When the full-year sports calendar is under the microscope, mid-October is the best time of the year. All four major league sports are up and running, the NBA being the only sport in preseason mode. College football is at full tilt and NCAA basketball opening with its famed midnight madness workouts which begin the month-long 'official' practice time.
Jay Bilas of ESPN.com went straight to the source of the best college basketball coach in the business when he interviewed Coach Bob McKillop of Davidson about the upcoming season for the top mid-major in the country, the Davidson Wildcats.
I have a direct connection with McKillop as we have remained close since my high school days at Holy Trinity on Long Island. McKillop took over a fair to decent program and turned it into a championship team.
Here is what Bilas wrote on his ESPN blog today:
McKillop emphasizes simplicity
The McKillop Way
Davidson is expected to be one of the best mid-majors this season and a Top 25 team. The Wildcats have a tough slate, with games against North Carolina, Duke, NC State and UCLA, but will not be able to sneak up on anyone. The word is out. Davidson is good. During Davidson's open workout on Thursday evening, Wildcat coach Bob McKillop, the all-time winningest coach in Southern Conference history, said that his team had a bull's-eye on its collective back, and needed to "embrace the bull's-eye" in order to meet lofty expectations. After a 29-5 season and three straight 20-win seasons, much is expected of Davidson in 2008, but its foundation has been solid for many years.
McKillop has been in coaching for more than 30 years, starting as a high school coach in Long Island, N.Y. Through the years, his success and manner have made him a respected coach here and abroad. McKillop does it his own way and has learned that simplicity is perhaps the most important element in his coaching. Here are some of McKillop's beliefs and methods:
*On offense, McKillop wants his team to run, push the ball upcourt and see. According to McKillop, too few players truly see the game, and one of his "rules" on offense is for each player to "catch and see" before making any predetermined move or decision.
*McKillop believes in rhythm and flow. He wants to get his team into a rhythm and disrupt the rhythm of the opposing team. He runs a motion-based offense and mostly man-to-man defense, but will switch things up to disrupt. McKillop wants his team to maintain a "patient flow" in which his team is willing to hit singles instead of swinging wildly for the fences.
*Davidson has "Seven Keys" upon which the basketball part of the program is based:
1. See: McKillop wants his players to learn to see the game and to have great vision. You cannot make a play if you cannot see it.
2. Talk: Communication is valued. If you talk, you are automatically a better and more engaged player, and a better team. Talk provides confidence and awareness individually and collectively.
3. Hit Flesh: Davidson is unafraid of contact, and the players will lay their bodies on the line, whether for a loose ball, a rebound or setting a screen.
4. Do Details: No detail is too small, and McKillop insists that his players pay attention to detail.
5. Finish Everything: McKillop is adamant that his players should finish every shot, every possession, every drill, every sprint, every play.
6. Balance: Everything should be done with balance. Sometimes, that is difficult with limited athleticism, but it is still emphasized.
7. Act: Whether it is a shot fake, moving with or without the ball or using your eyes or your feet, deception is the essence of the game. Players need to act instead of react.
Note: It is included in the ESPN Insider section, so you might not have access if you just click through. - That's why I did the cut and paste.
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