Coaches

ball handling sessionYBCA designed the Level I certification course for volunteer and/or youth basketball coaches seeking more information on how to become a better coach or how to create a better environment for their players. A certification does not make a good coach. However, knowledge of the sport, the athlete and the coaching process enhance one’s coaching ability.

Through the YBCA Level I certification course, you will learn:

  • More about the developmental stages that a child goes through with a special emphasis on children in ages 8-14 years old.
  • About the different participatory categories within basketball.
  • Children’s motivations for playing and quitting organized sports.
  • Different roles for a coach to follow with this age group.
  • Some basic physical and psychological differences between athletes at the beginning and end of this age group.
  • About creating a coaching philosophy, setting your team goals and creating expectations and guidelines for players (and parents).
  • More about communication skills and its role in coaching.older boys
  • More effective instructional techniques.
  • To use questions as a teaching technique.
  • About the stages of skill acquisition.
  • The difference between a Growth Mindset and a Fixed Mindset and why the difference matters.
  • About different learning styles and the way children process information.
  • About attention and its importance in athletic performance.
  • About the two kinds of motivation and how to develop intrinsic motivation in players.
  • The basic technical skills.
  • The difference between a quick stop, jump stop and stride stop.
  • The general lay-up technique.
  • The proper dribbling technique and several different moves.
  • The proper shooting form.
  • The basic passes and ways to pass under pressure.
  • The basic defensive stance, positioning and movement.
  • About rebounding.
  • The basic athletic skills which underlie basketball performance.Mirror Drill2
  • The proper ways to run, stop, jump and land.
  • The basic tactical skills.
  • About offensive spacing, screens and movement.
  • General team defense concepts.
  • General spacing and cuts against a press.
  • How to plan a practice and why it is important
  • The difference between block and random drills.
  • Drills to use in a dynamic warm-up.
  • Three different types of general drills.
  • How to differentiate good drills from bad drills.