Colin W. is OKG - Our Kind of Guy

This week Colin W. made the Halligans Pub half-court shot which earns him a free milkshake. He was also named the player of the game for his summer league team this week, earning him a free slice of pizza at Oreland Pizza. He was ‘outstanding’ in his game and filled up the box score with rebounds, points and assists. Even better, he’s the kind of team player with whom others would want to play.

Colin is a great story. We’ve known him since his days in little league baseball. He struggled with the game.

Things don’t come easy to Colin as they do for his older brother Nate, who runs like a gazelle and shoots like Robert Horry. In fact, Colin didn’t make any of our three 6th grade AAU teams this spring, and yet he attended all 30 team workouts as a ‘practice player.’

Colin is a great listener and is highly coachable. He listens intently. He wants to be coached and takes the lessons and drills home with him.

“He shoots and works on his moves every day,” his parents proudly shared.

We love coaching Colin. At Next Play, he is what we call OKG - “our kind of guy.”

There’s no doubt that he’s Joe Halligan’s kind of guy as well and I hope he enjoys his free milkshake at Halligans.

He deserves it!

What are we doing?

Last weekend, many of our teams played in one of the many spring AAU tournaments.  This one was different.  This one was at SpookyNook Sports, “the largest indoor sports complex” located in Lancaster County, PA and the third grade team was especially were excited.

Going into the tournament, this group of 8&9 year old boys expected to play at least three games and have a pool party back at the Next Play house, an Air B&B farmhouse located about 10 minutes away.  Most of the parents had no idea to what to expect.

As one arrives for the first game of the day, one can see a single file line of cars driving slowly to the rear of the massive 700,000 sq ft building. Picture people flocking to see the Iowan Field of Dreams but getting ready to park at Disney World.

This massive facility hosts all kinds of tournaments each and every weekend for all sports, basketball, baseball, soccer, field hockey and more. The rumor has it the owner built the complex with profits of Auntie Anne’s pretzel business.   

In typical fashion, our third grade team again drew the 8:00a game.  Some parents drove out on Saturday morning, and some players like Teddy arrived on Friday.  Teddy had talked about “SpookyNook” for weeks. The boys may have been too excited to play as the frenetic pace caused us a 12 point at the half, an unusual scenario for the boys.

While linked-up in our halftime huddle, (each player connects by grabbing the others shirt or shorts) the Next Play coach calmly reminded the boys work together to trap, to keep their heads up and make the extra pass.  In pretty dramatic fashion, these tenacious boys clawed their way back to win by 11 points, a 23 point turnaround in just 16 minutes with all ten boys contributing.

While it was a lot of fun to be a part of the turnaround, the other team was flummoxed. After using all of his timeouts and watching his players unsuccessfully try and dribble through our press, their coach began screaming “What are we doing?” The question didn’t help his team but it did make us think.

We were playing the Next Play way, team ball, with a focus not on the past, but on the Next Play.  As coaches we were challenging a bunch this group of nine 3rd graders and one 2nd grader (who prefers to take jump shots instead of layups in transition) to play better competition and test our metal. These boys were forced to not focus on the score, but the Next Play.

While this was the only game that they won, it wasn’t the only thing that they won. They boys made improvements throughout the games and. 

The boys celebrated the victory back at old farm house on Saturday afternoon. In fact, all of the teams were invited back to the farmhouse to hang out and get to know one another. We even celebrated a few birthdays with birthday cake thanks to multi-talented Coach Meg! The third grade team, they took partying and having fun to another level.  They partied until the cows came home. 

To answer the question, what are we doing at Next Play?  We’re creating great memories.

Hey Doc: My team’s on the floor

Borrowing a line from Gene Hackman in the movie Hoosiers, “My team’s on the floor” when Hackman played with just four players, our 5th grade AAU team played with just four players yesterday. It was Mother’s Day, and many players had conflicts with other sports.

The pre-game speech was brief. “Play to win, expect to win, play as a team.” The boys won the tip, made the first bucket, and never gave up the lead. What we preach and teach our players is that it’s not the time of day, who our opponent is, or where we are playing, we play the same way with the Next Play Mentality. The 5th grade team played with the Next Play Mentality yesterday and it was a joy to watch.

The Next Play Mentality is more than just shaking off a miss or not getting too high after a great play. The Next Play Mentality is to attack the entire game. We want to be the aggressors, to play with confidence, and to win or lose the game by playing the right way. You can imagine that we needed to play great team basketball being down a player on both ends of the floor. “Help defense” was a must on every play. All players needed to box out in order to give us the best chance of securing rebounds. Many times our defense looked like a 5v4 defensive drill that included “Gap defense and help and recover.” While the boys made mistakes, they battled and willed themselves to victory. As we add up all the games of a spring AAU season, this game will go down as a highlight for sure. As I told the boys, Next Play is undefeated when we only have four players available.

After the game, I bet these boys and others sat through a lackluster performance by the Philadelphia 76ers in a win or go home Game 7 game vs the Boston Celtics. For whatever their reasons, it sure didn’t look like Joel and James were huffing and puffing, clawing their way to victory. I thought of those four boys who finished the game red faced and gassed after a seemingly meaningless Sunday afternoon consolation game. As coaches, to see your players who are being paid handsomely to play a game not give full effort must have been tough to watch. Unfortunately, those players get paid whether they win or lose, and whether they try hard or not.

I’d rather watch 5th grader Next Players overcome obstacles and find a way to win. Vince Lombardi’s famous quote reads, “Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is.” Maybe a few of the remaining rostered Sixers players need to enroll in Next Play Summer Camps to develop the Next Play Mentality.

