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TABLE OF CONTENTS Cavs Youth Sports Program Information .................................................................... 1 Letter from Cavs Academy Head Coach Kendall Choles ............................................ 2 Welcome to the World of Coaching Youth Basketball! ............................................. 3 Strong Staff Assistant Coaches and Team Manager-Roles & Responsibilities Understand the Rules Establish Unique Team Rules Safety First! Team Meetings First Day of Practice-Are You Ready? Equipment Check List Coaching Tips ................................................................................................................. 5 Handling Common Coaching Challenges................................................................... 6 Sportsmanship ............................................................................................................... 7 How to Celebrate a Win How to Handle a Loss Health and Nutrition ..................................................................................................... 9 What to Eat Before Practice What to Eat Before a Game Health and Safety ........................................................................................................12 Most Common Injuries in Basketball RICE What Should be in Your First Aid Kit? Coaching Athletes with Medical Conditions Asthma Concussions Cavs Academy Youth Basketball Guidelines & Suggested Practice Plans ............16 Beginners (5-6 years old) Intermediate (7-10 years old) Advanced (11-13 years old) Elite Practice Plan (14-17 years old) Glossary- Basketball A to Z ..........................................................................................20 YOUTH SPORTS COACH’S MANUAL CAVS YOUTH SPORTS Jr. Cavs The Jr. Cavs program represents a united community of dedicated teams, coaches, parents and players who share a common goal – supporting the positive benefits attained through the game of basketball. To learn more about our Jr. Cavs programming, visit: Cavs.com/jrcavs Cavs Academy The Cleveland Cavaliers proudly offer a variety of instructional youth basketball programs for players of all skill levels. Academy programs include Summer camps, clinics, and small group training packages. To learn more about our Cavs Academy Camp & Clinic offerings, visit: Cavs.com/cavsacademy Cavs Elite Our Cavs Elite program celebrates the spirt of competition amongst talented young athletes through 3-on-3 tournaments, 5 on 5 tournaments and our signature “High School Hoops” series in which high schools across Northeast Ohio play OHSAA-sanctioned games at Quicken Loans Arena in front of family and friends. To learn more, visit: cavs.com/cavselite YOUTH SPORTS COACH’S MANUAL 1 LETTER - HEAD COACH, KENDALL CHONES First, thank you for your time and dedication to coaching youth basketball. The simple fact that you’ve picked up this coaching manual and opened to Page 1 shows your enthusiasm and willingness to teach young people to make championship choices on and off the court. Coaching and developing young players is not an easy task. There are many intangibles involved, such as cultivating emotions, learning how to win and making improvements when you lose. Most importantly, they want to play well in front of their family and have FUN. That’s where you come in. Kids who are having fun while learning to play a sport will continue to want to play the sport. Winning is important, but the “fun” has to come first. Your team might not always be the best team, but they can be the classiest team; the kindest team; the most respectful team. These types of “wins” are often more important than the result at the end of the game. Whether you’re a new coach or a seasoned rec center legend, we hope that you find this coaching manual helpful throughout your season. Our Cleveland Cavaliers Youth Sports staff is among the top in the NBA and will be happy to assist you with any questions or coaching challenges that you may run into. Thank you for all that you’re doing to foster fair play, encourage teamwork and continue to grow the game of basketball! Go Cavs! Good luck this Season! Best, Coach Kendall Chones Head Coach, Cavs Academy 2 YOUTH SPORTS COACH’S MANUAL INTRODUCTION Welcome to the World of Coaching Youth Basketball! Whether you are in your first year of coaching or you have a decorated career as a high-level coach, it is always important to remember that your success depends on how well you prepare. Assistant Coaches that are energetic and familiar with the fundamentals of the game are your best asset as you kick off your season. Be sure that everyone involved from coaches to parents and athletes are aware of both organizational rules, as well as your own unique set of team rules and principles. Preparation for practice goes far beyond making sure you have basketballs. Working knowledge of any athlete with medical issues on the team, and how to handle first aid issues are a must as well. Let’s Get Started! Strong Staff - No matter