MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[Knightmare]

I have a question regarding the coaching of players and a particular strategy.  After seeing Calvin vs. Hope last night on the internet and many other games of both professional, college and high school levels one thing continues to confound me.  Why don't coaches talk to and instruct players on the art of shot blocking.  The truly great shot blockers are not the ones that spike the ball into the 5th row of fans but the ones who gently block the shot to a teammate so as to retain possession instead of giving the ball back to the offensive team out of bounds.  That can equate to a multiple possession swing in a game which in many tight games could be the difference in the outcome.  I notice this even more after beginning to read ESPN Sports Guy Bill Simmons "Book of Basketball" and the commentary on the great Bill Russell.  While a blocked shot spiked into the crowd appears spectacular, and I saw this multiple times in last nights game, I'll take the blocked shot to a teammate and an extra offensive chance and one less chance for my opponent.

[Knightmare]

Also forgot to properly thank the anonymous Hope karma fairies for the negative karma given over lighthearted comments regarding the over/under 10pt. Calvin victory and final Hope bucket either counting or not.  It only happens when Calvin is victorious over Hope so I fully embrace the knock in my karma rating, not that it means much anyways, as it isn't a reflection on the quality of ones posts or contributions.

[oldknight]

Interesting experiment from Michael Zuidema:
http://www.mlive.com/smallcolleges/grandrapids/index.ssf/2010/01/this_hope_grads_experiment_in.html

Didn't see anybody comment on this so I wanted to say thanks for posting it, that was a fun read, and good to see that he had a generally positive experience with it.
 

Now Michael Zuidema knows what it feels like to be a lawyer sometimes.

[ziggy]

Interesting experiment from Michael Zuidema:
http://www.mlive.com/smallcolleges/grandrapids/index.ssf/2010/01/this_hope_grads_experiment_in.html

Didn't see anybody comment on this so I wanted to say thanks for posting it, that was a fun read, and good to see that he had a generally positive experience with it.
 

Now Michael Zuidema knows what it feels like to be a lawyer sometimes.

but he was on the good guys' side last night 

[oldknight]

I have a question regarding the coaching of players and a particular strategy.  After seeing Calvin vs. Hope last night on the internet and many other games of both professional, college and high school levels one thing continues to confound me.  Why don't coaches talk to and instruct players on the art of shot blocking.  The truly great shot blockers are not the ones that spike the ball into the 5th row of fans but the ones who gently block the shot to a teammate so as to retain possession instead of giving the ball back to the offensive team out of bounds.  That can equate to a multiple possession swing in a game which in many tight games could be the difference in the outcome.  I notice this even more after beginning to read ESPN Sports Guy Bill Simmons "Book of Basketball" and the commentary on the great Bill Russell.  While a blocked shot spiked into the crowd appears spectacular, and I saw this multiple times in last nights game, I'll take the blocked shot to a teammate and an extra offensive chance and one less chance for my opponent.

In theory you're right of course, but I think most players simply enjoy the perceived intimidation factor associated with a spike as opposed to guiding the ball to a teammate or, better yet, simply grabbing it. It's a macho thing and Bill Russell was the exception. The only other player I can remember who regularly tried to keep a blocked shot in play was Bill Walton.

[sac]

Also forgot to properly thank the anonymous Hope karma fairies for the negative karma given over lighthearted comments regarding the over/under 10pt. Calvin victory and final Hope bucket either counting or not.  It only happens when Calvin is victorious over Hope so I fully embrace the knock in my karma rating, not that it means much anyways, as it isn't a reflection on the quality of ones posts or contributions.

Take piece in mind that the Hope karma fairies weren't the only ones in flight last night. 

[Knightmare]

I have a question regarding the coaching of players and a particular strategy.  After seeing Calvin vs. Hope last night on the internet and many other games of both professional, college and high school levels one thing continues to confound me.  Why don't coaches talk to and instruct players on the art of shot blocking.  The truly great shot blockers are not the ones that spike the ball into the 5th row of fans but the ones who gently block the shot to a teammate so as to retain possession instead of giving the ball back to the offensive team out of bounds.  That can equate to a multiple possession swing in a game which in many tight games could be the difference in the outcome.  I notice this even more after beginning to read ESPN Sports Guy Bill Simmons "Book of Basketball" and the commentary on the great Bill Russell.  While a blocked shot spiked into the crowd appears spectacular, and I saw this multiple times in last nights game, I'll take the blocked shot to a teammate and an extra offensive chance and one less chance for my opponent.

In theory you're right of course, but I think most players simply enjoy the perceived intimidation factor associated with a spike as opposed to guiding the ball to a teammate or, better yet, simply grabbing it. It's a macho thing and Bill Russell was the exception. The only other player I can remember who regularly tried to keep a blocked shot in play was Bill Walton.

