EP137: Q&A with Alex Sarama (Part 2)

In this episode, Alex Sarama continues the Q&A workshop with coaches, diving deeper into how practice design, constraints, and teaching methods can drive player development. The conversation highlights how to balance principles with in-game adjustments, why autonomy and accountability matter, and how conceptual offense evolves through experimentation.

Chapters:
01:00 – Shifting the lens in practice: solving problems, not filling time
03:00 – Using players to officiate constraints and build accountability
05:00 – Balancing long-term principles with short-term game adjustments
07:00 – Observing player transfer: triggers, spacing, and early progress
09:00 – Evaluating the role and efficiency of DHOs in youth basketball
12:00 – Why uphill DHOs and retriggers can be more effective than perimeter ones
14:00 – Teaching solos, posts, and exploiting mismatches (turtle vs. mouse)
16:00 – Managing feedback, intentionality, and when to add detail
19:00 – The three stages of skill acquisition: coordination, flexibility, optimization
21:00 – Conceptual offense in practice: mixing structure with freedom

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