what age you’re coaching, players always look to up to their coaches and will generally look to them for guidance. Your coaching staff should also be on the same page, teaching the same principles and values. To accomplish this, the coaching staff should meet as often as schedules allow to plan/prepare and discuss any shared concerns or challenges in order to have an efficient practice for your team. Assistant Coaches & Team Manager - Assistant Coaches will be incredibly important throughout the season. In addition to helping you orchestrate practice sessions and plot out game strategies, they can serve as a sounding board for both you and the players. Many times, kids — and occasionally their parents — will approach an Assistant Coach first with a problem or a concern. That’s fine, just be sure you and your assistants have an open line of communication. As the Head Coach, you never want to be the last one to know about a problem with one of your players. Your team may have a parent who volunteers to go above and beyond and make phone calls about things like schedule changes, directions to games, snacks, etc. Embrace this! A volunteer like this, who essentially is a “Team Manager,” will save you countless hours of additional work and allow you the ability to focus on the true coaching aspect of the game. Understand the Rules - Learn the rules and policies of your league. While that may sound simple, you must understand that for many youth leagues the rules are tailored to the age of the player. There might be specific rules regarding playing time and the kinds of defenses that can be played. As the Head Coach, it is essential that you attend the preseason organizational meetings, and that you read and understand all league rules. It’s important to make sure that your Assistant Coaches understand the rules, as well, if they need to step into your role in case of absence or emergency. YOUTH SPORTS COACH’S MANUAL 3 INTRODUCTION Establish Unique Team Rules - It doesn’t make sense to have a long list of rules. Rather, the best coaches make a few important rules that stand out. For example, be on time for all games and practices. If a player can’t be there, they must call several days prior to the game or practice. Let the team know you expect them to behave in a sportsmanlike manner at all times. Let them know that if they don’t hustle, you will assume that they are tired and substitute for them. If a player misbehaves during a practice or game, come up with a consequence that allows the player to learn from their mistake. Let players know they will not play again until they understand and adhere to your rules. It is important to make a connection with life lessons such as accountability, responsibility and structure. Safety First - When medical situations arise on the basketball court you need to be prepared, whether it’s during a practice or at a game. Becoming certified in CPR is highly recommended. You should know prior to the first practice if a child has a special medical condition that you need to be aware of. Being aware of details such as this will allow you to properly handle a crisis during a practice or a game. Team Meetings - The most important team meeting of the season should take place before the very first practice, and all parents should be invited. Make sure you let the parents know that this meeting is mandatory. If a parent cannot attend the meeting, you should reach out and spend time on the phone together prior to the first practice. Use this time to introduce yourself, the coaching staff and any parent volunteers/team managers to the rest of the parents. Distribute handouts including the schedule, team roster (com- plete with parents’ names and phone numbers), team rules and your coaching philosophy along with any details that are unique to your league. Let parents know what time you ex- pect players to arrive for games and practices. This meeting can also be where the athletes pick up their uniforms for the season. The entire meeting, should last no more than 20-30 minutes. Keep it quick, and to the point. Equipment Checklist • Dry Erase (clipboard) - can be used as a visual to draw things up if a player doesn’t understand a certain concept that you are teaching. This can also be used in-game for players to be reminded of certain concepts or learn things on the “fly.” • Basketballs - essential to the game you are coaching. Pretty self-explanatory! • Practice Plan – allows the coach to be organized and keep up with their thoughts throughout practice. Once you are in practice there will be a lot going on, so this just allows the coach to stay on task. Having a practice plan is surly the coach’s preference. Be sure to check out the age-specific practice plans and suggested drills in this Coaches Manual for additional information. Emphasize the fundamentals and details listed on the practice plan. 4 YOUTH SPORTS COACH’S MANUAL INTRODUCTION As a coach, you must be able to teach the fundamentals of the game, that are very important and lacking in our game today.