I completely agree with your reasoning of why the player does it, that's why I wonder why coaches don't instruct them on the greater benefit to the team of keeping it in play to a teammate.  Players, especially those at the H.S. and college level, are much more impacted by the crowd reaction instead of the satisfaction in making the "smart basketball" play, and that's where coaching instruction COULD come into play, in theory of course  .

[realist]

Stand...  Ideally you are correct that a blocked shot recovered by your team is the most desireable outcome.  I am sure most coaches understand this, and try to guide or teach players capable of blocking a shot to direct the ball as much as possible to a teammate of theirs.  Some players have developed the ability to do this well over the years.  Much depends on the positioning of the players, and the ball itself when shot blocking.  If you start with the premise a blocked shot is better than a ball having a chance of going into the basket you are trying to increase the favorability of the outcome for your team.  Also you need to factor in the impact a blocked shot has on the shooter, and the opposing team even if that team recovers the block and puts up another shot.  For example a player driving into the lane, putting up a shot, and having it blocked may have that in his mind the next time he thinks about driiving into the lane.
Shot blocking is a reaction to a unique set of circumstances occuring, and while a coach can encourage players to block shots as much as possible, and as effectively as possible it is hard to control the outcome of any specific block attempt.
Just like in football a defender can block the pass or intercept.  The initial goal is to deny a pass completion, and the most desireable outcome is an interception returned for a t.d.
In B-ball a blocked shot is the initial goal, and the most desireable outcome would be your team gaining possesion and scoring off this turnover.

[Knightmare]

Also forgot to properly thank the anonymous Hope karma fairies for the negative karma given over lighthearted comments regarding the over/under 10pt. Calvin victory and final Hope bucket either counting or not.  It only happens when Calvin is victorious over Hope so I fully embrace the knock in my karma rating, not that it means much anyways, as it isn't a reflection on the quality of ones posts or contributions.

Take piece in mind that the Hope karma fairies weren't the only ones in flight last night. 

Honestly, there is no reason for a Calvin poster to engage in that, the outcome of the game should be satisfaction enough.  No need to kick someone while their down, who knows it could be Calvin down after visiting Holland later in the season (I sure "hope" not though  )

[ziggy]

Stand...  Ideally you are correct that a blocked shot recovered by your team is the most desireable outcome.  I am sure most coaches understand this, and try to guide or teach players capable of blocking a shot to direct the ball as much as possible to a teammate of theirs.  Some players have developed the ability to do this well over the years.  Much depends on the positioning of the players, and the ball itself when shot blocking.  If you start with the premise a blocked shot is better than a ball having a chance of going into the basket you are trying to increase the favorability of the outcome for your team.  Also you need to factor in the impact a blocked shot has on the shooter, and the opposing team even if that team recovers the block and puts up another shot.  For example a player driving into the lane, putting up a shot, and having it blocked may have that in his mind the next time he thinks about driiving into the lane.
Shot blocking is a reaction to a unique set of circumstances occuring, and while a coach can encourage players to block shots as much as possible, and as effectively as possible it is hard to control the outcome of any specific block attempt.
Just like in football a defender can block the pass or intercept.  The initial goal is to deny a pass completion, and the most desireable outcome is an interception returned for a t.d.
In B-ball a blocked shot is the initial goal, and the most desireable outcome would be your team gaining possesion and scoring off this turnover.

Completely agree, I think you've hit the essence of the issue perfectly.

[Civic Minded]

Without reposting his entire comment, I agree with realist on the blocked shot issue.  Well said.

[realist]

OK:  You may be right about that macho/primeal thing.  I recall hearing a really nice young Calvin player say something to the effect, he couldn't wait until he had the chance to block a shot into the Dew Crew just to shut them up".  Or words to that effect!!!   

[Knightmare]

OK:  You may be right about that macho/primeal thing.  I recall hearing a really nice young Calvin player say something to the effect, he couldn't wait until he had the chance to block a shot into the Dew Crew just to shut them up".  Or words to that effect!!!   

Realist, agree with your explanation regarding the circumstances of blocked shots and have no doubt that you overhead words to that affact and if we sat or listened to many teams that same viewpoint would be expressed.  I think some of it speaks to the basketball IQ of a player.  The player blocking it into the Dew Crew or any other student section hasn't stopped to consider that the opposing team is going to get to inbound the ball and still have a chance at 2 or 3pts. instead of a change in possession if possible.  Seams that often the circumstances are set-up for a good block but the player would rather spike it, let out a primal scream and then flex for the crowd.   , kids these days (and I'm just past 30 myself), it's all about the sportscenter highlight clip play instead of the subtle smart basketball play.

