THE SYSTEM

Ok so as anyone who actually reads this blog knows that im gonna go coach the UoB womens team next year. And at the moment im looking at offences to run with them, and defences. I went to bed last night thinking about offence and woke up, literally, continuing the exact point in my train of thought that i had left off. Crazy!!
So what i did today was, instead of go for an offence i think is cool, like the DDM or R&R or even a cool version of flex i found, I listed some facts about the girls team. So here they are:
1) In their unbeaten season they relied heavily on a few stand-out senior players backed up by some adequet freshmen.
2)Their current offencive system is flawed. It isn't really a system but more of a series of plays and, as i am an advocate of teaching players, not plays; i feel this is detremental to their development.
3) A lot of their point last year and this year came from fast break situations, secondary break situations and very few from set offence against set defence.
4) we have very few all-star point guards and shooters
5) we have a GREAT work ethic and the girls all work hard
6) In their unbeaten season many of the 'splinter jockeys' complained of a lack of playing time> this created a bad vibe within the team as some players were seen to be 'favorites'.
7)We have a big time post player, Steph, and another good forward, Jenny. Both are tall and can rebound like h*ll
8) The new captains know very little about basketball tactics/strategy/x and o stuff but are good players.

Then i matched up the characteristics of some of my 'favotite' offences to see how they fit with the team. Here they are in order of fit and preferance combined:

UCLA - not really enough of a post game to run this as only one of the post is experianced enough and she needs some work on her touch around the rim.

Flex -Players not plays, and i don't think the majority of them have the IQ so i can develope the reads to really expand the flex.

R&R - Good for teaching fundementals but i don't really agree on the circle move and i think they need more direction during games. Would like to have some basic control instead of a freelance (make it up as you go) kind of system.

DDM - Probably my favorite offence overall, and with skilled enough ball handlers and good enough shooters this is perfect. Players love the freedom it gives them and as a coach i love the spacing, constant attacking preasure and all the ways to tinker with it. However i don't feel we have the players to run it...yet.

Grinnell (the system) - This is probably the best fit with our team. It solves a lot of the problems we have previously aswell. Lets look at the matches compared to the points above
1) The system relies on everyone, not just the 'star' players but gives the stand-outs freedom and structured space in which to flourish, similar to the DDM
2)Not a system of plays, Just a system
3) Perfect for fast breaking as its all based on EXTREME fast breaking.
4)Shooting % not so important as were aiming for quantity not quality and shooting/handling can be improved through drills.
5) Work ethic and giving 110% is what its all about. During your shift on the floor you work flat out
6) All players are used to theres no need for reserves to be upset.
7) Posts can be vital in securing rebounds
8) I think the captains would be on board once they understood the system.

For those of you who dont know, let me just describe the DDM and The System styles to you.
DDM stands for dribble drive motion. This offence is not based on screens as traditional offences are but rather on drawing help defenders. The idea is that when you beat your man 1-on-1, if no one helps you get a lay-up. If a defender moves to help you kick it to thier man for a 3-point or dump it into the post for an easy lay-up. The motto is 'KEY OR 3' meaning get into the paint for a lay-up or shoot a 3-point on a kick out. This offence hates mid-rang jumpshots. It also relies heavily on good penitration and shooting. If you cant shoot then the defence sags and penitration becomes more difficult. If you cant drive, then you wont draw the help and therefore cant kick it to an open man.
'The system' run famously by Grinnell, is based on a series of goals that the team tries to reach during the game. these are
shoot 100+ shots
shoot 1/2 from 3 point range
Shoot 30 more shots than opponents
get 33% of offencive rebounds
force 32 turnovers
Shoot within 12 seconds of gaining possesion of the ball.
The system relies heavily on an aggressive tight full court press and often gives up open lay-ups in favor of trying to get a steal or force the turnover. Players also play in 2 minute shifts. This allows them to go flat out during the time they are on the floor. Players are often substituted within 35 seconds and always 5 at a time. The idea is to create a pace that the other team cant match and grind them down with constant 3 point shooting and rebounding, with all 5 players going to the boards on every shot attempt. Go on youtube and type in 'grinnell basketball'. It really is a sight to behold.

Back to us. I dont think we have the capacity in terms of handling ability and shooting to make the DDM work for us. But what is still drawing me to it is the amount of information i have on it. I can tweak it any way i like, to combat zones, sags, preasure and to take advantage of specific situations and the players on the floor. I also have about 100 pages of drills and practice plans that i can implement and we all know as system is only as strong as the drills and practice that enforce it. An players will get better/smarter the more we run the drills, especially the remarkable blood drills.
But what draws me to 'the system' grinnell runs is the constant pace and preasure. Watch their opponents crumble against them. They just cant keep up. Most teams rely on 5 starting players and about 2-4 good reserves but against a team going flat out, using all its subs and constantly attacking and pressing, exchanging 2's for 3's, the opposition get so tired they start missing open lay-ups and throwing the ball out of bounds. I want this. I want us to be the team everyone HATES to play. I want to be the grinnell of England and as far as i know, no one else is doing this in the UK, please if someone is, contact me i'd love to hear how its going.
Anyway, i have a long time to decide and will probably loose a lot of sleep over it in the mean time (its 3:50 am here).
Peace
Coach Scott