Book Private Basketball Lessons with Coach Jacob

I was a 4 year varsity player at a high school in upstate New York. I also played AAU for City Rocks in Albany, NY for 2 years at the13U and 14U age groups. I did not end up playing collegiately, I had a rough go with injuries and I prioritized schooling/work, but I always found my way back to basketball. I would play at least 3 times a week, and made friends on the school team where I would help out during practices when I was available. I currently play multiple times a week and find new ways to improve my game as my knees become more and more fragile!

Through repetition and progressively increasing the difficulty of the skills and workload on the athlete. I specialize in shooting form, ball handling, defensive footwork and active hands. The main reason I was given any playing time was my ability to manage a game and use my basketball IQ to make the game work for me. All of these skills are foundational in becoming a skilled basketball player.

A typical session with me includes the following:

Warm Up (~10 minutes):

- dynamic stretches (arm circles, hamstring stretches, hip flexors, quad stretches)

- one hand form shooting, gradually increasing distance

- full court lay ups (gets your blood pumpin!)

- Full court run into a pull up mid-range jump shot

Skills Work (~30 - 40 minutes)

***Varies by skill level and development plan

- Dribbling drills - change of speed, cone drills, 2 ball drills

- Shooting Drills - pull up jumpers, form shooting, shooting coming off screens, offensive positioning

- Defensive footwork - shuffle drills, defensive slides, shuttle drills, cone work / ladder work

- Hand-eye coordination

(The goal of these is to identify an area where the athlete wants to progress and focus on one, or a few key skills, work on them and progressively increase the complexity of skill drills as the athlete develops.)

Cool Down/ Conditioning (~10-20 minutes)

- sprints (free throw line and back, 3 pt line and back, half court and back, opposite free throw and back, full court and back)

- shooting cool down - 25-50 made free throws (always try to end on this, nothing better than having the confidence you're going 2/2 from the line late in the game when you can't feel your legs. Number of made free throws depend on age and skill level)

The best coach I have ever had was an individual coach I worked with during my high school years. Confidence was something I struggled with during my high school career, I would constantly pass up a shot for the extra pass, even though I could knock them down. This coach in particular brought a different approach, we would play a local park, where I grew up in Schenectady, NY. After we did our skills lesson for an hour we would run pick up for hours afterwards. I saw my skills and confidence go through the roof. While I did not have a collegiate or professional basketball career, I owe a lot of who I am as a man to coach Mike. He taught me that life is about holding your head as high as the guy next to you, even if they are bigger.

Above all else, I work hard. I am passionate about educating our youth, and building capable leaders who have the confidence to explore their passions. I have basketball skills that will help each athlete develop their game and build fundamentals that shape how they play. My strongest skills are form shooting, defensive footwork, developing fast and active hands, ball handling, and sound decision making when controlling the ball. With that being said, I believe consistency, resiliency and determination are some of the most important skills you can learn. Training with me will help your athlete grow not only in the game of basketball, but grow as an individual as well.