Oakland University Basketball Practice Notes

Greg Kampe, the long time and highly successful basketball coach of Oakland University, is the third-longest tenured coach in NCAA Division I. Jeff Tungate is in his fifth season at the helm of the Oakland University women’s basketball team. He had previously spent six seasons as associate head coach of the Oakland men’s team. These notes and videos are from each team’s full practice at the 2017 Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan.

Jeff Tungate Oakland Women’s Basketball Practice

Every practice they work on these four things:

1. Fundamentals
2. Defense
3. Offense
4. Special Situations

The use of echo calls for every drill:

• Players are empowered to communicate by having a player chosen by the coach shout the name of the next drill.
• The rest of the team then echoes the name of the drill.
• Coach Tungate learned this concept at a boot camp. It helps to create good communication and focus in their practice.
• They want to over-communicating in practice so they don’t under-communicate in games.

Things that are important to them:

• Be on time / listen / tell the truth / respect everyone.
• This involves your attitude, your effort and your body language.
• The ability to handle frustration is important to teach, and for a player to understand how to cope. A practice goal is to create frustration in practice so players can learn how to handle it in a game.
• Players not involved in a drill are expected to talk to and cheer for their teammates.
• Players are encouraged to hold each other accountable for effort, doing a drill properly etc.
• They use male practice players to help with every drill to challenge the team physically and athletically.
• Every player has a notebook. Players put practice notes, scouting reports, quotes etc. in their notebooks.

Greg Kampe Oakland Men’s Basketball Practice 

Know who you are. What you do. What you want.
Shoot the ball every day. Shoot shots you will take in a game.

Thoughts on Rebounding

• He wants players to put their elbow to chest of the offensive player and then go get the ball.
• They used to “block out” but that can’t be done effectively any longer  as he doesn’t want players to lose sight of the offensive rebounder.
• A player must call shot on defense.

Thoughts on Defensive Transition

• The priority in defensive transition is to cover the basket and stop the ball.
• Three players must be “finger pointing” so that it is not a “buddy run.”
• Everyone is responsible for guarding the ball. “Guard the ball, not people” is his terminology.
• To build these concepts he runs the “Pro Drill.” The Pro Drill starts with a 1-on-2 with a free throw into a 2-on-1 the other way. Two players are added on offense each transition trip. The offense converts to defense. The drill progresses from 2-on-1, 3-on-2, 4-on-3 to a 5-on-4.

Thoughts on Defensive Breakdown

• Defensive Goals – No lay-ups, No threes, No fouling.
• Must be able to guard the ball to keep the ball in front of you.
• They want to force the other team into taking tough two point shots.
• They front all cutters. They never let him a cutter beat them “across their face.” A player must jump into the gap and force the cut to go behind.
• One thing they emphasize in their shell drill is touching the hip of the guy guarding the ball (See stunt and recover defensive shell drill video). 
• The progression is to apply the same concept of stunt and recover in drills with one less defender. They do 4-on-3 and 5-on-4 drills to force them to communicate and rotate.

Thoughts on Ball Screens

• Oakland was #1 in the nation in guarding the ball screen.
• Blue is their call for “ice” ball screen coverage.
• In Blue they want to chase the ball handler over the screen. The defender covering the screen stays just below the free throw line. They are trying to force a contested two point shot.   
• If the offensive player drives, the post guards them, and the guard attempts to get position on the player who set the screen.
• The main issue is covering a post that can really shoot it. To counter this strategy a player must take away the three-point shot that is behind a screen by forcing them to the basket or rotating.