasis.
Can You Teach It?
As I mentioned earlier one important aspect that coaches often overlook is the fact
that it is not about what YOU the coach knows but what your ATHLETES know. Are
you comfortable enough teaching this style of play? If you are not, can you learn
more about this offense and become more efficient teaching it?

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How to Develop Your Offensive Philosophy-hoopskills.com
Just like an athlete's game needs to occasionally change to fit a role that will best
help the team, the same goes for the coach. You might not be immediately
comfortable with this new style of play even though it is the right system for your
team. You may have to put in a lot more time reading, studying, watching video,
etc. until you can systematically and effectively teach the new offense.
If You Were The Opposing Coach, How Would You Defend It?
If you were coaching against your team, how would you defend your offense? Is
your current or new offense hard to defend? Having an idea of how your
opponents will counteract your offensive attack will give you more of an insight
into what you need to work on in order to be successful.
Can You Simplify It?
The last question you need to ask yourself in regards to your overall offensive
philosophy is, is your offense simple? Too often do I see coaches try to "outcoach"
the opposition and as a result use a much more complex offense than is necessary.
Some of the hardest plays to defend in basketball are also the simplest (think Pick
and Roll). Can you break down your offense into drills that you can work on every
day? Working on the timing and execution of every piece of a particular set is often
the key to success. This is only going to come with purposeful and deliberate
practice!