November 20, 1944. Mrs. Alice Griffith, The Athletic Journal, 6858 Glenwood Avenue, Chicago, Tllinois. ‘Dear Mrs. Griffith: In my letter of Saturday I failed to make an explanation regarding diagrams. They are very simple ones, and I was wondering if you could not crowd them into a smaller space than is ordinarily given to sizeable diagrams. I made these in pencil so that your artist could make his own. I beg pardon for not mentioning this, and I know when you opened it you wondered what sort of a job we were turning over to you. Won't you write me your re~- action? Sincerely yours, Director of Physical Education, FCA:AH Varsity Basketball Coach. November 18, 1944. Mrs. Alice K. Griffith, The Athletic Journal, 6858 Glenwood Avenue, Chicago, Illinois. Dear Mrs. Griffith: T have finished the article a day or so late, but knowing that you perhaps would not be in the shop Saturday afternoon I intentionally held 4t until I could peruse it more fully and pick out what bugs that I might discover. : \ I have tried to emphasize the teaching of fwmdamentals through com- petitive activity, making a game out of fundamental necessities. You will note that in the diagrams I did not place one offensive man on one guard. I thought that would merely take up space and cost more for you to rum the diagrams. If you feel that such a thing would be necessary, a short state- ment on page 3 just ahead of the last paragraph could be included as follows: "The first fundamental defensive activity is when the offensive man is given the ball back of the free throw circle and in front of the basket and the guard is restrained back of the free throw line until the coach tosses the ball to the offensive man. Then the offensive player may shoot, dribble or execute any offensive play that he wishes. By the same token, the guard is unrestrained after the first pass and may rush the offensive player. Bach member of the team should beoome a guard and an offensive player in their turn." I consider the inclusion of this paragraph unnecessary because that fundamental activity constantly takes place, but seldom do coaches drill two on one, three on two, and so forth. The teaching of this fundamental defensive activity is neglected by most coaches. Therefore, we have fewe versatile defensive men than the game should possess. . You will find this article longer than I had hoped to have it, but when you go into exposition it is always difficult to confine yourself to a few words if you are going to be explicit. _ I will be glad to follow your advice in your letter. When do you want the editorial? I think it has possibilities and I will do the best — I can with it. oie Please feel perfectly free to edit, delete, or add to any part of this rather lengthy article. Very sincerely yours, | Director of Physical Education, POA: AH Varsity Basketball coach. Ence . . | the burden of ‘the guard, the rules committee now permits a pave five personm. fouls instead of four before ejection from the genes : The guard “2 the bipedal watehdog cf the baskets pas en err been said that a good offense is the best defense. It has ‘deen = } expertenes that a sterling defense coupled with a better ‘than average offense ‘esta more ‘often than not defeat a sterling offense possessed of @ hiecanmparians defense. The common conception of team work is that it applies only to dndk cttense. But in reality it operates at its best on the ibaa. This nieoonoep tion ean be attributed to the fact that in the early development of the game the p in possession of the ball were the centers of attraction, and the players 1 in possession drew very little attention. In this ever-changing lnetdoneopt speed gane of bake thal 1 new variations of defense must be improvised. | The Ne enae break has placed new burdens on meen the guards and the ‘officials. The aie te wash wave diftioulss Ne eftioiate. 1% ie alec moh more difficult for a tean to acquire the proper guarding technique. To ease the burden af the guard, the rules committee nee permits a player five personal fouls instead of four vefare ejection from the games ‘Much of the offensive drills are sheer fun oo is the ball handling connected with this fundamental feature. But guarding technique is work, - and hard work. A young player will practice, even alone, goal and free shooting by the hour because it is fun. Sut few players in off moments will ever attempt to practice guarding technique to improve their defensive prowess. All players want possession of the ball so that they oan shoot at the basket. Therefore, « ‘voddblibin ateah OANA din: eeneeth ids Addimmantnd ayitis wherein the guard is glorified. During these practice sessions an opportunity is given the coach to drive hom needful lessons. | 26 A good guard will hound the ball. He should always be found between his opponent andthe basket. ‘This is the first fumdementel that should never be neglected. | ; | A wily guard will never let the opposition slip in behind him. He will play the bell and not the man. A orafty guard always imows how to use his weight to utente without fouling. All prospective guards should take boxing lessons. ‘The boxing ‘Malls develop finished guarding technique. The guard should always be on top of the ball and when he cannot get it he should cover his opponent. The boy who spends the greater part “ his childhood romping with a playful dog may becom in his college years a star ‘pasketball guard, Por he has learned from the scrinal, certain ine movenen'a which will aid " in diagnosing the fundamental movenents of Wks oppos his future basketball career. By Secwutiia how to neet these instinctive hay and bound s of his early animal compenion, the Sathii tive guard will in veri , competition be more able to divine the next moveremths of his basketball ‘opponent. Some coaches dsaribe this wmoanny sense of the guard as the sixth sense. truly it is an instinctive veintiun which is sevetqnet 0 & high degree. these | instinctive reactions must be stronger in the guard then in his. opponents, or he will not succeed. — | A versatile aiid outthinks his opponent and beats him to sent tdeds play A ‘waibabaiell guard knows his areas 80 well that he may intentionally leave ‘ : position appareritly ‘unguarded for the purpose of drawing his opponent into a trap. By having perfeot confidence in his.own strength and agility, the guard will feign a certain inertia or lassitude to encourage his opponent to ne a shot in supposedly uncovered territory. | Much after the manner of a cat lying near a rat hole watching for the escape of the rodent does the guard torment his opponent. The cat, thoroughly relaxed and at a distance from the hole, will encourage the rat to attempt an Se eseape. Being asvnentaeind possessed with a confidence in her own power, the eat will leap upon her pray and, exterminate ite 80 should the basketball guard know hos own physical powers and the territory ‘ah he can sucessfully control. Such @ guard will have poise and power and confidence and @ contagious enthusiasm that bodes i111 for an opponent who attempts an offensive thrust into his territory. A versatile and aggressive guard will canbine all the qualities of leadership ab his command to ward off the offensive thrusts of two opponents. Only when out- numbered in manpower is the guard in ‘danger. A highly successful coach uses neither a straight seieitionomens nor a strietly gone defense. He uses a combination of both beeause a straight mnefor-man has its wealmesses, but not as many woalnesses as @ gone, and e straight sone ane wealnesses that are easily evereune. But a manefor-man defense with the zone principle will pay ‘splendid dividends. , \ When a single, guard is forced to play two offensive men he learns to play the principle of the zone defense, wyet he plays the man with the ball and also keeps & weather eye for the other potential scorer. I prefer to toon my defensive fundementals through iimettAtin. We ms \ - i giese ties guard. sever feet in under and in front of the basket. Gy nds ‘Wins \ any olose drives to ‘the basket and at the same tine harass his opponents should they attenpt ‘é shoot. ay 3 The two cttonsiv men in Diagram ‘l are to locate themselves in any fone able position they prefer before the ball is toused to one of them by the oash. They are