Michigan experienced a unique situation with the cancellation of the Purdue Fort Wayne game last week. They had a twelve-day break in between games, something that is very uncommon for a high major Division 1 school. Last year, our team had a 14-day break due to COVID but we were not allowed to practice or be in the gym during that time. This year, Coach Howard had to build practice plans knowing the next game would be on December 30 against UCF. Many people ask how these practices work, and I wanted to shed some light on the preparation mindset and how the coaches keep the players sharp in these scenarios.

Back to Basics

Many people have heard about the idea of getting 1% better each day. The coaching staff at Michigan follows this belief by creating practices during breaks that focus on getting each and every player better at something. Coach Howard often has practices that lean heavily towards a defensive or offensive strategy to build team habits and correct any trends he has noticed. This focus sometimes results in getting back to basics. This is a system that Coach Beilein often used as well; sometimes the root of mistakes can be from losing touch with basic fundamentals.

Coach Howard does a great job teaching defensive techniques in one-on-one scenarios and in five-on-five scenarios. Many of the long break practices focus on technique in different situations to improve individual defense which solidifies the team’s overall defense. Guarding one on one arguably is the most difficult task on the court, and the coaching staff teaches a lot about positioning, moving feet, and walling off the defender. While these seem simple, these basics can create turnovers, result in fewer fouls, and prevent easy shots. Defensive sessions make the basics of basketball second nature. If the players utilize these teachings without even thinking about it, it takes a lot of pressure off of the guys on the floor. While teaching the basics does not prepare for any specific team, it prepares the guys for unexpected situations and common basketball scenarios.

For current coaches as well as aspiring coaches, I believe teaching the basics provides the team with a better opportunity to lead themselves on the court. By the end of the season, our goal was to have the team be “player-led” not “coach-led”. Coach Beilein always taught us that having a “player-led” team by the end of the season was very important; giving the players knowledge to hold each other accountable helps with overall cohesion. Many players get sick of hearing their coach yell at them all the time. Having players hold players accountable helps build confidence from a coaching standpoint because the coaches can then focus on the big picture of the game, not the minuscule details of every play.

For Competitors Only

Coach Howard’s motto “For Competitors Only” spreads to practice as well. During long breaks, the staff sets up various drills to challenge players and pits them against each other. This level of competition pushes everyone to be better, and it presents a unique opportunity for players to showcase skills that may not appear in a game. Furthermore, the competition in

practice keeps the players sharp while they are not playing against other teams for extended periods of time. In many drills, the managers would record different statistics such as shooting splits, turnovers, and defensive stops to keep track of player intensity and growth across the entirety of the season. I spent a lot of time looking at my scores for shooting drills in an attempt to beat my best scores.

These competitions result in a lot of one on one opportunities as well as five-on-five games. From my perspective as a walk-on, I felt these situations were instrumental in my personal growth as a player. I never played in big games that were close, and these practice competitions allowed me to test myself against some of the nation’s best players. This also provided great opportunities for younger players to grow outside of playing in the actual games. Many young players are not ready to play in conference games; however, the in-practice competition allows them to learn from the example of their senior players. The coaching staff at Michigan has built a culture to foster healthy competition within the program and draw only the people that are willing to be challenged each and every day.

Having a competitive and family-oriented program may seem contradictory, but it can be achieved by establishing proper competition in the right scenarios. For example, the coaches say that the second you step onto the court, you should be ready to compete. Even if you are friends with the guys off the court, players should not be taking it easy in practice because they are surrounded by like-minded peers. People that play soft against their friends often lose the drive to succeed. Teaching young players about competition prepares them for not only their work on the court but also scenarios off the court. I often found myself competing with the prior milestones that I have achieved in the classroom, such as trying to get my highest semester GPA. These habits came from my days as a college basketball player, and coaches have the opportunity to teach their players these values early on.

Physical and Mental Recovery

While it is important to stay in shape, many players need the necessary recovery times to stay in peak performance for the rest of the season. Coach Howard and Coach Beilein would balance hard practices with easier ones over long breaks to maximize player performance. The staff emphasizes Michigan has an amazing amount of resources for players to restore their bodies. Massages, stretching circuits, and a cold tub are only a few of the services that Michigan players have to recover their bodies in between games. High minute players like Eli Brooks also mixed in some weight lifting to maintain the strength that they had built over the summer. Michigan’s recovery system has been incredibly successful for years and will continue to be a major tool for years to come.

For different programs, there are varying levels of resources available to promote player recovery. Probably the most accessible and easily implementable system would be a stretching routine for pre-practice and post-practice. Coaches need to emphasize the importance of these because stretching prevents injuries, and helps battle stiffness that many basketball players suffer from.

On top of physical recovery, the staff at Michigan teaches the importance of mental recovery as well. I have found the mental recovery aspect of the game to be some of the most important advice I have received as a young man. From personal experience, I enjoyed working hard in the gym every chance I could get. Feeling myself improve was incredibly satisfying, and seeing the progression I made in the film further cemented my habits of working hard. At a certain point in my junior year, I began to put an incredible amount of pressure on myself because I had high expectations for myself from my workouts, and I almost never lived up to those expectations. As a senior, I took my mental recovery from the game much more seriously than I did the year prior. I took more time for myself when I felt burnt out, and it relieved a great deal of pressure from my performance in practice.

Coaches nowadays need to remind players and themselves of the benefits of taking a break every once in a while. Players should work hard to achieve their goals, and coaches need to work hard to promote a good culture within the team; however, stepping away from the court every once in a while allows for a mental reset. This lesson applies in almost every area of life. I know when I hit my limit socially and academically and I have found stepping away for short periods of time allows me to recharge and work more efficiently when I return. At a certain point in a person’s career, the main focus should be “working smart” rather than just “working hard”. Figuring out times when you’re most productive and focusing on efficiency can often be most effective.