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This series will give you an inside look into the college recruiting process from the coaching staffs prospective. Understanding what college coaches are asking themselves, looking for & discussing in recruiting meetings will help your communication lines as the recruiting process unfolds. Part 4 will break down the various avenue’s coaches use to dissect responses from prospect & their families & what specific intangibles can separate you from the pack.

College coaches are evaluating every aspect of your life (academic, athletic, social, family structure) as they conduct their research and narrow down their top priorities. No part of the evaluation process is taken in isolation. Every factor within a player’s evaluation contributes to a bigger picture, which can then contribute to a decision. There are enough talented players to go around. The key is finding the right talented players.

Perception is often reality. Coaches are going to keep an eye on several factors: the prospect’s body language, behavior in huddles, communication with teammates & relationship with the coaching staff. Even more, coaches are going to dissect and evaluate your answers to get an inside look into your desires, motivations and beliefs.

• Does he/she hold themselves accountable?
• How does your individual agendas connect with the team agendas?
• Does he/she have the desire to improve upon their weaknesses?
• Are they humble enough to take coaching?
• Does he/she acknowledge that they need to improve?

There are multiple ways a coach is going to try & identify how serious the athlete is taking their program. Is this athlete telling us what we want to hear or are they seriously considering us for their final decision? The prospect’s excitement & enthusiasm is contagious and will rub off on the coaching staff. Playing at the collegiate level is mentally & physically taxing. Coaches must know that through difficult times the athlete is going to stick to the process & work their way through it.

• They will ask about their roster, game schedule, style of play, conference, etc.
  • How much knowledge does the prospect have about our team? Our season? Are they following our games/recruiting?
• They will ask you about your goals, dreams & aspirations? Favorite memory of playing basketball?
  • Are they motivated by individual or team goals? Winning championships and/or individual accolades?
• What are your hobbies? What do you do with your free time?
  • Where does basketball fit into this? Is it something you get to do or must do?
• They will ask about a past mistake. A tough loss.
  • Does he/she take responsibility or make an excuse?

 

My best advice moving forward is for you to focus on these (4) specific areas as you communicate with college coaches:

1. Do they attribute their success to their talent or to their hard work?
   1. A player that attributes success to hard work is more likely to rely on hard work in future situations.
   2. A player that attributes success to talent is less likely to see the correlation between hard work and success.
2. How a player reacts to losses is the best indicator of their competitiveness. Everyone loves to win. Not everyone hates to lose.
   1. Players that take losses hard hours or days after a game must have a good amount of competitiveness. We are more emotionally tied to the things we care about the most.
3. Two biggest red flags in a conversation: lies and excuses.
   1. Excuses are loud. Coaches want people that will take responsibility personally.
   2. One of the best ways to check this is to talk about losses. How much responsibility is a player willing to take for a loss?
4. “I” language vs. “we” language. Do they see themselves as a part a team or is everything said isolated to the individual?

 

You need to be open, transparent and honest throughout the recruiting process. Take individual responsibility in all that you do. Start building these habits and mindsets now with your current team and coaches. All these qualities will help you move forward in life well beyond your playing days.

Read Part 1 of 4: What Questions Do College Coaches Ask Themselves While Evaluating Players?

Read Part 2 of 4: What Questions Will College Coaches Ask The Prospect?

Read Part 3 of 4: What Questions Will College Coaches Ask About The Prospect?

The November newsletter features teaching points for PGs in transition, a half-court set used by Chris Holtmann to counter wing pressure and takes a look at the GS Warriors Post Split action. This edition also features shooting drills on The Gun used in practice by Head Coach, Danny Manning of Wake Forest University. Read articles on how Niko Medved is building his program at Colorado State & how Jeff Capel is using previous experiences to help guide his Pitt Panther program in year 1. Lastly, learn from UNC Women’s Soccer Coach, Anson Dorrance, on how he grades character & activities he uses with his players to allow them “to play for something greater than themselves.”

Click the link below to read our November Coaches Newsletter.

Just Hoops November Newsletter

The September newsletter features an article explaining what college coaches are asking themselves while they evaluate prospects. Learn what areas stand out the most & make sure that you evaluate your current game to see where you would rank yourself in those categories? This edition features new game-like shooting drills to use with your team on The Gun from Buffalo Head Coach Nate Oats, articles you can share with your team/staff regarding “daily vitamins” for player development & leadership & a look into Jack Clark, 23 National Championships, on what his program defines as leadership. Try-Outs are here for COBA travel teams & next month for the middle schools so we hope you can learn insights from our Just Hoops Highlight Series & Drills.

Click the link below to read our September Coaches Newsletter.

Just Hoops September Newsletter

This series will give you an inside look into the college recruiting process from the coaching staffs prospective. Understanding what college coaches are asking themselves, looking for & discussing in recruiting meetings will help your communication lines as the recruiting process unfolds. Part 1 will break down the types of questions college coaches ask themselves while evaluating players on the court.

Legendary University of North Carolina Head Coach, Dean Smith, was famous for saying: “I would never recruit a player who yells at his teammates, disrespected his high school coach, or scores 33 points a game and his team goes 10-10.” There are so many pieces of the puzzle that play a role in the evaluation process. Every factor within a player’s evaluation contributes to a bigger picture which can then contribute to a decision. While we are enamored by talent, we need to consider that when we talk about championship teams, we rarely talk about talent. We talk about character, substance, toughness and drive. There are enough talented players to go around. The key is finding the right talented players.

College Coaches separate themselves by having an ability to predict & dictate the future. It is important to keep in mind during the evaluation process that players change. Their games change, bodies change, and they change the minute they get into a new environment. What they see now is not exactly what you will have in 1,2, 3 or 4 years.

–Two great indicators of a prospect:

• Does he/she produce in high school?
• Does he/she improve in high school?
  • The ability to produce and the ability to improve are two things that typically translate to the next level.

–Are you able to say the statement: “he/she comes to play every single night?”

–Evaluating a player under game pressure:

• How much does the magnitude of the situation change them?

–The most underrated quality a player can have is versatility:

• Can he/she guard multiple positions?
• Can he/she play multiple spots in the offense?
• Can he/she play in any style of game?
• Can he/she play with any other 4 players on the floor and function?

–Perception is often reality. Coaches read into:

• Body language
• Behavior in huddles
• Communication with teammates
• Treatment towards officials
• Rapport with coaches/staff

–Coaches never want to bring in a player that they need to make excuses for or need to root for.

–Focus on what a player can do vs what they can’t do. If they are bringing a lot of positives to the table, chances are, that will outweigh the negatives.

–Evaluating a players flaws:

• Are they flaws that can be improved?
• More importantly, does he/she have the desire to improve them?

 

*Attached is an evaluation card used by a Division I coaching staff at VCU while they were evaluating a prospect. College coaches are charting game statistics to track production but more importantly they are evaluating and ranking intangibles such as: competitiveness, loves to play, unselfish, toughness & motor. Ultimately, they have to ask themselves: “can this athlete help us move our program forward while enhancing our culture?”