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Step 1
Know the audience. Understand that while these players may appear grown they are still young men growing into adulthood. Keep in mind their lives and hormones are constantly in flux.
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Step 2
Establish connections with potential recruits early. The college basketball landscape has changed in the last decade with greater emphasis on early recruiting. Now coaches have to establish a relationship with recruits as early as the eighth grade in order for the player to commit to the coaches school. This may seem to be overkill but it is requisite in recruiting today.
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Step 3
Recruit the best players possible and then adjust the system to fit the players. Too many coaches have one system and refuse to adjust it. For all the titles won most every coach will confide that it was the talent of the players that matters most.
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Step 4
Vary Practices. College players need variety in the practices. If there is too much repetition the players will become bored.
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Step 5
Mix in the basics. The fundamentals such as screen setting, dribbling and shooting mechanics are an extremely important part of the game that players have a hard time developing on their own. Make drills that emphasizes these issues an integral part of the teaching process but do not make them the only focus. Keep in mind that focusing too much on fundamentals can become monotonous for the players.
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Step 6
Prevent players from being idle during practice. Not every player can have your full attention or participate in every drill in practice. With this in mind establish side drills that players can take part in. An idle player can become a distraction.
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Step 7
Chart and reward the fundamentals. Again, fundamentals are a lost art. A reward system can assist a coach in stressing these attributes to their team. Have an assistant or team manager chart the amount of charges taken, good screens set and so on and reward the players that accomplish these facets of the game properly. Maybe give a player a break from some of the more grueling drills if they are atop the fundamentals chart from last weeks game.
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Step 8
Focus on defense. At the college level, most players are talented enough on offense and focused on this aspect of their games at the high school level. Defense, on the other hand, is often a missing component and as the saying goes "defense wins championships".
