I wanted to share a thought from our 25/26 team running Drive and Space: We were limited to one true Racker last year. Our #2 Racker was by far our best shooter, but we asked him to serve as a Racker. He struggled to create advantage, but our hands were tied. Late in the year, we moved our #2 Racker to a Runner / Lock. We decided to lean heavier on our #1 Racker. Eventually, we created a trigger to help our #1 Racker with our best shooter now moved to a Runner / Lock. Our best shooter's position on the floor dictated our action out of Rose. 1. #1 Racker in the strongside slot, best shooter in the weakside corner - Rose Series Trigger: Slice 2. #1 Racker in the strongside slot, best shooter in strongside corner - Rose Series Trigger: Fan We had other ways to create advantage, but I wanted to share this as something we had success with in creating advantage with one true Racker. At a small school, we can go through years in which our personnel shifts significantly. For us, it was a challenging experience that helped improve how we allocate roles moving forward. Hopefully this helps someone in the community.

@Mike Carlson is joining SAVI as our Director of Player Development. This is huge. As you know, we're committed to revolutionizing the way the game is taught and played. A NEW way to teach players how to see, think and play the game! The SAVI way. Here's why this matters. 20 years ago, players didn't have instant access to their own film. They had to trust what a coach told them. Now it's different. Film study is the most revolutionary tool in coaching and player development today — and most coaches and most players are not yet using it well or using it enough. We're going to change that. Want to develop IQ? Film. Want to learn reads? Film.Want to improve your shot? Film. Want to score more points? Film.Want more playing time? Film. Larry Bird said it best: "Film don't lie." Mike has been living this for the last six years — and the results, the pro players he's working with have produced! This is why I asked him to lead Player Development at SAVI. A NEW way to teach players how to see, think and play the game! The SAVI way. In his own words, here's the journey. The Mike Carlson Basketball Journey - in his own words I was never recruited. Didn't score 1,000 points in high school. Cut as a freshman from Division 3 Hope College. Walked on at Truman State (D2), redshirted, and earned a scholarship during the redshirt year. Then a coaching change happened, and the new coach told me to find a new school. Through tears at the thought of losing my scholarship, I told coach to put me through workouts and I'd show him what I could do. A week later, coach apologized and said he wanted me on the team. Three years later we won 21 games (we'd only won 7 when I redshirted), and I was named a Division 2 All-American (2014). I played the next ten years professionally. Won 2 championships (2017, 2022), and helped the clubs I played for exceed their goals — wins, playoff appearances, and one Final Four (2023). The single proudest moment of my career was hitting a game-winning three in my first game in the ACB (Spain's top league). There's a lot of meaning behind that shot — a story for another day.

This month, I want to share a different approach to RDS. Don't worry, everything we've taught still works, and if you're happy with how you're running it, keep going. It's a flavor of RDS for coaches who want more ways to create advantages, especially off the ball. More cutting. More screening. More ball movement. More player movement. But, with all the modern concepts that RDS gives you. The foundation of RDS stays the same. Think Bob Knight and Nate Oats had an offensive child. If you've been looking for ways to create more offense without relying too heavily on drive and kick, I think you're going to enjoy this approach. 🎥 I'll be breaking it down during today's FREE Consulting Call. 🗓️ Today at 5:30 PM CST. See you there. 👇 If you could add one thing to your offense next season, what would it be: more cutting, more screening, better spacing, or something else?

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.

Normally, our weekly consulting calls are for SAVI Basketball members only. But once a month, we open one up to everyone. This week (1/2) is one of those weeks. 🏀 Here's what we'll cover: • A live breakdown of our RDS Offense • How we teach and install it • Live Q&A where you can ask me anything (Practice planning, Offense, Defense, Player development. Culture, Game planning) Bring whatever challenge you're working through, and we'll talk through it together. These live calls have become one of the most valuable parts of our membership because they're driven by coaches' real questions. Looking forward to seeing you there. 📅 Thursday, July 2. 🕠 6:30pm EST 💰 FREE 👇 If you cannot make it live, drop one question you'd like answered. I'll do my best to cover as many as we can live.