On Day 3 at the NIKE/Elite Hoops Basketball Camp at Madison Academy, coaches emphasized using the skills that players were taught in stations in 5 on 5 and 3 on 3 games. One important skill that was taught in stations was the PICK AND ROLL. Players were taught the importance of moving without the basketball, whether it was setting up a defender before a pick or rolling to the basket after setting a screen. After working on this skill in stations, coaches encouraged players to move without the basketball and set screens to get teammates open! In the video below, some of our players demonstrate how the execute the pick and roll.

Motion Station: Pick and Roll

As day two winds down we have made great strides here at Miller Grove. With all of the campers coming in this morning excited and ready to play the station drills started out at full force. The coaches main focus today was ball handling as they work towards better "Living By Numbers" standings with their campers. Our own Justin Thornton broke the High School record for the figure 8 drill today and his teammates cheered him on.
After our lunch period we had a few words with Coach Anderson, who has worked many different NIKE Elite Hoops Camps in the past. Coach Anderson says that "seeing them excited about each other's victories is my favorite part of working with the campers, and I got to see that today."
Moving further into the second half of day two the campers had a chance to free shoot, which is Coach Anderson's favorite part of the camp day, "You get to see them in an unstructured environment that grows more and more structured as the camp week continues. You really get to see the difference your making in these kid's games." When asked what he most looks forward to come the end of the week, the inevitable
"CHAMPIONSHIP FRIDAY!" was the answer. "You never know what its going to bring," he said enthusiastically.
As day two winds down the campers grow more and more confident of their own skills, as well as their teammates. Everybody is looking forward to what'll happen next here at Miller Grove!

At our first annual NIKE/Elite Hoops Boys Basketball camp at Madison Academy, coaches emphasized the importance of "not mistaking activity for achievement." Players were told that just because they were at camp, in a station, or even playing 5 on 5, they were not going to achieve anything (or get better) if they weren't giving their full effort!

This applies to any aspect of their game, whether it is ballhandling, rebounding, shooting, or defense. A player must go game speed to get better, and eventually perform better in games. The goal is to help players develop this type of work ethic outside of camp when working by themselves in the off-season.

If players continue to work as hard the rest of the week as they did in their stations, 5 on 5, Living by Numbers, and 3 on 3, as they did on the first day, then they should see tremendous improvement by Friday afternoon! The coaches are excited to see what's in store for this talented and hard working group!

The NIKE Elite Hoops Boys Basketball Camp at Miller Grove kicked off this morning at full speed. After registration, campers were introduced to the Skill Development Stations for 2 hours.  Our Skills Stations focus on each players basic fundamentals and push them out of their comfort zone. Coach Cason emphasized how "tough the defensive station is for most campers," but he is confident that they will get one percent better each day.

After campers played their five on five games they then took on a more competitive aspect of camp: Living By Numbers. As the kids watched demonstrations of the coaches doing these drills, they cheered them on as they attempted to break kids records from previous camps.

"Switch Cone Slides," a new drill this year, our camper, Xzavier Duggan, broke our last weeks camp record by moving 13 cones in 30 seconds.

From the looks of things, these kids have a lot more in store for us this week. The question is will anyone else break a record?

Championship Friday, was exciting for players, coaches and parents! Players received their NIKE camp t-shirts and prizes for Living by Numbers events, coaches evaluation, and also competed in front of parents and coaches in their 5 on 5 championship games!

5 on 5 championship games were competitive in all leagues, with all three games decided in the last minute of play, with players stepping up and making huge plays! Players proved that all their hard work in stations, 5 on 5, and 3 on 3 throughout the week paid off!

The other coaches and I could not be any happier with their effort. Hopefully, players will continue to work as hard the rest of the summer, as they did during camp this week!

-Coach Langley

On the second day of the NIKE Basketball Camp at OCHS, players were pushed to use the skills that they learned in their stations in their 5 on 5 games . One skill that was highlighted in today's stations was communicating on defense, saying "ball, deny, or help." Although a new skill for most players, communication on defense is one of the most important things for players who want to play at a higher level, so coaches made sure that players were constantly talking during 5 on 5 games.

The inaugural NIKE Basketball Camp at OCHS, opened on Monday empahasizing the importance of the fundamentals. Players were introduced to individual skills drills that they should work on daily, if they are truly serious about developing a well-rounded skill set. The one drill highlighting this emphasis on fundamental skill development was the "Mikan Drill." The Mikan Drill is a simple layup drill that focuses on technique and proper layup form. Players were to make sure to have their "right hand, right knee in the air" on a right-handed layup and to make sure to have their "left hand, left knee in the air" on a left-handed layup. Beginning players were encouraged to work on form over speed, while more advanced players were pushed to develop quicker foot work in between layups.

As the week continues, coaches will emphasize the fundamentals, but move towards more advanced moves during stations. This is all part of our attempt to make sure that players improve by 1% daily!

Elite Hoops will be hosting a NIKE Girls and Boys Basketball Camp at Oconee County High School in Watkinsville, Georgia from May 23 -May 27, 2011. This camp will be open to girls and boys entering grades 4-9 and will run for 4 full days (Monday-Thursday) from 9:00am-3:00pm with a "Championship Day" on Friday from 9:00am-12:00pm. Enrollment is limited to 50 campers per camp to maintain our 8:1 player to coach ratio. Assisting Elite Hoops as Co-Director for this camp will be Oconee County High School Varsity Basketball Coaches Cindy Roach and Michael Youngblood.

There are limited spots available for the NIKE/Elite Hoops Boys Basketball Camp at Madison Academy in Huntsville, Alabama, May 31, 2011 through June 3, 2011. Our individual skill development stations, Living By Numbers contests, and 5 on 5 scrimmages prepare players for church, school or regular season teams. We can guarantee that each player will get the attention they need with our 8 to 1 player to coach ratio. Hurry and sign up today before all of the spots are filled!

For more information click here

The Elite Hoops Spring Break Basketball Camp at Kedron Fieldhouse in Peachtree City, GA will run April 4-8, 2011 and will be directed by the Elite Hoops staff. This camp will focus in individual skill improvement with our offensive skills stations and 3 on 3 league. Each camper will also participate in our Individual Improvement contests each day to compete for prizes. All Elite Hoops basketball camps maintain a player to coach ratio of 8:1. This camp is limited to the first 24 players that register and is open to boys and girls ages 8-14 (currently in grades 4th-9th). The Camp fee is $195 per player. Kedron is a convenient location for anyone in Fayette County, Peachtree City, Fayetteville or Tyrone. Camp times are Monday-Friday 9am-12pm. Lunch will not be provided, so please bring a drink and snack for breaks.

Every year we seem to have the debate over which conference is the best in college basketball. This year the consensus has been that the Big East was the best conference in the country. Its a trap that is easy to fall into: mistaking the biggest conference for the best conference. With 16 teams the Big East is more like an association than a conference. It is a good league with some big name coaches and schools in some big market cities: New York, Philadelphia, Chicago. But the Big East lacks one major variable that a league must have to be the best....the best players.