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THE GROWTH MINDSET

A Newsletter for Coaches

Date: September 24th, 2022 Vol: #1 Issue: 32

Creating a comprehensive season plan using tactical periodization.

Creating a season plan is a really important step in preparation for a busy season.

My season plan is comprehensive and includes tactical plans, skill goals, fitness, team culture, and mental performance plans. Over the last few seasons I have really leaned in on creating an effective season plan and it has really helped guide what we do from week to week. It makes my weekly and daily practice planning much more effective and efficient.

I have really embraced the concept of Tactical Periodizaion to build my season plan.

Several years ago I read Brian McCormick’s book 21st Century Basketball Practice (which I highly recommend). In the book, he discusses a concept of season planning called tactical periodization which has been utilized in European soccer by managers like Pep Guardiola & Jose Mourhino. Eddie Jones also brought the strategy into Rugby during his tenure with Australia & England. I believe it is a matter of time before it crosses over into all other invasion sports.

After reading McCormick’s book I started to explore tactical periodization and saw how perfectly it aligned with the sport of basketball.

Here is a great video that provides an excellent overview of tactical periodization.

Overview of the Tactical Periodization for Basketball

In tactical periodization, everything done in practice is built around the four phases of the game.

All drills from skill development to tactical training to physical preparation should directly relate to the four phases of the game. The four phases are similar in all invasion sports. Defensive Transition, Defense (half-court D in basketball), Offensive Transition (Fast break) & Offense (half-court O). All of this is outlined in a detailed game model which is the starting point of the plan.

There is also a focus on the physical build-up and practice intensity should be aligned with the competition schedule. The goal of this when applied to my basketball season is not peaks and valleys like a traditional periodization schedule but my team playing their best in March when the games matter the most.

Creating the Game Model

The first step is to outline how I want my team t handle the four phases of the game in great detail. For instance, in the Offensive transition section, outline the fast break I want to run. What triggers a fast break & the desired shot, also what signals that the possession has moved into the half-court offense? What is the desired shot I want my team to create? The game model is the most important part of the plan as everything flows from it.

Tactical plans

When preparing my season plan I take a look at our competition schedule and ensure that we are installing the systems included in the game model throughout the season and allow for plenty of time for my team to master their execution prior to games that really matter in March. At the same time, I want to avoid overloading athletes and allow them to practice and understand our plays and systems. Some years (like last season) I have to alter what I hope to install over the course of the year to accommodate the pace at which we are learning.

Skill Development Schedule

I also want to map out the progressions and targets from a skill development standpoint. The important factor is that all of the skills should directly relate to four areas of the game model. What are the skills that are required for our game model to be successful? All of our skill development should be directly related to the areas of the game model that require work. For my team this year this will involve a lot of shooting. Mondays are an easier day from a physical and cognitive standpoint so we will shoot A LOT.

Weekly practice schedule

The weekly practice template is also based around our competition schedule.

Generally, my team plays Friday & Saturday every week. So we follow a similar structure in terms of the physical demands of practice. Sundays are our off day, Mondays are an active recovery day, so we do not engage in much full court work. Tuesday and Wednesday are heavy days and Thursday is a lighter day as we prepare for competition on the weekend. The intensity level also includes paying attention to cognitive demands. On Monday athletes are going to be tired and their ability to learn may not be as high so I tend to avoid installing new things on Mondays.

Here is a sample training schedule from a pro soccer team in Europe.

We adjust this schedule on weeks when we play a game midweek.

Daily Practice

In a tactical periodization system practice should reflect games.

Practices should be similar in length to an actual game. For my team, this means that our dynamic & active warmup practice is usually around 100 minutes. As much of the activity as possible is competitive and directly related to the game model. We use a lot of decision-making drills and small-sided games. The philosophy of tactical periodization believes that the best way to prepare to play the game is to play the game. We try to make our skill development as game-like as possible.

We want to ensure that we are touching on the four phases of the game every day.

Team Culture & Mental Skills

Tactical Periodization is a holistic model. It focuses on the whole athlete.

A large part of that is learning skills off the court that will impact how my athletes are able to execute the four phases of the game. I spend considerable time on how to incorporate mental performance skills. We schedule two classroom sessions a week one that is focused on building team culture and one centered on mental performance skills. I also take time to explore the impact of sleep and nutrition.

I also make sure that the lessons we are learning in the classroom are connected to what we are doing on the floor.

Benefits of using Tactical Periodization

I have used tactical periodization for four seasons and I have seen similar benefits each season.

1.) Fewer injuries- fewer soft tissue injuries & fewer ankle sprains (this might be a fluke, and yes I knocked on wood just in case).

2.) Teams that play our best in March- Under my old plan we had peaks and valleys in the season. Now it feels more like a steady climb toward March.

3.)More efficient practices- We waste less time and everything is geared towards the way we want to play.

4.) Clearer understanding of the why - A transition drill mirrors our transition offense & defense and is not just a random 3-on-2.I will send out the documents I use to plan our season. Use them as you see fit.

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Here is a copy of the documents I use to plan my season

​Tactical Periodization Planning Documents.pdf​

A great book on tactical periodization.

This book is geared toward soccer but the content is transferable to any invasion sport.

Tactical Periodization- A proven successful training model. by Juan Luis Delgado Bordonau & Jose Alberto Mendez VillanuevaThis is an excellent examination of all aspects of Tactical Periodization. It is written specifically for Soccer coaches but it contains a great deal of information that is transferable to basketball.

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