All Access Kentucky Basketball Practice: The National Championship Season 2011-12

with John Calipari,
University of Arkansas Head Coach;
University of Kentucky Head Men's Coach from 2009 to 2024;
.771 winning percentage at Kentucky;
2020-21 National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Guardians of the Game Award for Inclusion;
2015 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Inductee;
2015 AP College Coach of the Year;
2012 NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship;
2011 Telly Award for 'MVP Basketball with Derrick Rose' instructional video;
4x Final Four (2011, 2012, 2014, 2015);
3x Naismith College Coach of the Year ('96, '08, '15);
2015 AP College Coach of the Year;
3x NABC Coach of the Year ('96, '09, '15);
2x Basketball Times Coach of the Year ('96, '15);
2x Adolph Rupp Cup ('10, '15);
2009 Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year;
2009 Sports Illustrated National Coach of the Year;
6x SEC Regular Season Champions;
6x SEC Tournament Champions;
4x SEC Coach of the Year ('10, '12, '15, '20);
Memphis Head Coach from 2000 to 2009;
3x C-USA Coach of the Year ('06, '08, '09);
4x C-USA Tournament Champions;
5x C-USA Regular Season Champions;
2008 Final Four;
2002 NIT Champions;
Philadelphia 76ers (NBA) Assistant Coach from 1999 to 2000;
New Jersey Nets Head Coach from 1996 to 1999;
UMass Head Coach from 1988 to 1996;
1996 Final Four;
3x A10 Coach of the Year ('93, '94, '96);5x A 10 Regular Season Champions;
5x A 10 Tournament Champions;
played college basketball for UNC Wilmington and Clarion

Kentucky Wildcats Head Coach John Calipari (from 2009 to 2024) welcomes you to sit in on the morning and afternoon sessions of the 11th and 12th days of practice of their 2011-12 National Championship season. Calipari provides the viewer with an exclusive look into the program and their preparations for teaching a young roster the nuances of the Dribble-Drive Motion Offense and instilling the non-stop attacking mentality required for its success.

A question and answer session is included whereby Calipari addresses why he has tweaked his style from years past to incorporate pick and rolls into his dribble drive offense, the effect of new rule changes to the game, and the influence one-and-dones have had on his coaching philosophy.

While morning sessions are devoted to the attacking offensive system, afternoon practices are entirely devoted to implementing the defensive strategy. Defensive close-out technique, swarming the ball, defending baseline penetration, etc. are all displayed as Calipari instills the swarming defensive mindset into his team.

Coach introduces two full-court press schemes as he continues to search for the best way to utilize the talent and athleticism at his disposal. Listen in as Calipari explains to you his overall coaching philosophy, why he believes in teaching how to play basketball rather then forcing players to run a highly structured offense, why he doesn't believe in conditioning, and why it takes a special type of person and player to succeed at Kentucky.

To watch multiple practices from this National Championship team is a priceless opportunity for all coaches. Watch and learn as Coach Cal and the team execute several breakdown drills and shell drills that reinforce the attacking mentality required to run the Dribble-Drive Motion Offense and the Kentucky full-court defensive scheme. Watch as Calipari molds several future NBA Draft picks into the "Kentucky way" on the road to securing the 2012 NCAA National Championship.

Morning Practice 1:
Coach Calipari redefines the dribble drive system by incorporating ball screens. He opens by having the team execute a series of 2-man shooting drills revolving around penetrate and kick actions. The team then enters into the Perfection Drill, a timed drill that sequentially builds from individual full-court lay-ups, to 3-man fast break, to three pass max Figure 8's whereby Calipari is consistently pushing the team to operate at max speed. 'Dummy' offense is next, as the team executes the quick-striking nature of the Dribble-Drive Motion Offense. Calipari then puts the team through a series of breakdown drills that simulates player recognition when there is an offensive advantage, such as when dribble penetration breaks down the defense and forces defensive help, thus leaving the ball handler with a decision that must be made instantaneously (pass or shoot). The practice ends with the Wildcats executing their baseline-out-of-bounds series.

Morning Practice 2:
The second morning practice features 3-man pick and roll drills to work on perfecting his pick and roll/pop within the dribble drive offense against no defenders. These drills familiarize the players with screening angles and spotting up after delivering the "pocket-pass." Watch a full court 5 v 5 scrimmaging where Calipari instructs the team to run the Dribble-Drive after every miss, and to run "Fist" or "Fist-Out" upon every make. The morning practice ends with a Q & A session with Coach Cal, as he discusses his experiences throughout 20+ years of coaching. Topics discussed range from practice plans, ability to adapt to the teams skill sets every year, and the influence that coaching the Dominican Republic team and scouting European offenses have had on his offensive philosophy.

Afternoon Practice 1:
The afternoon practice opens with individual skill development drills to develop his player's rebounding and transition offense fundamentals before the team enters a defensive transition drill which allocates 3 players as offensive rebounders (off of an initial 5v0 dummy offensive set), 1 retreat player, and 1 "shadow" (whose purpose is to slow the opponent from advancing the ball after any change in possession). Three-man pick and roll drills are reviewed from the morning practice, and is followed by a series of defensive close-out drills. Techniques such as jumping to the ball, stunting, and defending the low post area are all addressed. The video ends with a half-court defensive shell 4 v 4 drill that focuses on not allowing dribble penetration and Kentucky's plans to defend the baseline drive.

Afternoon Practice 2:
Coach Calipari focuses on the offensive principles utilized within the dribble drive offense, mainly the baseline read. After building offense, he switches over to transition defense using uneven 5v3 drills that build to 5v5. Coach Calipari offers his defensive call referred to as "Ice", which helps to defend versus ball screens. He continues to work defensively adding two full court Kentucky presses. Coach Calipari finishes the video by shaping his 2-3 zone defense that traps in the short corner and tags the high post.
2012.