Is this a trend in coaching?

[Striper69]

I watched the UCONN-Memphis game, and from the camera angle, was pretty much able to watch the Memphis head coach for most of the game.

It seemed that she literally spent the entire game calling out instructions to her team. Many times the player would be getting ready to do something different, and have to look over at the bench, and then follow whatever the coach called out.

I get that with young teams you may have to do more instructing during games, but it's the first time I really noticed this, and I would HATE it if that's how a UCONN team was coached. I love that Geno and co. teach the kids IN PRACTICE the skills necessary to THINK during the game and figure out what the offense, or defense, is doing and to run things from a thinking perspective. Didn't the coach teach her kids in practice how to run offense and defense?

I get calling out plays or defensive schemes (zone, man, etc), but to literally be pointing on the court where you want your players and where you want them dribbling the ball seemed way too much...

I have to imagine it would be difficult for a player with any intelligence to spend an entire career listening to the constant stream of consciousness (metaphorically speaking) from your coach on the sidelines. Do other coaches work this way? Is this a trend for the future? I don't imagine most of the top teams do, but is it necessary for less "talented" teams?

Doesn't she realize that the other team can hear her too?

 

[DaddyChoc]

DaddyChoc, I think Geno is taking advantage of a 'mini-timeout' to have a strategy talk with a player or 2. Nothing wrong with that.

welp, he's not just sitting there... their coach is assisting her players due to it being allowed, nothing wrong with that.

 

[jsloanjr]

Good stuff above.......Geno has done the same thing a few years back with young team. Watch Shea, Marissa, CD Bon the bench.........They are always yelling at the players..........Go to ESPN 3 and rewatch the MD and UNC game and watch Coach Frease.....She is going crazy on the sideline............

 

[baggerbob]

Lets make believe you are a division one college coach playing the perennial national champion or at the very least final four contender. Your team is up against a coach that is considerded the cream of the crop at this time and has coached multiple international teams and the USA Olympic team and won.

He is pacing (which I saw today) the side lines up by 20...Would you sit on the bench with your chin in your palm? With a team that moves as fast as ours many need the sixth man (the coach) seeing the floor. Suck it up as you are spoiled, undefeted and worried about how the opposing teams coach runs their team. YOUR freaking team won by 41 points! And you need a post whining about how opposing coaches try to stop it???

I bet others on opposing boards would wonder why Geno still had Steff and Stewie in the game with only four minutes to go, but then again why try to think of both sides of a story.....

Geno actually had a lineup with around 5 minutes to go, Banks, KML, Stewie, Stef, Kiah playing 2-3 zone, and 2 successive times down the court KML, then Stewie got steals. Now is the time to experiment for situations that will come up in close games.

 

[Striper69]

Good stuff above..Geno has done the same thing a few years back with young team. Watch Shea, Marissa, CD Bon the bench....They are always yelling at the players.....Go to ESPN 3 and rewatch the MD and UNC game and watch Coach Frease.....She is going crazy on the sideline..

I can see yelling at the players if they aren't doing something but not telling them what to do.

 

[johnnyc]

Coaches yelling instructions from the sidelines has been going on forever. Geno does it.....just doesn't do it as often because he doesn't need to. But I do remember a game early in the season where a few times he actually pointed to a spot on the floor where he wanted MoJeff to start the offensive set from. I believe that same game Stewart was about to shoot early in the shot clock right near Geno and he told her not to shoot. He was trying to slow the game down and use up clock.

Speaking of coaching trends I've been noticing some teams have an all coaches conference at timeouts. Sometimes it lasts for half the timeout before they break up and then talk to the team. Not quite sure what that is all about.

 

[earl the pearl]

Some of her instructions were weird: "Can I get an echo?" I swear I heard her say that. Her voice is also a bit deep and creepy. Looks a little mean, too.

A very good coach though........

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Speaking of coaching trends I've been noticing some teams have an all coaches conference at timeouts. Sometimes it lasts for half the timeout before they break up and then talk to the team. Not quite sure what that is all about.

That isn't new. In fact, a few years ago, Rutgers fans decided it was one of Vivian's faults as a coach because she didn't do it. Pat Summitt did it regularly, our coach at AZ does, as well.

I do find it odd when it lasts for most of the timeout. I have seen coaches start talking to their teams just about the time the buzzer goes.

 

[Woof 101]

I can see yelling at the players if they aren't doing something but not telling them what to do.

Not trying to be rude but I have been looking into some stand up comedy lines...This is a keeper!

 

[tomcat]

Nothing new here. When I first started watching UConn, the team played Villanova and GTown, where Harry Perretta and Patrick Knapp both would maintain a screaming commentary throughout the whole game. Often wondered how they kept their voices. The Memphia coach's style seemed very much like that.

 

[Geno-ista]

Have you so quickly forgotten Harry Paretta? He was constantly yelling out to his players giving instructions. Almost every possession the PG would stop for a conference by the bench before going over half court.

Harry plays and coaches that type of a possession game using the play clock- Joanne M at Duke very involved when they aren't running fast breaks!

 

[Patty Bailey]

I went to a high school game last week to watch a friend's daughter. The coach never stopped instructing....every second of the game. I don't get it. Yelling "Throw it to Mary" on the inbounds doesn't help. The other team knows who Mary is and intercepts it. Or "Take it left" as they are going downcourt. Why not just GIVE the other team the ball, that is what happened most of the time, anyway. Most of their passes were high, slow lobs. Many got picked off. I would have loved to spend a practice with them, I would have had them passing to each other for the entire thing. Head level and with speed. Then we could have moved onto "keep your hands up on defense" and "That is your basket Miss 6 foot center - do not let the little 5 ft. 7 girl push you out of the way and take the rebound. You own those rebounds". It was VERY frustrating to watch. I'm spoiled by UConn's beautiful execution.

 

[DaddyChoc]

Patty it makes you appreciate that college freshman that has a good game... or understand why "Sally Jackson" isn't as good at the college level.

 

[Striper69]

Not trying to be rude but I have been looking into some stand up comedy lines...This is a keeper!

Did you really like it?

 

[Striper69]

Nothing new here. When I first started watching UConn, the team played Villanova and GTown, where Harry Perretta and Patrick Knapp both would maintain a screaming commentary throughout the whole game. Often wondered how they kept their voices. The Memphia coach's style seemed very much like that.

I believe it's called "Micromanaging".

 

[meganmatthews]

Harry can get a little specific, but he doesn't do it every play.

The problem today seems to be the lack of "game smarts" by players, i.e. the ability to recognize the defense and game situations and the corresponding appropriate move to make on the court.

A lot of Rutgers issues over the years I put down to this sort of thing, not only because you heard about those sort of issues with players in general, but the comments by coaches at RU only made sense based on recognizing that players were often not on the same page as CVS.

I think the over-coaching and instructing of players on the court is a byproduct of this issue.

I agree that you want what the players need to do during game situations to be "instinctive" rather than be told from second to second who to guard, how to react. The players need to react to situations but there should be almost no time during any game where something happens on the court that your team isn't prepared to deal with. Okay, so there might be that rare occasion but that would be the only time when your coach might be hollering from the sidelines, not a continuous series of instructions but a set or a strategy that's somewhat unique.

We have to remember that Geno has the advantage of attracting TOP - NOTCH players to his school. These high school players are some of the best in the country. That means their court IQ is most likely very high. They are used to thinking on their feet. That's why they're the best. I'm not saying that other players aren't bright, but Geno simply does not have to do as much teaching and guiding, with the players he gets, during the game.