Jaydon C.

I started my journey in coaching in 2018, I was helping coach with my titi who was the head coach of Lake Placid Middle School Girls basketball team at the time. I was mainly on the side while she did the actual coaching but I watched her every second on the court. I studied her every aspect of coaching and every game I took mental notes of everything she did or reacted too. After the season ended, I began my journey in voluntary coaching at a First Presbyterian Church in town. They ran a basketball youth league and I helped coach all ages. From elementary to middle school to high school, I coached every age that I could. When the school year started back again, I became the assistant coach of the Lake Placid Middle School girls basketball team. I held this position for a year, and it was an incredible experience. The relationships I built with the players and their growth from the training throughout the seasons were incredible. From there I was moved up to an assistant coach/trainer for the Lake Placid High School basketball program. I was familiar with working with high schoolers from the youth league but the actual experience was different. The practices were more intense and challenging. I had to heighten my own trainings to match them. I was an assistant coach in this program for 2 years. My work with the athletes did not go unnoticed because I got selected to be the head coach of Lake Placid Middle School in 2022. Being an actual head coach was so challenging that at times I questioned if I can actually do it. It was a triumphant experience. I chose my own staff of coaches & trainers that I worked with before. The team I chose was full of determined young men who gave me the upmost respect. I gave them everything I had as a coach and elevated their game to the best of my ability. We ended up going 4-6 at the end of the season. I also have coaching certificates.

I started playing basketball in the 6th grade. I didn’t make the time in 7th grade but I didn’t stop after that. I worked hard and made the time in my 8th grade year. I was Combo Guard/Wing. I didn’t start the first couple of games so I practiced hard and eventually made the starting lineup in our 5th game of the year. We ended up going 5-5 for the season. Me and my brother won best sportsmanship award. My 9th grade year I took a year away from basketball. In 10th grade, I made my return and I got offered to play Varsity as a sophomore but I turned down the offer. I went to JV and became the starting PG. I was new to the PG position but I adapted to it quickly. My coach trusted me to position the team and be a leader on the court. We were the best JV team ever, we ended the season with a 16-2 season record. We went on a 14 game straight winning streak. My Junior and Senior year I played Varsity. I moved back to the Combo Guard for those years.My Junior Year we had a solid season but my Senior year we struggled. I started both years. My Senior Year I won MVP & Offensive Player of the Year. I also was name our 5A Division Player of the Year. I averaged 18.0 point per game in my entire high school career and I even hit 8 threes in a game. I graduated and took a year off from school. In 2020, I got a scholarship from Lake Houston College in Houston, Texas. It was a JUCCO program. I haven’t gotten to play professional basketball yet in my career.

Creating and running effective workout sessions is arguably the most important role you have as a basketball trainer. Too many trainers go into these sessions without a plan and end up spending a lot of time working out what to do next or running drills that aren’t a good fit for the player. This is how I will run my sessions…. For the first 5-Minutes of each session, I will speak with the player(s) and then allow them to warm up. I highly recommend being on time so talk and warm up can be done before the session is to officially start. It is important to make the most of the limited court time we have so I will sometimes suggest that the we warm-up outside or next to the court. Next we will go into the skill development part of the session. Skill developing will be 50% of the sessions (not including warm up and breaks). Skill development is the most important part of a session and therefore has the largest amount of time dedicated to it. This includes drills that work on specific skills like shooting, passing, dribbling, defense,
rebounding, etc. The time spent on each drill can be quite short, just depends on practice time and the type of drill. If the player is new to the drill, you may have to spend a few extra minutes explaining and walking through it until the player understands. Once they do, the next time the drill is used in the session, the transitions from drill-to-drill will be much faster. Next we will get into strategy/game-planning. Strategy will be 25% of practice (not including warm up and breaks).
Developing basketball skills is far more important if you want to help your players achieve long-term success, strategy will help get them ready for different offensive/defensive gameplays and situations they will face in their respective seasons. We will finish the sessions out with small sided games. Games will be 25% of practice (not including warm up and breaks). Games with specific rules are a great way to get the players
competing and practicing the skills they’ve been working on during the sessions. Instead of scrimmages, most of the time spent on ‘games’ will involve competing in drills that have specific rules players must follow. Drink breaks will also be held within in the sessions. Players will get a quick drink and make 2 free throws. They will shoot before hydrating so they can work on shooting while fatigued.