The key to success for any basketball team is defense, and the heart of most successful defensive systems is half-court man-to-man defense. "Winning Defense" is the ultimate book on this crucial aspect of the game. Much more than a basic primer, this advanced guide explores the intricacies of transition and half-court defense that give winning teams their edge. It's all here: trapping, switching, cutters, screeners, post defense, and defending two- and three-man exercises. Out-of-bound and end-of-game situations. Drills to enhance individual and team technique. A section on rebounding, the finishing touch to any successful defensive effort, and a unique approach to transition defense. Since it's publication in 1993, "Winning Defense" has become the bible of half-court man-to-man defense for serious and successful coaches and players everywhere! Del Harris is one of basketball's most respected, honored, and experienced teachers. He began his career as an elementary coach in Johnson City, Tennessee, and progressed through the high school, college, international, and professional ranks--enjoying great success at each stop. Harris took the NBA's Houston Rockets, who had finished the regular season with a winning percentage below .500 to the finals of the NBA playoffs in 1981 in one of the great Cinderella stories in league history. He also led the Milwaukee Bucks to the playoffs in each of his four seasons as head coach. As the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, he nearly duplicated his 1981 miracle season in 1995, leading a team expected to go nowhere to the playoffs, where they lost in a thrilling six-game Western Conference semifinal series to San Antonio. As a result, he was named1994-95 NBA Coach of the Year. A noted speaker and clinician, Harris has written two previous basketball books and a sports novel for young readers. His is a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.

"Let's Talk Defense! will help take you and your team to the next level." --Scottie Pippen, 10-time member of the NBA All-Defensive Team and six-time NBA champion "Herb Brown's experience and defensive knowledge makes Let's Talk Defense! a mustread for any basketball player or coach. The concepts demonstrated in his book are the same ones I use when guarding some of the best players in the NBA." --Rasheed Wallace, NBA All-Star "Herb Brown understands the most fundamental aspect of the game and that is great defense wins championships. This book will explain the basic concepts of how it is done." --Joe Dumars, general manager of the Detroit Pistons and former six-time NBA All-Star Endorsed by top NBA players, this is the essential guide for coaching defense. Loaded with drills, tips, and step-by-step diagrams as well as official NBA photos, Let's Talk Defense! includes: Making the transition from offense to defense Out-rebounding opponents Causing turnovers Stopping fast-break opportunities Eliminating penetration Creating havoc for the opposition and much more

"A must read for any coach looking to improve his or her defensive approach and training." - Steve Lanpher : Head Coach at Randolph College "If you're looking for help building and thinking about all things defense, you've gotta check out this book. Coach Jagacki is one of the best defensive minds out there." - Stu Hartenstein : Assistant Coach at Dension University "This is the revolution that defense has been waiting for." - Lee Deforest : Head Coach at Florida Coastal Prep Lockdown Defense is a book focused on developing elite defenders. More than just data points and coaching cliches, this book offers advanced techniques, new fundamentals, training cues, in-depth nuance and multiple drills to help develop Lockdown Defenders. In an era dominated so much by offensive spacing and 1v1 schemes, individual on-ball defenders have become crucial to team defensive success. Lockdown Defense is the ultimate book on developing this critical aspect of defense. The book contains 200 pages with over 60 techniques and 28 drills expanding across 10 chapters of individual defense: on-ball, closeouts, post defense, gap defense, rim protection, ball screen defense, recovery techniques, team scheme and toughness. It's time defense had a revolution.

Provides photo-illustrated instructions and drills for basketball players, covering ball handling, shooting, offense, and defense; and including a DVD.

Are top scorers really the most valuable players? Are games decided in the final few minutes? Does the team with the best player usually win?Thinking Basketball challenges a number of common beliefs about the game by taking a deep dive into the patterns and history of the NBA. Explore how certain myths arose while using our own cognition as a window into the game's popular narratives. New basketball concepts are introduced, such as power plays, portability and why the best player shouldn't always shoot. Discover how the box score can be misleading, why "closers" are overrated and how the outcome of a game fundamentally alters our memory. Behavioral economics, traffic paradoxes and other metaphors highlight this thought-provoking insight into the NBA and our own thinking. A must-read for any basketball fan -- you'll never view the sport, and maybe the world, the same again.

Table of contents

Game Strategy and Tactics for Basketball: Preparing to Win the Sideline Battles is both a how-to book and a guide for how to plan strategy and tactics for basketball for an entire season or an individual game. Coaches often focus on X's and O's and overlook how and when a particular offense or defense should be applied and used during a game. Game Strategy and Tactics for Basketball: Preparing to Win the Sideline Battles serves as a planning guide and a master checklist for all the possible situations that a coach will face during a season. The book includes both traditional and some "out-of-the-box" strategies to the common situations that coaches face and provides both the pros and the cons of the approaches described. It is not the author's intention to tell each coach exactly what to do, but to serve as a guide in the decision making process. About the author: A 24 year veteran of the coaching profession, with twenty-two of those years spent as a varsity head coach, Coach Kevin Sivils amassed 464 wins and his teams earned berths in the state playoffs 19 out of 22 seasons with his teams advancing to the state semi-finals three times. An eight time Coach of the Year Award winner, Coach Sivils has traveled as far as the Central African Republic to conduct coaching clinics. Coach Sivils first coaching stint was as an assistant coach for his college alma mater, Greenville College, located in Greenville, Illinois. His teams were always known for their discipline, intense effort, execution of fundamentals, and team play. Coach Sivils is also the owner of KCS Basketball Enterprises, LLC, an enterprise focused on providing coaches with information to improve their knowledge of the game of basketball and their ability to coach. "If you have been looking for a rigorously thorough handbook on basketball tactics and strategy, you have found it " Coach Doug Porter - Head Women's Coach, Olivet Nazarene University National Scoring leaders: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Champions: 2000, 2005, 2007 "His thought provoking approach makes for an easy read and will definitely stimulate thought and, most likely, change the way you go about coaching " Rusty Rogers - Two time NAIA Division II Women's National Championship Coach and Two time NAIA National Coach of the Year "Coach Sivils clearly brings his experience in the game of basketball to his writing. He is a great teacher who acquired great gifts over the years and it's great he wants to share those gifts with other coaches." Bill Reidy - Long time successful high school and AAU coach

Provides a description of each skill and technique and presents helpful coaching points that emphasize common mistakes and includes several training drills for each of the skills.