BuzzerBeater Forums

1) You answered your own question with #2. I do want to have my players drive to the basket.

2) Yes, I am aware of that which is why I would train it on a SG/SF like I mentioned. If you are running Look Inside for example it would be quite useful. Even necessary. But for most tactics I would prefer a pure SG. That includes Low Post.

3) That is an extreme example, but purely hypothetically if the player in question were a SG - yes. If he were a PG he couldn't have that combination of skills and have much passing so his driving would increase as I trained it. I have recently sold a PG, by the way who was good at driving but bad in IS. He couldn't drive to the basket successfully, so it probably takes both to do well.

It doe's take a different philosophy to train NT players.

1) More single position training.

2) No regard for salary.

3) Training skills which will help NT team more as oppose to concentrating on your own team needs.

4) Maintaining game shape even when it is not beneficial to your schedule. Say you have 3 tough games and the next week is easy. You want to start your best player in all three and don't need him to be in top shape for next week.

I am pretty sure I have mastered nothing, but I am not sure why you would think that you have. Most of the stuff I talk about came from more experienced (and successful) players then you or me. Some of it I was able to confirm with my own experience, and some I am yet to experience, but one thing I can do for myself is basic math. And I have decided that I want to have the most bang for my buck at every position. That means no unnecessary skills. In my view excessive driving for SG is unnecessary since they won't be able to use it to it's fullest anyways because of the lack of IS. I try to avoid such tactics were guards end up driving to the basket. Look inside for example. Also I am at a bit of a loss how you came to the conclusion that I advocate handling training to the degree in question #3. That time is much better spent training OD. The only way you could get that big a spread between the two skills is if you went completely crazy on handling training, and you know as well as I do that that's is just not smart.

even with IS they don't use it much, and i doN't think that those skills are highly related ;)

Driving as a training isn't bad(lots of secondary up, who are all more usefull then driving), but nothing you have to do.

Well, that is exactly my point, though. The secondary ups are in handling and JS. Since when has it been a problem to train those on a guard directly. There is no need to get creative here. A more direct approach is more appropriate. Plus JS and handling training give more useful secondary pops of their own. At least with forwards one on one you get some pops in IS as well. I mean why would anyone want to use their left hand to scratch their right ear?

i like two position 1 on 1 more then Hndling for two position, and some weeks even a single position trainer goes two position ... In the most of them that should be JS, but it isn't wasted time in my eyes, even when it isn't really necessary.

Are you talking about one on one for guards or forwards. And the point I was making wasn't so much that it was a waste of time as much as it wasn't necessary, while adding salary to a skill that won't be as useful as if that money was spent on a more useful skill, like OD. I guess in the past driving was more important, but from what I have read combined with my own experience, with the new engine game flow is more important now. And OD is the #1 skill for guards in my opinion anyways cost effectiveness wise.

i don't think that it was in the past more important, and the salary impact is very very small. I talk about both training, te forward trainign don't give that much extra up, at least in my experience hthe JS up take longer and IS comes pretty rare.

It's smaller for SG, but it's more for PG. Here is an example. I got this guy cheap a few days ago and will give him training.


Weekly salary: $ 3 688

DMI: 7300
Age: 18
Height: 6'1" / 185 cm
Potential: allstar
Game Shape: average
Jump Shot: respectable Jump Range: pitiful
Outside Def.: average Handling: awful
Driving: inept Passing: respectable
Inside Shot: respectable Inside Def.: inept
Rebounding: average Shot Blocking: atrocious
Stamina: atrocious Free Throw: atrocious

Experience: atrocious

The main thing I will train for him will be OD along with some JS and passing. If I train one on one I feel like he will cap before he gets all the training I have planned for him. I don't want to exchange an extra pop or two in driving for a pop in OD since it is more important.

I am curious -- what do you see as this player's skill set when you have finished? and what time frame do you see needing to reach these planned skill levels?

I am about to start training passing and OD on my main trainees. I had a spot open, and got this guy. He will be a defensive minded backup PG early. If I choose to keep him, he will be a starter later on. Time will show how he ends up, but he will have enough passing and JS to get by and lots of OD. I will probably give him some handling training late to round him of.

P.S. Time wise I don't know maybe 4-6 seasons depending on how much or how little one position training I choose to do.

Last edited by Batman at 1/4/2010 4:30:18 PM

I've trained the USA U21's #1 Guard and my focus has been mostly on One-on-One with Pressure, Passing and Outside shooting worked in as well. I find the value of the Driving to be quite high, as well as the number of JS pops that come from One-on-One training. As for training Jump Shot, I've found it to be much less beneficial for my team to train it than the One-on-One. As a result, his skills have become pretty impressive and well-rounded. I've rarely trained jump shot, and yet his JS is already prodigious and he's still 21 with some more pops yet to come. The bonus of the One-on-One training is that it allows you to get 6 men to improve every week. It's rare that I don't get a pop in one of the skills

Last week's One-on-One training result: (I've been told to hide his full stats...)
Jump Shot: prodigious ↑
Driving: marvelous ↑

I picked up this guy (6'1", Hall-of-Fame potential, 18 years old at draft day) with the 16th pick in my draft, and I've built him up to that level in just 3 seasons. I figure he has 2 more seasons of development before he's peaked, so if that's the case, he'll be wondrous all around with legendary shooting.

I actually find the least effective of all the guard training to be Handling, it really serves no purpose because you can get the pretty much the same pops with One-on-One. Outside shooting, passing and pressure are also less effective because they focus pretty much on a single skill, but they are important, so I try to sandwich them with One-on-One weeks. The other benefit of One-on-One is the fact that you can train a forward or two without throwing games, which is what you'd do if you tried to train a forward to improve his range, outside D or passing.

Last edited by 420Monta at 1/4/2010 10:32:23 PM

I think you just made my point perfectly. First of all a bit of a disclaimer: your guy is a HFer, so that changes your options a bit. But more importantly your guy is going to end up with twice the salary and less OD than my guy. I don't think I would want a point guard that expansive, but for NT I am sure he would work out just fine. It's about prioritizing for me. And I don't plan on doing much handling training, ether. Just a bit at the end if I feel it's necessary. This is exactly what I meant when I sad that NT players require a different training philosophy than if you are building a player that will best suit your team. NT teams don't have budgets.