All Access Basketball Practice with Steve Smiley

with Steve Smiley,
University of Northern Colorado Head Men's Coach;
has coached four 1000+ point scorers;
2022 Big Sky Tournament Runner Up;
Roman College Basketball Invitational Semifinals;
Assistant Coach at Northern Colorado (2016-2020) and Weber State (2014-2016);
Sheridan College Head Men's Coach from 2008-2014;
4x North Sub-Region 9 titles; 4x Region 9 Final Fours;
2x Championship game appearances;
Played for Hall of Fame coach Don Meyer (Northern State) and was an assistant coach with him from 2006 to 2008

In All Access Basketball Practice with Steve Smiley, Coach Smiley shares all the details of his practices.  From simple skill development drills to giving assistants responsibilities to valuing every possession, you get a chance to see an inside look at a program on the rise that utilizes all of these things with precision! 

Practice 1 

Building in skill development starts with how you work in practice.  Skill development sets the tone.  Ball handling, shooting, and learning to finish around the rim are all things that you will see Coach Smiley work on with his team.  By separating guards and posts he is able to focus on: valuing the basketball with his guards and finishing strong in the paint with his posts! 

Using their Vitamin series, players are applying what they worked on in skill development in the 4v4 setting.  This is a chance for players to work on reading ball screens and focusing on the attack against different types of defenses.  In this drill, you’ll see how Coach Smiley emphasizes valuing the basketball through having basketballs on the rack.  This helps players know when they are playing tired, sloppy, or throwing the ball around the perimeter. 

In Spain break players are focused on either stopping transition offense from getting an easy bucket or looking to score quickly depending on what side of the ball you are on.  The first 8 seconds of the clock are the most crucial in either stopping or scoring.  This sets the tone against your opponent.  

Building up from 4v4, Coach Smiley goes up and down the floor to build flow into their offense.  Setting a goal to get as many possessions in practice helps players focus on getting more possessions in a game.  In Win the Possession, teams get a certain number of reps and are focused on running their sets out of transition offense.  This is great in getting players to learn how to play without having to make a call and get to certain spots. 

Practice 2 

In practice 2 you get a more detailed look at transition offense and how to attack different ball screen reads.  Beginning with skill development players are focused on getting shots off of a ball screen and hitting the post when met with defense.  

Coach demonstrates how to create a game setup within your practice.  In War, players are replicating what happened to them during a game and are focused on a segment of the game.  By taking it possession by possession players learn how to get back into a game.   You will see how the coach is able to emphasize this by keeping score the entire time in practice.  You will be able to break down your practice into segments based on the time you emphasize.  This is a must for your program if they struggle with runs during a game!

In Early Offense Transition, players will work on reading different coverages coming off of a ball screen.  This is done mostly out of transition offense so you can see how to attack a defense using the ball screen.  You will get a detailed look at how to attack an Ice, Switch, and Hedge coverage.  

In 5v5 action, Coach Smiley showcases how to give your assistant coaches responsibility by letting them lead or coach either team so you can see the flow of your game.  Coach outlines how to give out possessions and what each coach should be calling during certain possessions.  This will help script the game and keep your players attacking.  

Rounding out this 2 day practice you get a look at special situations!  Putting your players into positions where they will be successful at the end of a game, end of a quarter, or after a timeout will only improve your players decision making skills.  Every coach knows how important special situations are, but outlining what they need to do on both the offensive and defensive end is a must so you don’t have to burn a timeout to remind them. 

Layoffs during the middle of the season can be tough.  Keeping your players fresh while continuing to push them is a must.  Players have to know they are getting better each day.  They have to enjoy coming in and putting in the work.  In this All Access video, you get an inside look at how Smiley’s team handled not 1 but 2 layoffs during the season and was able to have one of the best seasons in a long time.  Each practice will show you how to use skill development to further your players IQ both offensively and defensively.  

This ‘All Access Practice’ is one of the best of this type in a long time and is a must-have to add to your collection!

5 out of 5 stars - “Coach Smiley shows how to organize your practices into very detailed sessions that emphasize your core beliefs!  If you are looking to step up your practice organization look no further!”

226 minutes. 2 Videos 2023.