Basketball Training

This fall, In the Zone will be running a basketball training league to help kids get ready for their winter season. The program will be held on Sundays from Oct 6 thru Nov 3, 2019 between 11:00 and 3:00 pm,

Each Sunday the training program will consist of 60 minutes of skills training and 60 minutes of games.  The 60 minutes of skills training will focus on approximately 20 minutes of ball handling, 30 minutes of shooting and finishing and 10 minutes of footwork, agility and conditioning.

Each week the instructors will pick teams and these teams will play games against each other. Teams will be based on ability, age, physical size etc.

Ideally, this is how the program will develop: about 30 boys and 30 girls in grades 5-9 will enroll. The girls will train 11:00-1:00 one week and then 1:00-3:00 the next week.   The boys will have the opposite schedule: 1:00-3:00 one week, then 11:00-1:00 the next. After the 60 minutes of skills training, the 30 kids would be split into six-5 player teams: 3 younger teams and 3 older teams. Two of the younger teams will play an 8-10 minute game on one court while the 3^rd team rests.   The same will happen on the other court with the older teams. After the first 8-10 minute game is over, one team will rest and the third team will play. This rotation will continue for the hour: play 2 games, rest one game.

Depending on the situation, some kids might double roster, some kids might play with the older group and the younger group, some kids might move from older to younger or younger to older week by week, some teams might have subs. The goal is to get 3 roughly competitive teams in each bracket each week.

Please Note: There will always be some disparity between players on a team: someone is always going to be the oldest on the team; someone is always going to be the youngest; someone is always going to be the best and someone is always going to be the weakest. We’ll place kids on teams that we feel will result in competitive games. We’re not going to place kids on teams because their parents want them to play up, etc.

By not having set teams and standings, the focus should be more on skill development and teaching rather than winning the game or the league title. No MVPs, no All-Stars just training.

Coaches and Trainers:  The coaches and trainers will be local HS/college players and In the Zone AAU coaches.

Referees:   Games will have 2 referees each.

Dates and Times*

Girls 5-9^th grades:

Sunday, Oct 6 , 11:00-1:00 pm

Sunday, Oct 13, 1:00-3:00 pm

Sunday, Oct 20, 11:00-1:00 pm

Sunday, Oct 27, 1:00-3:00 pm

Sunday, Nov 3, 11:00-1:00 pm

Boys 5-9^th grades:

Sunday, Oct 6, 1:00-3:00 pm

Sunday, Oct 13, 11:00-1:00 pm

Sunday, Oct 20, 1:00-3:00 pm

Sunday, Oct 27, 11:00-1:00 pm

Sunday, Nov 3, 1:00-3:00  pm      *Times might change slightly if sign-ups warrant

 

Individual Registration:   Registration for this program is for individuals. You do not need a team to participate.   The registration fee for this program is $140. 2019 ITZ AAU players receive $30 off; fee is $110

Uniform Requirements.  Players need to have a blue/white reversible mesh jersey. If needed, one can be purchased for $20.

For a printable brochure with registration form click here:  Fall League ’19 brochure

 

 

Future Stars League (k-4), Winter 2019-20

In the Zone Basketball Club is conducting an instructional basketball program for boys and girls grades K-4^th starting Sunday, Nov 10, 2019 and continuing through Feb 23, 2020.

The primary focus of this program is to teach the fundamentals of basketball in a logical, sequential and technically accurate manner.

This program will stress the fundamentals of the game.  If a player can’t dribble, pass, catch, shoot or play man-to-man defense, there is no sense running up and down the court trying to play games

Program Highlights

• One 2 hour practice* each week on Sundays 3:30-5:30 pm (excluding Thanksgiving and Christmas  vacation times) from Nov 10, 2019 to Feb 23, 2020.
• Kids will be divided into ability groups, not age groups. These groups will change as kids demonstrate proficiency at the various levels and move through the program.
• Kids will be promoted through the training program based on their mastery of certain skills.
• The final stage and end goal is for each player to be proficient in all their individual and small group skills and be able to play full court games.
• The emphasis during the games will be on instruction and learning—not on winning.  By de-emphasizing the score and playing in-house games (rather than pitting one organization against another), we can focus more on teaching, training and instructing.

*The 2 hour practice session is a change from previous years.  In the past we’ve limited the session to 1 hour due to shorter attention spans and focus issues.  However, during the summer we run camps for this age group for 3 hours a day, 5 days in a row and most kids are fine with it.  At the same time, we’ve had some kids with focus issues during the 1 hour sessions.  We think the 2 hour sessions, once a week will work out fine.

Program Flow:

November will be devoted to individual skills such as ball handling, shooting, rebounding and 1 on 1 man-to-man defense. We will also cover basic rules of the game like, traveling, double dribble, personal fouls, 3 seconds etc.

December will be 2 on 2 month.  We’ll teach passing, pick and rolls, give and go’s, some basic offensive rotations, help defense, and off-ball rebounding.

January is 3 v 3 time.  Besides continuing to work on the all-important 2 man aspects of the game, the focus this month will be away screens, down screens, offensive rotations and help defense.

February is full court game time.  Training will include transition offense and defense, backcourt rules, pressing, etc.  Everyone will receive instruction in game management (substitution procedures, jump balls, lining up for foul shots, etc) but only those kids that have demonstrated appropriate knowledge and skills will play full court games. Of course our goal is that everyone is trained to a point that they will be ready to play but that may not be the case.

The last 2  sessions in February will feature formal games complete with refs, fans and scoreboards.  These games will be the pinnacle of our program (similar to a dance recital or concert for those familiar with those programs)

Basketball Size and Basket Height: Most of the players will use an intermediate size (27.5”, #5) ball for this program.  Depending on the progress of the various groups, they might build up to a 28.5” (#6) size ball.  Most groups will start off with lower baskets (probably 8’) with the goal of building up to a standard 10’ basket as they progress through the training.  We feel it is more important that the kids demonstrate proper form on a lower basket than improper technique on a 10’ basket.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why play 2 on 2 and 3 on 3? Both of these half-court formats stress fundamental basketball including pick and rolls, give and go’s and man to man defense.  Additionally by reducing the number of players on the court, individual touches and opportunities increase.  These small-sided games have been utilized in soccer for years.  Also, the “steal and lay-up” offense is eliminated and teams have to work in a fundamentally centric half court set to score.

Why In the Zone?  Our primary instructor and program developer has almost 20 years and thousands of hours coaching kids and teaching basketball.  Over the years, we’ve developed a training program and style that works.

How do I register and how much does it Cost?  You can register by completing the registration form included in  the printable brochure below and mailing with payment to In the Zone.  The registration fee for this program is $195 which includes 14 two hour training sessions.  This works out to about $7.00/hour which is far less than activities like karate, mma, dance, gymnastics, etc.