How To Improve Your Defense Immensely I learned a great deal watching Jim Huber coach defense. (For those of you who don’t know Jim, he’s a defensive guru that led the Nike EYBL defensive points per game with 32 of the best high school teams in the country and many future NBA players.) And here’s something I want to share with you where... You can start to get results on the defensive end at your next practice. It’s very simple, but few coaches do it as well as Jim. It simply comes down to... -Demanding excellence and effort -Holding your players accountable -Not settling for subpar effort or execution I actually thought I was doing a good job of this prior to meeting Jim, but boy was I wrong. Here’s what you do... During your defensive breakdown drills, you tell your players what is acceptable and what is not acceptable. Don't accept anything less than 100% effort and proper execution. If they don't do it right the first time, correct them, then have them do it again. It’s important to be demanding, but not demeaning. Some coaches are intense while demanding excellence, but you don’t have to be. You can use a very calm demeanor. So don’t feel like you have to change your personality to be effective. And with youth players, definitely pump the brakes. You don’t want to scare them away from the sport. Here is a video that you can watch to see some examples.