Here are some of the top quotes from the best players and coaches on how to play the old man game (or mastering the fundamentals).
The Old Man Game is really just mastery of the fundamentals of basketball.
It preaches mastering simplicity and consistency before fancy and flashy.
It’s a style that ages well and anyone can learn it (regardless of how young or old you are).
When it is properly used, it is nearly invincible (okay, maybe not. I heard that sentence in a Wu-Tang Clan song and just wanted to add it).
Anywhoo, here are the tenets of the style:
Why the Fundamentals are Important
“Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise” – Michael Jordan
“Practice habits were crucial to my development in basketball. I didn’t play against the toughest competition in high school, but one reason I was able to do well in college was that I mastered the fundamentals. You’ve got to have them down before you can even think about playing” – Larry Bird
“Basketball, like all sports, is predicated on the execution of fundamentals. The coach is a teacher. His subject: fundamentals.” Dr Jack Ramsay
“Helping kids get a handle on the basics of the game – from dribbling and shooting to rebounding and defending – is crucial for their long-term enjoyment of the sport.” Greg Bach
Keeping Your Game Simple
“This is basketball, not figure skating. You don’t get extra points for degree of difficulty” – Bob Hurley
“The two ingredients in success in basketball are playing hard and playing intelligently.” – Pete Carroll
Importance of I.Q. and Work Ethic
“It doesn’t matter how athletic or skilled a player is, if they have a low I.Q., they won’t be very good” – Alan Stein
“If you are not intent about what you are doing, you aren’t able to resist the temptation to do something else that might be more fun at the moment.” Coach John Wooden
“Shooting percentage is just as much about decision making as it is about technique” – Jeff Van Gundy
“There are 5 fundamental qualities that make every team great: communication, trust, collective responsibility, caring, and pride” – Mike Krzyzewski
How to Play Offence Old Man Game Way
“Basketball is a simple game. Your goal is penetration, get the ball close to the basket, and there are three ways to do that. Pass, dribble and offensive rebound” – Phil Jackson
“A key basketball skill is imagery. The best players ‘see’ situations before they happen so they can be prepared” – Dr. Jack Ramsay
“Passing is your best weapon against man to man. Dribble penetration is your best weapon against zone.” – Bob Knight
“I sit and wonder why no one uses the shot fake. The shot fake, when used correctly, can eliminate a defender” – Bob Knight
“What do you do to help us win when you’re not scoring baskets?” – John Calipari
“Footwork is one of the primary prerequisites to becoming a great player” – Mike Krzyzewski
“I dribbled by the hour with my left hand when I was young. I didn’t have full control, but I got so I could move the ball back and forth from one hand to the other without breaking the cadence of my dribble. I wasn’t dribbling behind my back or setting up any trick stuff, but I was laying the groundwork for it” – Bob Cousy
How to Play Defence
“Remember that basketball is a game of habits. If you make the other guy deviate from his habits, you’ve got him” – Bill Russell
“Defense is all about helping. No one can guard a good dribbler. You have to walk kids through how to help and then how to help the helper” – Bob Knight
“Stop by stop by stop. Play aggressively. Sprint back on ‘D’ and pay attention to how we’re supposed to guard as a team” – Gregg Popovich
“My players on defence must have a hand-up on every shot. If not, they run sprints” – Rick Majerus
“The idea is not to block every shot. The idea is to make your opponent believe that you might block every shot” – Bill Russell
“I feel all great teams have two things in common: defence and rebounding. So, we stress defence and rebounding every day as the most important aspects in the game to win” – Larry Brown
Final Thoughts
Absorb and apply these tenets and no opponent shall defeat you on the court of basketball (I’m sorry. I’ve been watching a lot of old school martial arts movies and it’s making me speak this way).
P.S. If you want to learn more about how basketball players think, click here to check out this article on the top stars’ favorite books.
Quotes Via: