So a friend of mine who runs the Hanover Park league talked me into coaching a team this year. It's a 5th/6th grade park district league, one practice a week, one game per weekend. It's my first time coaching. Next Tuesday night is a tryout night where all the coaches scout the players and then pick their teams. I think I know the game of basketball pretty well, but I dont remember a ton about what it was like when I was 12 years old and still learning the game. Anyone here coach this age level or a similar one before? What's some not-obvious things to look for in the tryouts to look for that might otherwise be overlooked? Can you just slip the best couple kids $20 each to ask to join your team? Are parents usually a problem to deal with at this age? My buddy runs the league and he said one of the only requirements is that every kid has to play at least a couple minutes each game, you can't Thibodeau your rotation. I figure since it's a park district league splitting the minutes fairly equally is more important than winning and losing the actual games.

Some coaches find it most beneficial to draft kids based upon the level of their mom's hotness.

Don't show up to the first practice in a Penn State jacket.

(too soon?)

I would attempt to get to know the parents during tryouts. You can teach kids to dribble, shoot, pass, and be part of a team. It's much more difficult to get their parents to stop being asshats.

(too soon?)

Yikes. If this seriously has to be taught at this age I could never coach. Maybe it was because I lived and
breathed basketball when I was younger. I can't say I have seen a game with kids this age in a long time.

i have never coached basketball, but my son is in a 6th grade league this year, and there have been a lot of problems with certain coaches being VERY over-the-top in the intensity department. my recommendation is to have a lot of fun with the kids, smile and laugh and enjoy yourself and dont get all caught up in the bullshit. the super-intense coaches come off like real douchebags. let the kids have fun and shoot the ball. make sure they all get good playing time. believe it or not, this is the age that some parents (a lot of them) are worrying about playing time for their little Dr. J's and Larry Bird's and start griping when they arent in for the entire game.

coaching basketball looks like a tough gig when it comes to dealing with parents.

With 5th and 6th graders, you can probably run a basic motion offense. Teach them 3 out 2 in. Teach them spacing. Teach them man to man defense. I would not try any plays just to move the ball.

Pick who the two or three best players are and have them start and end the game. Then, just have everyone else sub in and sub out. Don't have the same starting lineup every game because it's a thrill for the kids to be a starter and do the jump ball.

Your most important thing to do is start teaching fundamentals as much as you can. That is really the best thing you can do for the kids. That is the kind of long term help that will make them better later on. I'd spend the first 50% of practice doing dribbling, passing, shooting drills. You may be able to do post up drills, such as teaching the Elgin Baylor move and the drop step.

Scrimmage for the second half of the practice, and then play knockout to finish up the practice.

With 5th and 6th graders, you can probably run a basic motion offense. Teach them 3 out 2 in. Teach them spacing. Teach them man to man defense. I would not try any plays just to move the ball.

Pick who the two or three best players are and have them start and end the game. Then, just have everyone else sub in and sub out. Don't have the same starting lineup every game because it's a thrill for the kids to be a starter and do the jump ball.

Your most important thing to do is start teaching fundamentals as much as you can. That is really the best thing you can do for the kids. That is the kind of long term help that will make them better later on. I'd spend the first 50% of practice doing dribbling, passing, shooting drills. You may be able to do post up drills, such as teaching the Elgin Baylor move and the drop step.

Scrimmage for the second half of the practice, and then play knockout to finish up the practice.

I just wont like dealing with parents who dont understand that there's other kids on the team, not just their kid.

Just tell them you are more interested in every kid improving fundamentals and game activity helps doing that. You are laying a foundation for every kid, including their kid, to improve during and after the season. The extra 5 minutes of playing time they would get won't really matter. You want the kids to be better because they are on the right track.

Some parents are going to bitch no matter what you do. A couple years back I was coaching my oldest daughters 5th and 6th grade team. At our last game of the year we only had 6 girls show up. We played a pretty bad team and we were winning by 25 points at the half. So I sat my daughter the entire 2nd half to let all the other girls get plenty of playing time. One of the fathers catches up with me after the game and complains that his daughter was too tired and he wished I would have given her a rest in the 2nd half. You have got to be kidding me... bitching to be bitching

Isn't that common sense though? I figured the parents most likely to bitch about 11-12 year old's playing time are also the same parents unlikely to listen to logical reasoning.

Moms, moms, moms should be your only concern.


Also, not all of the parents will be a pain, but you will have 1 that you will want to strangle. It happens every sport I have coached. Also, I have always had a 24 hour rule for the parents. Which means after the game don't come up bitching about something, because you might truly not like what you hear. Give things time to settle down and after 24 hours you still have concerns come talk to me or e-mail me. Have a parent meeting your first night of practice and outline specifically your goals and expectations for the kids.


Did I mention moms?