with Ganon Baker,
Founder of Elev8 Sports Institute,
Owner of Ganon Baker Basketball,
WNBA/NBA Nike Basketball Training Specialist, Ambidextrous Shooting Coach,
World Renowned Instructor and Clinician;
He has worked with LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, Amar'e Stoudemire, Kevin Durant, Grant Hill, Brittney Griner, Skylar Diggins, and Maya Moore
World-renowned skill development coach Ganon Baker has developed some of the NBA's and WNBA's finest players. He has taken his skill work to countries all over the world to help grow players' enthusiasm and skill. His decision-making drills on the court are some of the best around.
In this video, Baker goes beyond some of his usual skill development workouts to address the topic of how to improve your players' decision-making. In his trademark high-energy style, Baker demonstrates how players can use a decision-making component in their drills to raise their game and compete at the next level.
Philosophy
Bringing energy to any workout motivates players to bring their best. Baker demonstrates how to set the tone by telling his players they have to be passionate, compete instead of complain, love the workout - don't just like the workout, and be committed with your body language. As players go through a workout, he requires them to be tough with their moves and with their minds. Don't be afraid to make a mistake - keep going. Don't be selfish or silent - winning teams praise each other and give each other high fives.
Drills
Coach Baker wants to teach players how to play with balance, poise and instinct. That instinct is what makes good players great when they work to train it. In his ball handling drills, he teaches players to play low and loose. Players should drop their hips, keep their back straight, and dribble from their elbow. Stay locked and loaded every time you dribble and attack your defender. In the Chair Layup drill, Baker sets up a chair where players attack as close as possible, then read the coach as the coach plays help-side defender. Players can use 4 types of finishes - fast feet, slow feet, Euro step, or a 1-step to finish in the paint.
In the 3 Choice drill, players read the actual defender and look to change direction, pick it up and shoot, or back it up and pass/re-attack. Players learn to look where they are going and where the play is. In the Triple Threat drill, players attack an on-ball defender and look to skip the ball across the court. Once they pass, they read a defender as they sprint to the 3-point line, catch, and look to attack the rim.
In the Post Up Cut to Triple Threat drill, all players work on getting into a post-up position and learning to catch and read post defenders to decide which move to make. In some cases, post players will have to give up position for possession in order to make a post move and attack the paint. In the SWAT Drill, athletes also learn how to make a post move and try to score against a tall defender.
Ganon Baker brings a ton of energy and enthusiasm to all of his workouts. He teaches players how to have fun and train hard. As he puts it, consistency is greatness and training/chasing perfection consistently is greatness. You will make mistakes in these drills, but how you push yourself to get better and keep moving will teach you how to separate yourself from the competition. These drills will train your players to make instinctual decisions based on how the defense is playing them. Every coach should have this in their video library!
115 minutes. 2019.