Hype, Rip-offs and Basketball Development

Last week, I wrote about some guy using hype to market a basketball development program that would make you better in 60 seconds.

I have worked for three years to create the best possible online basketball training program, but I refuse to market with hype and ridiculous claims. In fact, on my blog, I wrote:

I personally guarantee that Train for Hoops will NOT make you a better player in 60 seconds. Further, I guarantee that to get 10x better at anything will take weeks, months or even years, not 60 seconds.

I believe in effort and hard work. I believe that every great player works hard, despite the public's perception, which is why I highlight articles about players like LeBron James that highlight their effort in the off-season to improve. Nobody becomes a great player through some gimmicky online program.

Train for Hoops is not a gimmick or a cure-all. It is a long term development program. It is individualized and progressive. Every time that you give the program feedback, the program becomes more and more individualized for your skill level. As you show improvement, the program grows more intense and adds more difficult drills or skills.

There is nothing flashy. No hype. It is the exact program that I use with clients who have gone on to Division I scholarships, McDonald's All-Americans and professional careers. But, it will not make you better overnight. You have to do the work. The program is a guide, like any teacher, but the player has to do the work to improve.

Today, a friend forwarded me another mega-hype marketing program. This one, however, is funny because the producer of this program asked me to be a part of his program. So, I can explain the program.

A guy who I have never heard of or never met emails me. He tells me that he has collected the 12 best trainers in the country. He name-drops a couple and I have never heard of them. Now, I don't know every trainer in the country, but I spend a lot of time talking to trainers and I know trainers who train players like Maya Moore, A.J. Price, Jermaine O'Neal, Jacki Gemelos, Vikki Baugh, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Martin and others, so I know some decent trainers. Deciding on the best 12 trainers is purely one person's opinion anyway, so I suppose it was meant to make me feel honored to be part of such a highly acclaimed group.

His pitch was that I write a chapter for his book on any subject that I want. In exchange, I would get a link and percentage of sales from the link. This is a common online marketing tool. He is not the first person to ask me to be a part of such a program.

I declined. I have my own projects. I value my time too much to invest time in someone else's money-making scheme. And, frankly, I hate these get rich quick schemes that make promises that they cannot fulfill.

He claims that by reading his book:

You are about to discover how you can effortlessly transform yourself from a basketball outcast to a bluechip baller.

Nobody gets good without effort. I will say it again. At Train for Hoops, I guarantee that you will not effortlessly improve. I guarantee that to become a better player, you will have to work hard over a period of months and years to achieve your goals.

Look, when kids that I train complain about a drill being too hard, I simply say "If it was easy, everyone would do it" and "Practice in proportion to your aspirations." If you want to be great, you have to have great practice habits, which includes concentration, not just time. If these hyped, gimmicky programs worked, every player would use them and nobody would have to practice or break a sweat.

He claims:

The only reason why your hoop dreams have failed you in the past is because you did not have the exact success blueprint found in the XYZ System.

Look, there are many ways to improve and many different types of players and body types. But, the one consistency is that people who are successful work very hard to be successful. Any program that promises quick results or guarantees overnight improvement is just marketing and hype.