Page 6 - Jim Stone Book Beginner

cheese" holes in their abilities and understanding of the game. Like the math student with gaps in
their knowledge set, the volleyball athlete with inefficient movements, skill deficiencies, and limited
knowledge will negatively impact them as they matriculate through the club and collegiate system.
Like the struggling Math student, the volleyball player develops the approach of "I'm not good at
defense." Similar to the struggling math student, there might be the potential to be a good defender.
Why is a talented front row player not able to forearm pass with accuracy when in the backrow?
There are always exceptions, but many of these players can be proficient in the backrow, but they
need coaching to provide repetition, feedback, and knowledge. The player needs to supply the work
ethic to improve their skills.

I was the Head Coach of the USA Youth National Team (ages 15-17) from 2008-2019. I always felt
USA players were as athletic as any of the world's top players. The USA players are tall, strong,
jumped high, and made of steel. These athletes gravitated to the top of the age group pyramid of
players because of their physical talents. However, the technical flaws in their game were, at times,
jaw-dropping. How did they get to this level with such an erratic skillset? These players were passed
on by coaches who took advantage of what they could do on the court without addressing what they
could not do. In particular, I recall one player that possessed phenomenal physical abilities and was
very powerful as a front-row attacker and blocker. Imagine my disappointment when she said that
she had never served nor played the backrow in a match in her entire volleyball career. She was
sixteen years old, had played club and high school volleyball for many years, but had never been
allowed to serve in a game. Her club and high school coaches did her no favors by ignoring her skill
deficiency in the backrow, while focusing upon how many kills she might ring up in the front row.

Set aside the player with considerable talent that has holes in her game. What system is in place to
help the player with average talent but wants to improve? Do we even have a strategy to raise the
level of play at all ages? Instead of examining our teaching methods that facilitate skill improvement,
coaches rely on substitutions to camouflage a problem. For example, in some states, high school
coaches have eighteen substitutions per set at their disposal. Why bother to teach an excellent
attacker to pass or defend in the backrow when the coach can put someone else on the floor that
might be marginally better? I was watching a collegiate game recently, and a Division 1 program had
only one player on the court for six rotations. Instead of developing the all-around highly skilled
player, we take them off the floor. It is disappointing to see coaches putting their best athletes on the
bench for half the game due to poor ball control skills when they are in the backrow. That is
somewhat the equivalent of bringing a substitute into math class to take the exam for somebody that
isn't so good at math.

Players on the Youth National Team improved because there was an urgency to improve. That
urgency was fostered by wanting to make the team and a desire to be competitive at the world
championships. That urgency to improve shouldn't just be at the elite levels. All players need to be in
an environment where improvement is monitored, encouraged, and rewarded.

I believe we can do a better job of teaching the game at every level, but it starts with the young
player who is just beginning the journey. At this age, nobody knows who will grow tall and develop a
love for the game. All coaches, especially those working with the young athlete, must embrace the
importance of building all the skills. Unfortunately, coaches place more of a priority on the
competitive aspect of our game while sacrificing skill development. When coaching a team
consisting of young players, winning a weekend tournament should not be the primary focus. What