[Gregory Sager]

Stand...  Ideally you are correct that a blocked shot recovered by your team is the most desireable outcome.  I am sure most coaches understand this, and try to guide or teach players capable of blocking a shot to direct the ball as much as possible to a teammate of theirs.  Some players have developed the ability to do this well over the years.  Much depends on the positioning of the players, and the ball itself when shot blocking.  If you start with the premise a blocked shot is better than a ball having a chance of going into the basket you are trying to increase the favorability of the outcome for your team.  Also you need to factor in the impact a blocked shot has on the shooter, and the opposing team even if that team recovers the block and puts up another shot.  For example a player driving into the lane, putting up a shot, and having it blocked may have that in his mind the next time he thinks about driiving into the lane.
Shot blocking is a reaction to a unique set of circumstances occuring, and while a coach can encourage players to block shots as much as possible, and as effectively as possible it is hard to control the outcome of any specific block attempt.
Just like in football a defender can block the pass or intercept.  The initial goal is to deny a pass completion, and the most desireable outcome is an interception returned for a t.d.
In B-ball a blocked shot is the initial goal, and the most desireable outcome would be your team gaining possesion and scoring off this turnover.

I think that you've hit the nail on the head. I'd add, though, that steering a block towards your teammate is much easier said than done. It's not like a jump ball in that regard, in which the other eight non-jumping players on the floor are all stationary and the two jumpers know beforehand where they're all standing. A blocked shot takes place in the middle of game action, with players flying around every which way. The only given, which also holds true for a back-tipped rebound by an offensive player, is that the offensive team has a player or players who are most likely the farthest ones away from the basket along the long axis of the court at any given moment (that's why the objective of a back tip is to launch it as far back as you can).

In other words, blocking a shot to one of your teammates is not necessarily a developed skill, or even in a lot of situations a sound tactic. You might very well block it right into an opposing player's hands, and could in theory give the offense an even better shot than the one it just took. We've all seen that before, right? A situation in which a shot is blocked and the ball stays in play, and the offense recovers the ball in an even better situation to score?

You might say, "Yeah, but Bill Russell never did that when he was deliberately blocking shots in a way that kept the ball in play," and my response is: OK, but how many Bill Russells have there ever been?

[RuleBritannia]

Last night was a very curious one in the MIAA. Here are my game reactions.

Hope-Calvin: I think it's dangerous to read too much into this one. I think Hope fans think everytime they lose to Calvin (or anyone, really) it's the end of the world. I think the Dutchmen will be fine. They just played their most hated and heated rivalry on the road, it's all downhill from here. That said, Calvin really looked well and put themselves as the early favorite in the title chase in my mind. But, there's a lot of basketball left to be played, let's not read too much into this one.

Albion-Olivet: As an Albion fan, I was obviously pretty pleased with this result, beating a pretty solid team on the road is always a bonus. However, again, don't read too much into this. Olivet shot extremely poorly, 36.5% overall and 14.3% from deep. Andre Evans shot only 2-6 on threes, and Michael McClary was 4-9 from the field. Olivet won't beat anyone with those numbers, but I wouldn't count on them being that inefficient again. All five of Albion's starters scored in double figures. That is a rarity, usually with Albion, you throw a starting five out there, and then by about the last five minutes of the 1st half, you see who has the hot hand on any particular night, and who is working well with each other. Last night the Brits just clicked right away, breaking out to a 12-2 lead in the first 4 minutes. I'd love to attribute that to Jody May's brilliant coaching, but it probably was about 60 chance 40 coaching. Albion, while shooting under 50% from the field, shot 52.9% from beyond the arc, which probably can't be counted on every game. I think Olivet has the talent to compete for a title, but I think they might have some mental blocks to overcome to compete against the proverbial "big boys", I don't think Olivet has anyone on their roster who has ever beaten Albion or Hope. If the comets can build up some mental toughness, they'll be fine, and could be right int he mix. If they continue to choke in big games, they will have a disappointing season. Saturday will be a big test.

Kalamazoo-Alma: These teams have a long way to go before either is a competitive MIAA team. But this result shocked me. Alma had at least competed with some people. Kalamazoo had not shown me anything resembling competitiveness until tonight. Could one of these teams surprise some people? I doubt it, but we'll see. As the end of last season showed, it's unwise to take lower lever MIAA teams lightly, because even the worst team can beat the best team if the best team doesn't put forth a good effort.

Trine-Adrian: This result actually really surprised me. Trine had, rather quietly, put together some good wins. I thought they might be the surprise team in the MIAA. They still might be, but not last night. I don't know what to make of Adrian at all.

Safe traveling in this weather everyone and enjoy some MIAA basketball, we've waited 10 months for this, so let's enjoy it.