DannyMcLarty.com » Dribbling

2014 Basketball and Training Videos

danny — Tue, 06 Jan 2015 05:26:56 +0000

I hope everyone had a great New Year’s. I had a great time with family and friends and am ready to kick 2015 in the ass! This is usually about the time when I say, “it has been awhile since my last blogpost, but I promise to update it more frequently going forward.” But no. I’m not gonna give you any false promises. Between all the hours I spend training people in the weight room and giving basketball lessons and trying to keep up with 3-year old twins, no such promises will be made. But I did want to share with you some videos from the past year to officially close out 2014. I FINALLY took a bunch of videos that I recorded over the course of the year and got them up onto my computer. So, below you’ll see a bunch of what goes on inside our walls at MVP Training. These videos represent only a fraction of the time I spent working with people over the course of the year. However, I plan on breaking out the video camera more this year and sharing them here on my blog, on facebook, youtube, and on twitter. So if aren’t already a friend/follower/subscriber, just look up and to the right above “Recent Posts,” and let’s connect. Like I said, I know I won’t be posting as many blogposts/articles on here as I used to, but I plan on including more fitness and basketball videos, so be sure to check back for those. With that said, here we go…

The video below starts with the young guns and works up to the middle schoolers …

The Steph Curry Drill

danny — Wed, 30 Jul 2014 03:54:58 +0000

My favorite player in the NBA is Steph Curry. Well, it’s close between him and D. Rose… but I haven’t seen Rose play in so long I can’t remember his game. Hopefully that changes real soon!

Anyway, when I saw him play in the NCAA Tourney while at Davidson a number of years ago, I couldn’t believe how easily he could get his shot off both off the catch and off the dribble… especially off the dribble.

And then I lived in the Bay area for number of years, and he just so-happened to get drafted by the Golden State Warriors. So I got to see the Steph Curry show first-hand.

As I elaborate in the video below, I’ve never seen ANYONE get the ball from the last dribble up into his shooting pocket and out of his hands as quickly as he does…

And then some of the players that train with me at my gym…

I can’t wait to see how much quicker with the ball the younger players in the above video get in the years to come. Assuming they continue to work on it… and they better!

So there’s the Steph Curry drill for you hoopers out there. Add it to the drills you perform to help you get your shot off quicker and with a more effective result. Remember to work hard AND work smart (get a lot of reps in before shooting).

Off-Season Training for Basketball

danny — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 14:57:18 +0000

I put up a similar blogpost a few weeks back. But in case you missed it, here it the “article version.” Powerbasketball.com published THIS ARTICLE that I wrote. The majority of the information comes in the video, so make sure to check that out. Remember, at this time of the year (late spring/early summer), skill development is HUGE!

Now, this boy has some skills!

I’m about to put up a couple blogposts per week with the following theme: Be Brilliant at the Basics. I’ll elaborate soon. So be sure to check back to find out what I’m talking about.

See you then!

“Follow Through” when DRIBBLING the Basketball

danny — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 20:16:55 +0000

When I work with basketball players I always emphasize the concept of “following through” when dribbling the basketball… kind of like when you you shoot the ball. I could explain more but, it’s easier to do in video…

I haven’t done many basketball posts lately, but I plan on adding more skill related posts in the future. If you are a player or have a son/daughter that plays, make sure you share this video with them… it will go a long way in helping him/her better develop those handles (the good kind of handles ).

If you have any questions or thoughts, please leave a comment below.

Happy handling!

Hesitation Moves on the Basketball Court

danny — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 22:56:13 +0000

If you want to be a great basketball player, you’ve got to have a complete game. I’ve talked about how to improve your dribbling skills in a previous post. Today I’m here focusing on changing speeds with the basketball. In all sports, those who effectively change speeds have a great advantage. Think of a pitcher with a great fast ball, but does not have a solid off-speed pitch. He won’t last long in the rotation. But give him a good change up, and he he can really pile up the wins. This is also true with a great running back. He must do more than run as fast as possible in a straight line. His ability to stop and start and be deceptive is just as important (if not more important) as his top-end speed. Think Barry Sanders.

