The Basketball Podcast: EP442 with Brian Wardle on Gap Defense and Ball Screen Continuity

Listen Here:

Apple Podcasts
Spotify
YouTube
Stitcher
Art19

Brian Wardle Quotes:

“You can be honest but not be cocky or arrogant about it . . I think you’ve just got to find the right way to say it . . You always get asked, how good is the team?  Well, I really like our maturity, I like our length, I like our size. I’ve really enjoyed coaching this team this summer. We could be good. It’s just a matter of we’re going to have to do some things very well.”

“I think I got to do better in the community. And I’ve been challenged to do that . . I know our program is the flagship program here at Bradley. So, I really want to be a good example and set a standard for all the other programs on how we are all going to have to sacrifice a little bit here and there to be successful in this NIL world.”

“You learn so much about taking that one seat over . . you’ve got to be a chameleon in a lot of ways. You got to be very good at other areas, especially at a low-major program and mid-major program. You have a lot of responsibilities and a lot of hats.”

“We’ve always had to adapt to the times in recruiting and get the best talent we can and put the best team together. I’m a big believer in team defense. I think young players nowadays are so skilled. They’re so much better one-on-one players . . You better have a really good team defense. From day one you walk in the gym with me, this is going to be a team defense.”

“You’ve got to have balance to be really good. My best teams have been top 3 in the Valley in offense and defense. So, you’ve got to find that balance. You’ve got to practice both consistently . . But we’re giving 30 minutes to defense. We’re doing team breakdowns in a shell, maybe 2 to 3 rim breakdowns into shell . . What’s different with our program is the efficiency we do it at and the intensity and the talk. It’s multiple efforts, it’s high-volume talk, it’s physical even in breakdowns . . That’s where I really set the tone for my program I’m teaching them our habits every day and our standards.”\

“We’re active. We’re not arms down. We’re not one hand up, one hand out. I’ve tried it all. I just want active hands and high hands and we want to block vision of passing just as much as shooting. Our league, the Valley, is so high-skilled and high-feel. You’ve got to have your hands up on the closeouts to block those quick passes over your shoulders, skip passes, or post feeds.”

“I always have summer initiatives for my staff. So, here’s what I want to accomplish on offense and defense in the summer. And it’s the basics. It’s the bottom steps of building your foundation.”

“Every practice I have defensive work and offensive work. Then I have a scrimmage section, and then I have pre-practice work. I’m a man of routine and structure,  I love structure and I love being organized. My players, I think, thrive in it. They know every drill may be different, but they know the routine of our program, our culture, and how we work.”

“I’ve loved football from day one, just the physicality of it, the toughness of it, the teamwork aspect of it, the accountability, the do-your-job mentality . . a lot of it has carried over to basketball. I’ve never coached it, but I read a lot of books on football coaches and I love listening to football coaches teaching, coaching, and ball.”

“I’m an aggressive personality. I prefer aggressive coverages. And that’s one thing I would say to younger coaches, coach to your personality . . You can be yourself. I try to do that with my system and how I coach and how I run my program. And so aggressive ball screen coverage is more my style.”

“What are you willing to give up? Let’s be really good at 2 or 3 things. We’re not going to be good at 4 or 5, but let’s be really good at 2 or 3 things defensively.”

“I love teaching shooting and helping guys improve there because I know how much it means to them in their careers. I think you can improve it and, as long as the player is willing to learn and willing to make maybe one or two adjustments or tweaks, they will improve in this program because of the time we put into it.”

“I’d like a little more throw and go. We need some throw and go package because our league’s so good defensively. Some teams shut down ball screens beautifully, but they struggle with cutting. Some teams are really good against cutting and not great against ball screens. So, I think you’ve got to have some different looks and packages to go against each opponent nowadays because everyone’s so well coached.”

“We’re going to watch all your ball screens decisions from practice today, and we’re going to grade you. You’re going to grade yourself 1 through 5 . . building self-awareness, helping them understand their game and what’s a great decision and what’s a good decision, what’s an average decision. Because I do think there are levels to it.”

“Once you build trust with your team and you have that chemistry going and that rhythm together . . I love asking my players what they think in certain situations and what they see.”

“They know they’re going to get subbed out for defensive mistakes way more than offensive defensive mistakes with me . . And so, that offensive work has got to be very, very important.  We’ll always do a decision-making segment. We’ll always do transition offense every day . . I’ll have Wednesday and Saturdays as our scrimmage days.”

“I’m a super competitive guy, so I’ve got this chip on my shoulder, like, ‘Okay, people are doubting us again.’  This is great. Let’s get to work and let’s just do what we do and do it at an even higher level and more efficiently than we’ve ever done and see if we can get back to playing that Sunday championship game and get a ring.”

Brian Wardle Breakdown: