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How Kevin Eastman’s Theory of 2 Make Your Workouts More Effective-

hoopskills.com

How Kevin Eastman's "Theory of 2" Makes

Your Workouts More Effective

-by Coach Dave Stricklin http://www.hoopskills.com

This time of year finds most serious

players working on their games in hopes of adding to their already established skill sets. Whether they are using proven workout tools such as a Heavy Rope, a weighted basketball, or dribble specs or whether they are just alone with a ball and a basket these players are concentrating

on individual skill development.

Kevin Eastman, former National Director of Player Development for Nike Basketball, and currently an assistant coach for the Boston Celtics, is one of the

foremost authorities on player development in the country.

According to Coach Eastman, there are several major components to consider when devising an effective and quality skill development workout. Those

components are:

• Always have a written plan

• Include conditioning, ball handling, and shooting in EVERY workout

• Work out at game speed or faster

• Avoid or eliminate the work out killers: boredom and fatigue

• Emphasize weak hand development

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How Kevin Eastman’s Theory of 2 Make Your Workouts More Effective-

hoopskills.com

It's interesting to note that there is no distinction between post and perimeter players when it comes to working on ball handling. Even so, there are many coaches who discourage and even refuse to let their post players handle the ball

at all, even during practices and individual workouts.

This is definitely the wrong approach as it keeps the player from reaching his fullest potential. Besides that, the towering 6'2 post player in the 7th grade might

be the average sized 6'2 guard by the time he's a sophomore in high school.

If he can't handle the ball how is he going to play? (When attending Pete Newell's world famous "Big Man" camps, all players spend as much time working on their

footwork from the wing as they do with their backs to the basket.)

Coach Eastman also emphasizes the importance of understanding that improvement is a process and that it can take quite a while before a skill is mastered. Coaches and players alike can benefit from knowing and accepting the

"Theory of 2."

• 2 minutes for a coach to teach a particular skill

• 2 weeks of practicing every day before the player is completely comfortable

with the new skill

• 2 months of practicing every day before the player is ready to use the skill in competition

It's been my experience that when it comes to perfecting a new skill a person, especially a young athlete, almost always has to be "bad" before they can be

"good."

Unfortunately, many of those same athletes don't have the focus or patience to

work the "Theory of 2" through to completion. In those situations it's absolutely imperative that the coach understands the big picture and confidently guides his

player through the improvement process.

Some final teaching points from Kevin Eastman:

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How Kevin Eastman’s Theory of 2 Make Your Workouts More Effective-

hoopskills.com

• It's a shoulders game - get your shoulder below his and you'll be quicker

and more explosive

• Play the game "low to high" - the only time a player should be "high" is on his release or rebound. Don't play high-low-high.

• Going past a defender - shoulders should be at the defender's hip. Foot first, ball second, when driving around an on-ball defender. The feet give

the attacker the advantage, while the ball creates the separation.

In conclusion, while repetition is the key to mastering a new skill, many players

today don't have extremely long attention spans and get bored quickly. When that happens, it's not what you know at that point that is going to make or break the workout - it's what you bring! The more energy and enthusiasm you can inject into the workout the harder your player will work and the more effective the

results.

BONUS SECRET - Players LOVE coaches who sweat with them! So for best results don't stand on the sidelines and tell them what to do; instead get between the

lines and work out with them! You'll be amazed at the difference!