Hey guys,
At this point, everyone that is playing ball this year has started their season. High school is finally underway full board. If you have been working on your game hard (and if you’re reading this, you prbably have been), you are ready. You lifted wieghts, you ran for distance, you ran sprints, you did lane slides, you worked on your handle, you took thousands of jumpshots. You are already in shape, you are strong, your skills are tight. You have worked towards this time of the year most likely since last winter. It is here. It has arrived. You are ready.

However, this is just the beginning. This is not the end. This is where you really start. And this is where it gets hard. Hard? “I thought my off season workouts were hard so this would be easy!” Partially true. Here’s why it now get’s hard. It’s a long season. There’s a lot of practice, there’s a lot of games. There are bumps and bruises to deal with. It’s all part of the game. As the season continues, it becomes harder and harder to maintain the strength you currently have, and if you’re not careful, the skills you currently have. Sound counterintuitive? Let me explain…

Once the season really gets cranking, practice typically shifts from skill and conditioning oriented, to strategy and conserving legs oriented. And this makes perfect sense. Because it’s a long season, practice often becomes shorter and during those practices, coaches have only a short time to get the team prepared for the next opponent. Not an easy task. Sprints become less, jumpers become less, strength becomes less.

So how do you combat this, and make sure you are getting STRONGER as the season goes on? First, you MUST listen to your body. If it’s telling you to go home after practice and rest because you’re worn down, then do it. Don’t try to be a hero at the expense of your body. That being said, if you’re feeling good, come early to practice and get your extra 100 jumpers in. Or stay late after practice to get them in. If you’re not running up and down as much during practice, be sure that the drills you are doing, you are doing at 100% capacity. Throw in some push ups after practice to keep your strength up. Be creative.

The bottom line is that in order to be stronger in February than you are now, it’s going to take some extra work. But I promise you, the average player is not putting in this extra work. They are coming to practice and going home. Ever heard of Ray Allen? Of course you have. One of the best shooters in NBA history. Why? He works his butt off at it. Watch almost any Celtics game, and if Ray Ray is having a good game (likely), one of the commentators will inevitably bring up how Ray was at the arena 3 hours before anyone else getting up extra jumpers. Remember, this is on game day!! He is keeping his skills sharp.

Think about it, if you shoot 100’s of jumpers a day in the offseason, and only about 20 or so a day during the season, when do you think your jumper will be better! Well… you don’t want your jumper to be better in the off season, you want it to be better DURING the season!!!!

Do whatever it takes to keep your conditioning, strength, and skills up during the season. Yeah, it’s going to take some extra work. Think it’s worth it?

bt