Skill Development & The Four Factors
Originally published in Hard2Guard Player Development Newsletters, Volume 3.
Dean Oliver’s Basketball on Paper provided a guide for skills to develop, as he identified the Four Factors that determine a game’s outcome. They are:
Shooting percentage differential
Offensive rebounding differential
Turnover differential
Free throw differential
Every practice drill should influence one of these factors. We should shift our thinking from practicing passing or dribbling, to practicing shot quality (improving shooting efficiency) and/or ball protection (decreasing turnovers). The result may be a passing or dribbling drill, but the context should change.
We should ask if the practice activity addresses shot quality or turnovers rather than the general “Is this practicing passing?”. Answering this question requires an understanding of our method of creating shots and breaking down defensive pressure.
Imagine a dribble-drive-motion team. The coach decides the team committed too many turnovers last game and starts practice with the three-player weave to address passing mistakes. However, the most frequent mistake was a bad pass or miscommunication when players dribbled and passed to stationary teammates. Does a three-player weave address these turnovers? The second most frequent turnover was a traveling violation on players’ first steps after catching a pass when standing still. Again, does the three-player weave address these turnovers? (More on the three-player weave in Fake Fundamentals)
Coaches viewing the practice through the lens of block practice and touching on each skill may see the three-player weave as an effective practice activity because they needed a passing drill. However, the three-player weave is purposeless through the lens of the four factors.
Shooting is not simply repetitions through the lens of the four factors. Many variables affect game shooting percentages. Does the drill address the shot creation? The decision to shoot? Individual and team shot selection? Shooting confidence? Reaction to missed shots? Sure, shooting shots from the top of the key appears to practice game shots because 25% of our three-point attempts come from that, but is the location the limiting factor in our shooting performance during games? (more on shooting in Evolution of 180 Shooter: A 21st Century Guide)
Simple repetitions are not the answer; players need purposeful repetitions. How does one decide if they are purposeful? Do they affect winning? How do we know if they affect winning? Do they address one of the four factors?
There are other reasons to practice and play. I use drills for fun to mix up practice. I can argue the skill development value of Dodgeball Layups or Basketball Soccer, but we use these games primarily for fun, to try new things, to move beyond the normal practice activities.
Other times, we may focus specifically on exploring new skills or broadening a player’s skills in a way that may not affect one of the four factors immediately. These activities should have long-term benefits. I may practice a new finish or dribble move, which I feel is a year beyond the player’s current level. The immediate purpose is to add novel stimuli and creativity, to challenge the player, and more. Long term, a player with an extra finish should increase the team’s shooting efficiency, and a player with an extra move or a tighter handle should improve the team’s shot creation, which should improve shooting efficiency, and/or decrease turnovers, and/or increase free-throw attempts by putting more pressure on the defense.
Not every practice activity must focus on skill development, but when we focus on skill development, we should develop skills to affect game performance, and specifically at least one of the four factors. We do not improve “shooting” as an abstract skill; we improve our ability to shoot more efficiently in games, which is a combination of skills. We do not practice passing, but practice to reduce turnovers and/or improve shot quality.
Within these larger, more general ideas, we still may break down or regress a skill. A player may need to use his or her legs better to improve his or her shooting, and we may isolate this aspect in certain activities to improve this ability. This fits the why.
Why did we pull this player out of practice for this isolated drill? Because we need him or her to coordinate his or her legs better to extend his or her range and shoot with more confidence when he or she is open and catches the pass at the three-point line.
These are the shots we create, and we need players to convert, and for one player, the basic coordination or strength may be the limiting factor, and the area to address. But, this regression starts from the larger theme of improving the team’s shooting efficiency. The isolated drill is not because the coach does not like the look of the shooting technique or because we need more repetitions.
We practice to improve game performance (beyond the youngest age groups where participation and fun are most important). Therefore, we should understand how each practice activity relates to and improves our performance.