Coaching Fast Break Basketball (The Art & Science of Coaching Series) [Paperback]

Cliff Ellis (Author)

Book Description

Series: The Art & Science of Coaching Series | Publication Date: May 10, 1997

Offers basic fundamentals and techniques for creating and taking advantage of fast break opportunities. Covers shaping the fast break, coaching fast break situations, fast breaking after a missed field goal, fast breaking following a made field goal, fast breaking from the free throw line, fast breaking against various zone defenses, and fast breaking from the various pressing defenses. Also includes rebounding, outlet-pass, two-, three-, and four-man drills used to perfect the fast break. Features over 250 diagrams and illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Cliff Ellis, the dean of the SEC coaches, earned his 500th career Div. I coaching victory over Georgia State Nov. 26, 2003, to become only the 34th coach to reach the milestone since the NCAA started Div. I play in 1948-49.

Ellis is ranked 16th among active coaches with 520 victories.

Averaging 19 wins a season in each of his nine years at Auburn, Ellis holds the distinction of being the all-time winningest coach in Clemson and South Alabama history. He is well on his way to becoming the all-time winningest coach for the Tigers. With a 172-111 record, he is two wins away from having the second-most wins in school history in only nine years. He trails only the legendary Joel Eaves' 213 wins in 14 seasons.

Ellis has taken the Tigers to seven postseason appearances in his nine years.

Product Details

• Paperback: 141 pages
• Publisher: Coaches Choice; DVD Video edition (May 10, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585181951
• ISBN-13: 978-1585181957
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,891,416 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Detailed situations for an effective Fast Break, June 21, 2000

By 

Orazio NOTO (France) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Coaching Fast Break Basketball (Paperback)

All the situations for developing an effective Fast Break are explained. Cliff ELLIS illustrated these situations with Fast Break continuities he had already used. All the choice made inside the Fast Break continuities are explained. It means that you will have to read very carefully all the explanation if you don't want to miss relevant informations. However, we expect to find other types of drills. All the drills are known and well known. This part of the book is really poor.

2.0 out of 5 stars Too wide and shallow, June 25, 2006

By 

Ball Student (Germany) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Coaching Fast Break Basketball (The Art & Science of Coaching Series) (Paperback)

Coach Ellis did a very good job of showing how to fast break out of several different situations -- made baskets, free throws, rebounds, fast breaking out of zones, fast breaking off a press. In this respect, his book is very thorough. If you can implement this, and get your team to run & fast break in each of these situations, you'll be a tough team to beat.

However, something I've observed in coaching: it doesn't matter how good your system is, if you can't teach it, it's useless. In fact, I would argue that teaching a lousy system impeccably well will result in more success than teaching an impeccable system lousy.

Unfortunately Coach Ellis didn't have any suggestions on how to teach your team to fast break out of each of these situations. He only had a short chapter at the end of the book that had drills for teaching fast break in general, but as far as teaching tips, that was it.
As a college coach, Coach Ellis has the option to recruit only kids that a) already know how to execute in a running game b) are exceptionally fast learners. For High School coaches like myself, who are dealt a hand and must play it, this book was almost useless. How about some breakdown drills for teaching the fast break out of each of these situations? How about some drills for teaching the fundamental skills involved? The High School kids I've worked with won't really learn a system well just by drawing the diagrams on the board, walking through it, and then going at it over and over. For whatever reason, that's not how teaching and learning work.

The one part of the book that I found interesting was how to fast break out of a zone press. Only because he made some interesting, practical points when talking about the zone press. It got me excited about the defense he was describing, not the transition offense.

I'm glad I bought this book used, rather than new. I would only recommend this book to a coach that is a brilliantly gifted teacher (and can therefore easily see how to teach everything here) but is an unimaginative dolt at devising a strategy. I don't personally know anybody like that.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fast Break Basketball Is The Playing Style Of Todays B-Ball, June 19, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Coaching Fast Break Basketball (Paperback)

This book is great for any coach. Todays basketball calls on the use of the fast break to score points. Everybody now is more athletic than ever before and the fastbreak is the only way to put their athletisim to use. A great book that teaches everything about a fast break and how it works.after getting a rebound, this book tells you what to do to get into a fast break. Definitly worth buying. thank you