Three Ideas Newsletter 7.8.25
Three Ideas Newsletter
A Newsletter by Jim Stone
7/8/25
Hello, everyone! I’ve been watching the FIVB U-19 World Championships, currently taking place in Croatia. The USA is doing some very good things and competing very well. Sometimes, fans don’t realize the jump the USA players need to make, given their limited practice opportunities. When I coached the team at past world championships, there were two items that I knew were going to be challenging to our players. First, the quality of serving internationally is much superior to what these players face at the high school or club level. So the ability to adjust court positions and manage high-velocity serves was essential. Second, the consistent size of the blockers mandates adjustments by the USA outside attackers. Shots that were successful in club volleyball may not score internationally, so learning to diversify the attack is essential.
I recall when we took second at the world championships, in our first match, we were served off the court by Slovenia. Our players adjusted and finished the tournament strong. Although the USA has lost two matches in pool play, they have competed well and have a good chance of medaling. I’m wishing the USA the best in their upcoming matches!!
~Jim
Quote for the Week: “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” ~Maya Angelou
Three Ideas For This Week
Idea #1 – Meaningful Analytics – Statistics should measure what’s important, and what’s important may change as the season unfolds. We tend to get locked into a statistical format that assigns a number or value to the result of a pass, hit, or serve. There’s nothing wrong with that, but early in the season, perhaps the result isn’t as important as the process. In early practices, should we value good execution over good results? For example, prioritize taking a good approach over what happened during the attack. Or, evaluate my serve based on having no spin, flat trajectory, and good velocity, instead of evaluating the serve based on the quality of the pass. Consider attaching a percent value for good execution (“we took good transition approaches 60% of the time, let’s get that up to 80%”). Early in the season, encourage players to execute skills correctly without fear of making mistakes. As the season progresses, focus more on the result.
Idea #2 – First Practices – With the high school season approaching, coaches begin to organize their first training sessions. It is common for coaches to plan numerous progressive drills that break down specific skills or areas of the game. Perhaps consider a different approach. Instead of breaking the game down, consider playing a lot of focused 6v6 games. Focus activities are designed to allow you to observe specific areas of the game. For example, all serves need to be received by the libero (evaluate serve accuracy and consistency, as well as libero passing); then, all first sets must be directed to the left-side attacker (evaluate setting consistency, attacking efficiency, and defense against left-side attacks). Organizing your first practices in this manner will enable you to assess your strengths and identify areas for improvement. The subsequent practices can be more focused on addressing both areas (making your strengths stronger or addressing specific weaknesses).
Idea #3 – Ball, Setter, Ball, Hitter? – Many coaches use this phrase as a teaching tool for the eye sequence for blockers. No problem. Your eyes only focus on one thing at a time. The concept of teaching what you want the eyes to focus on sequentially is truly awesome. However, for younger players who are shorter in stature, the most important aspect of being an effective blocker is positioning the block correctly and jumping vertically to maximum height. An experiment you might try (remember, I’m a fan of small experiments!) is to keep the visual focus on the ball longer and tell your blockers to reach over the net and put their hands on the ball. By watching the ball for a longer duration, you might positively impact the positioning of the block. The hitter will end up where the ball is, so if I can put my hands on the ball, I’m probably in a good blocking position. So, the eye sequence might be modified to “ball, setter, ball, ball, ball, hitter. Give it a try!
Video of the Week: In this archive video, Sarah Drury Petkovic takes the ladies of KIVA through a passing progression. VIDEO
Current Blog Post – Many coaches will have team bonding activities at the start of the season. In this post, we look at the differences between team bonding, team building and team culture. There are significant differences between them, but all can play a part in a championship program. READ MORE
Archive Blog Posting: Moneyball vs. Betterball. We are inundated with statistical information. Volleyball coaches use result-oriented statistics to evaluate players. Did you serve an ace or an error? Did you kill the ball or did the defense dig you? In this blog, I discuss how Major League Baseball is using stats to monitor skill development. For example, increasing attack velocity by modifying arm swing mechanics. READ MORE
~Jim
