"We have to go back to the basics with these guys."
Nate McMillan, Seattle Sonics Head Coach
"Herb (Brooks) called a timeout to settle us down and let us collect and get ourselves back to basics."
Mike Modano, speaking about Olympic Hockey Team USA
"Gentlemen, it's time to go back to basics. This is a football."
Vince Lombardi, former Green Bay Packers Head Coach
All teams and players occasionally find themselves having problems. For many players and teams, it can be difficult to judge exactly where to start. However, over time, the best coaches and players have learned one important lesson - when problems arise go back and work on the fundamentals of the sport.The basics of each sport will vary and though it may be more exciting to learn new skills, working on and mastering existing skills are the keys to most player and team success.
The emphasis on basics does not go away with age or skill level. Professional team drills are often the very same drills used by youth teams. Basic skills are the building blocks on which all other abilities are built. A breakdown in a basic skill means everything else suffers. When players want to be the best, they never stop practicing the basics.