Recently got into a debate with a coach on using traditional numbered basketball positions for coaching 1 point guard 2 shooting guard etc. What are the benefits? What are the drawbacks? Is that old school? Have we modernized to new language? Should we still use it or not? What does SAVI think?

Summer install of RDS is underway. Our summer schedule is screwed up a little so I have had 5 games and 2 practices. Unfortunately, due to baseball at practice we had to repeat a lot of the transition rolls and explanation so I feel as if I've had 1 practice. First glance of playing games after the transition rolls of Racker and Runner, guys are freed up and starting to understand the pace we want to play at. We have doubled our scoring output from the first game of summer to now. I have only given them the fingers and follow action/ghost if we are neutral. I'm a believer and am excited to continue digging into this. I'm trying not to overwhelm them with stuff so we are just racing at this point! Thanks SAVI

I’m relatively new to SAVI. I coach boys Varsity basketball in Wisconsin for a D4 (will be D5 this year based in enrollment). Last year, I implemented a match up zone defense that worked very well - got better as the season went on. Teams struggled with identifying what we were running - some yelled out man to man and others yelled out zone. I really like the concept of the Lock Left defense. RBUT is a good philosophy. My question is with the limited amount of time I have to install it (in Wisconsin we get less than 2 weeks of practice before our first game and over the summer I have about 1 practice a week excluding one week), how do I go about installing this with the limited time frame I have? I’m concerned it will be overwhelming with new terminology, roles and responsibilities. From a program perspective I feel like it would be beneficial. Another question u have is how early is too early to teach the Lock Left Defense? Is Youth and Middle School too early?

The recording and additional film breakdown are live here! RoadMap: - Week 1: Install Practice Planning - Week 2: Identify Key Improvement Areas - Week 3: In Game Adjustments - Week 4: Common Mistakes and Fixes

Today we kicked off our June focus: LockLeft Defense. 🎥 Get the full recording of today's live training HERE! Whether you’re installing it for the first time or refining it in year three, the reminder was this: 💡 LockLeft is a framework, not a script. It can be run as man, zone, matchup, full court, half court, high pressure, or more packed in. The key identifier is the main objective: ➡️ Force the ball to jail. Here were the biggest topics covered: 🏀 What is LockLeft? - It’s a principle-based defensive system built around shrinking the floor, forcing the ball into the left corner, and disrupting the offense. 👥 Who is it for? - EVERYONE. We have youth teams, high school teams, college teams, and pro examples using LockLeft principles. It looks different depending on age, skill, and personnel. ⏳ How long does it take to install? - A day to learn, and a lifetime to master. 🧭 Transition Roles vs. Half-Court Defense - Wolf, Gap, Snipe, Nail & Wall are transition roles. Once the ball settles in the half court, players defend based on their relationship to the ball. 🚨 Ball-Wall-Danger - If matchups get messy, fall back on the order of operations. 🧱 Rebounding in LockLeft - Yes, you can still crash the offensive glass. How many players you send depends on your personnel, risk tolerance, and ability to communicate in transition. 🎯 Sniping Passes - A big growth area for many teams is committing to hunting passes (especially to the right). Reward deflections and snipes in practice to build that identity. 🟢🔴 Free Corner vs. Jail Corner - In red, we’ll trap aggressively everyone. In green, we usually avoid trapping the free corner and instead work the ball back toward jail. 🚧 Common Early Problem - Many teams either give up right-hand drives or straight-line left-hand drives early in the install. The fix is training proximity and angle, as well as emphasizing that the goal is not just “left” - it’s jail.