with Delano Thomas,
Shawnee State University Head Men's Coach;
2021 NAIA National Champions;
2021 NAIA National Coach of the Year;
2021 Don Meyer Coach of the Year;
2021 HoopDirt.com NAIA Coach of the Year;
31-2 overall record in 2020-21, finishing the season with 27 straight wins;
2004 1st Team NAIA All-American (Shawnee State);
played professionally in Europe for 9 years
Rather quickly, Delano Thomas has made a name for himself as one of the premier, up-and-coming basketball minds in the game today - garnering national championships, wide accolades and multiple national coaching honors - as a result of the elite-level success his teams have experienced in his time as a head coach in the collegiate ranks.
In this highly informative video, Thomas offers a look inside some of the practice drills, teaching strategies and innovative set plays that have launched his team to the top. This video provides on-court breakdowns and the necessary essentials for teaching his transition and secondary offense, known as the "Push Break," complete with pre-practice drills, build-up drills and installation drill components for teaching it, as well as quick-strike set-play options that keeps the defense on their heels and guessing.
Pre-Practice Drills: Setting The Table For Success
Thomas begins with pre practice drills to build energy and teach essential communication skills between players, which are both critical to successfully execute the offensive concepts covered in this video. After setting the tone for the day with strong pre practice work, he moves on to "Box-X," which kicks off a strong section of daily drills that should be utilized to reinforce strong communication while providing plenty of repetitions to build good, fundamental passing skills.
With the next set of drills, Thomas introduces the "Nova Drill" that features a focus on player cutting and communicating while in full court situations, which is a natural lead into his highly successful "Push" transition offense and secondary break.
The segment finishes with a strong "Ladder Drill" designed to work on individual shooting and challenging each player to hit shots under pressure, while emphasizing support from teammates, which builds an atmosphere of camaraderie amongst players
Dummy Offense (4-on-0, 5-on-0), "Push" Transition & Secondary Break
Thomas illustrates the importance of teaching these offensive concepts in component parts by utilizing a dummy offense portion of practice with drills in 4-on-0 and 5-on-0 situations, which create plenty of repetitions for shooting and emphasizes the importance of being efficient with every possession.
After laying down a solid foundation, Thomas concludes with what he believes is his game-changing identity as a coach - the "Push Break." Pointing out the mandatory need for a team to play great defense so that it can put itself into good transition situations, the coach provides step-by-step elements of his transition break and gives options for effective paint touches, which culminate in high-percentage shots. Emphasizing the need for proper cutting technique to get open and create space, each subsequent drill Thomas introduces builds his "Push Break" toward its final form and takes it to another level.
From start-to-finish, in this highly valuable video, Delano Thomas offers a complete breakdown and step-by-step process for teaching and incorporating a strong transition offense into your team's offensive attack.
75 minutes. 2022.