Well, when it comes to hoops, it is no different. If you only have average quickness but change speeds well, just like that you become tough to guard – think Steve Nash. If you have good quickness and change speeds well, you become very quick – think Deron Williams. If you have very good quickness and change speeds well, you become unguardable – think Chris Paul and Derrick Rose. So, when working on your game, keep working on those handles. But do NOT forget to change speeds. Here are a few examples of what I am talking about…

Above ^^^ – stop and pop with a hesitation and stop and go to the basket. Next…

In this above video ^^^ – 1 stop and go to the right, 1 to the left, and 1 with a change of direction (between the legs) for a pull up J.

My skills with the video camera/computer are horrible, which is why the last shot got cut off. If Sue (not my mom) is reading this I know she is laughing at me. Sue – shush it! Remember, I’m going to be seeing you at our training session in just a couple hours and if you don’t watch it I will make you do nothing but Bulgarian Splits Squats for 1 hour straight!!!!!! Yeah, that’s what I thought. Anyway, I hope to really improve my computer skills in the months to come… but I just don’t get it. Next…

And in this last video you have Kobe using a hesitation move to make yet another defender look stupid.

Keep working hard on your game and make sure to change speeds on the court.

I hope everyone has a safe and fun 4th of July weekend!

Handle It!

danny — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 06:22:28 +0000

Those who know me, know that I’m all about making efficient use of your time when it comes getting the most out of your game. Afterall, reaching your potential takes a lot more than countless hours of 5-on-5 pickups games. It takes individual skill work, and time spent in the weight room to improve your strength and reduce your chance of injury. The video below is an abbreviated version of what I did (and still do) each and every time I went to the the gym to work on my game. (or before the others players got to the court before we played against one-another)

A Few Extra Minutes Really Add Up

As I mentioned in the first video, I always get to the court a few minutes early to get my dribbling in. It helps me become one with the ball, so to speak. My goal is to make the ball feel like it is on a string. Sometimes this takes 3-4 minutes, sometimes it takes about 10 minutes. All I know, is that it greatly helped me improve my dribbling skills. Most of my friends would show up and shoot deep 3-pointers, or mess around and throw up a few half court shots before it was time to start the game. I would take these 3-10 minutes very seriously, and work on the handles. These extra ~5 minutes added up to be a TON of extra time over the years.

Method to the Madness

My template is as follows;

-Stationary dribbling first

-”Semi-Stationary” is next – this is the verbiage that I use with my clients. If you can think of anything cooler, or more appropiate than “semi-stationary,” let me know.

-Full speed dribbling – either moves up and down the court, or moves to the basket.

Unnecessary?

Most coaches out there that watched me play over years really appreciated how my dribbling skills helped make me, and my teammates better. But I’ve come across a few coaches that thought that this kind of “dribbling warm-up” was unnecessary. And guess what? I couldn’t DISAGREE more! Obviously I’m not suggesting that anyone should check into a game and start performing little quick between the leg moves, or “combo” moves with no one guarding them. “But the moves from your video are not specific to the way you are going to dribble in a game.” So. I don’t hear anyone say anything negative about baseball players that warm-up with a little “pepper” before practice. What about putting a bar on your back and performing squats in the weight room? I don’t remember the last time that happened on a basketball court. The point is that ALL sports use “non-specific” drills to help improve the athlete’s game. In the case of “my” warm-up, I do this to improve my ability to control the ball, and to improve my quickness with the ball in my hand – to help me to better create space off the dribble, or protect the ball from an opponent. When it comes to game time, we should only use the move necessary to get the job done, nothing more. Sometimes that calls for the simplest of moves, and other times it requires a more advanced, fancy move. I can say without a doubt, that my pre game (pre workout) warm-up routine played a HUGE role in any success that I had.

Getting to the gym a few minutes early to work on your game can make a big difference in the long run. When it comes to improving your ball-handling, start at your own level and progressively incease the speed and difficulty over time.