Basketball, like any other sport, has its superstars. Lebron James, Michael Jordan, Steph Curry – these are all household names for families that barely follow the sport! But even the superstars need an awesome team behind them to win the championship. Don’t believe us? Just ask Mr. Jordan himself, who famously said, “talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships”.
Therefore, as a coach, and a team, you must work towards facilitating a winning mindset. This is a mindset that will not only win games but will take you all the way to the championship series. There are numerous ways your team can facilitate a winning mindset, and we are here to share a few of them with you below:
- Establish your team goals
Grab your 36 basketball Adelaide players, as we are going to get to the core of what creates a winning team mindset: establishing your goals. Obviously, your ultimate aim is to win the championship, but you can also break down those goals into smaller objectives that will help you work towards that all-important win.
So, what training and mindset elements can you enlist to achieve your goals? This can include focusing on particular training areas i.e. ball movement, shooting, strategies and more. Breaking down what needs to be done to win the championship is core to getting there in the first place!
- Encourage team communication
Basketball is truly a team sport. You all need to work together to win the ball and move it from a defensive position to an offensive position and this takes open communication. Players have to be able to communicate with each other on and off the court to ensure there is a clear cohesion within the team.
So, encourage open communication, especially in training environments, as communicating in training will transfer said communication to a match setting. There is a noticeable on-court difference between teams who communicate and those who don’t – ensure your team is one that does.
- Encourage constructive feedback
This sport is a fast-paced one that can cause even the best players to make the occasional mistake. It happens, but it’s not something that should be the cause of a rift between teammates. Instead, as a coach, it’s important to foster constructive feedback amongst your team.
This starts with you, as you will be the one leading by example, and your team will likely take on board your manner of constructive feedback (as opposed to digging into a player after a mistake). So, be sure to encourage positive feedback and lead by example – it will make all the difference with team morale!
- Promote team cohesion
Encourage your players to be mates. The closer they are off the court the more likely they will be to play well together on the court. So, whether it’s through creating fun and social drills at training, hosting the occasional social event or simply encouraging respect and understanding, this will all go a long way to ensuring your players will work cohesively in a match situation.
- Work on development
Continuous development is akin to building trust amongst teammates. Players want to see that their teammates are improving in various areas of their game and this will go a long way to ensuring your baskettball players trust each other in match situations.
So, it’s important to consider how you can develop your player’s individual games to a level in which each one of them harnesses trust in their teammates!