The ​​Next Play Mentality Abroad

New Place. New Knowledge.

Next Play is more than just words for me. I have embraced it in my life, and my wife, parents and players can all attest. This phrase and more importantly, mentality, helps to keep me present and focused on what I have control over. 

Some examples of this mentality have been paramount in making my trip abroad both possible & enjoyable.

First off, Coach Meg and I were set to leave from Newark airport on Christmas Night. Around 11pm on Christmas Eve we began to check-in for our flight. Meg’s check-in went smoothly, but my confirmation code was not working and we finally got United Airlines on the phone. I was told that my seat was never ticketed, so I had NO seat for the flight.

By now it was 1am on Christmas morning. Meg was flying to Frankfurt, Germany at

9pm and I had NO flight! Ultimately, instead of getting upset I figured a way to get a flight that night to Frankfurt through Zurich, but I would have to fly from JFK, and not with Meg.

Mindset → Positive Outcome

In the end, the roundtrip ticket I booked saved me money compared to the two one-way tickets and although we had to fly separately, we both landed in Frankfurt and could begin the trip as scheduled.

Another time the Next Play Mentality helped me, occurred when I arrived in Alicante, Spain alone, as Meg returned stateside. I left the airport and started looking for the bus. Unfortunately, I narrowly missed the first bus because they changed the name/number of the line, which I only understood once the bus had left.

I got aboard the next bus some 25 minutes later and was on my way to the Airbnb. As I got close to Alicante city center, I received a message that my Airbnb was NOT available and I had NO place to stay. 

I got off at the next stop with NO idea where I would stay. I looked for an Airbnb that was available and affordable. Luckily, I found one and was able to check-in not long after getting off the bus. 

Mindset → Positive Outcome

It turned out to be a newly renovated apartment and the perfect place for me to stay with an awesome host who gave me great recommendations.

At no time did I get worked up about these situations, I took a deep breath and said, “Next Play! Let’s find a way!” This mentality we teach on the court will not only help you be successful on the court but more importantly, in Life!

Coach Ryan

Decision Making

Decision making comes down to two things: experience and vision. Experience tells us what works and what doesn't. For example, if we have the ball on a three on two transition play, we want our players thinking layup.

The best way for us to ensure an open layup is to get past the first defender, make a ball fake, and make a good pass so our slashing teammate can catch and score from the box area (block).

Offensively, we teach our players to have their eyes up so that they can see what options they have with the ball. Most players who lack the ability to dribble with either hand and who have a habit of dribbling with their head down loose the ability to make good decisions because they lack vision.

While most of our players may never have seen the great Magic Johnson run the break, we use Youtube videos of him to teach our players to dribble and see with eyes in the back of their head.

The person who has the ball and is running the fast break must be able to see the players who may be chasing them down, they must be able to "look off" a defender and fake like they are going to pass to them, and then ultimately see where the second defender is leaning to make the appropriate pass.

The 3v2, 2v1 is a staple drill that we use with our AAU teams, Summer Camps and Oreland Summer League. We will help each player develop the skills needed to be able to "run the fast break," develop confidence, and make better decisions with the ball.

We look forward to working with your son or daughter this summer.

Check out our offerings at www.nextplaybasketball.com

Winning Plays

At Next Play Basketball, we don’t shy away from communicating with our players about winning. We pride ourselves on playing the right way and teaching them how to win and reinforce what it takes to win. To us, winning means being a great sport to one’s opponent and teammates. If one of our players doesn’t show sportsmanship, they are removed from the game and are reminded of the contract they signed. Winning is not just wins and losses. Winning plays for us means attitude, talking on defense, making the extra pass, or simply encouraging a teammate with two simple words “Next Play!”

Sometimes a team can win without winning the game. When teammates claw back into a game and overcoming a deficit or competing against more talented or experienced team, we celebrate those wins just the same. Last fall, our 7th grade girls team played a much better team but battled relentlessly and lost by only a few buckets. We played the right way, connected and did our best. Creating panic for the opponent, or watch them tighten up on their shots under pressure while our team is playing loose and having fun is one of the greatest feelings to have as a coach. 15 seed and upset darling St. Peter’s players and coaches understands this all too well.

Last night, North Carolina came up short because they didn’t make enough winning plays on the court. But those kids showed resilience and toughness, qualities that we instill in our players. Two Tar Heel key starters played on badly twisted ankles and visibly played through pain while another threw up on the court during the second half of the game.

The Next Play program entered 12 teams into local tournaments this past weekend and won 3 championships. Winning games and tournaments sure feels good for a little while, and like a new toy, the feeling wears off quickly. Our mission is to develop players to play with confidence while being great teammates and leaders. We want our players supporting one another and learning lessons that extend far beyond the 94 feet of hardwood.

Already, there are pre-season rankings for next years men’s college basketball teams. Like this years men’s college champion Kansas, the successes are quickly forgotten. This week, our boys and girls are back in the gym developing the Next Play Mentality and we’re looking forward to focusing on winning plays again this week with 9 teams taking to the court for our 2nd tournament weekend.

When there’s a will, there’s Next Play!

Success is a Choice!

When we set out on this new basketball journey to create Next Play Basketball, Ryan and I knew two things:

1)We could create an outstanding environment for kids to develop and grow

2)We wanted to attract great kids.

Enter Dylan and Sean.

I first met Dylan in the Fall when he tried out for our Fall AAU team. He unfortunately did not make the highly competitive team this Fall, but he kept working and earned a spot on our 5th grade boys Winter team.

Masked up, laced up, the boys began to come together as a team, learning how to play as a team and be “all-stars” in the role that they play for us.

Dylan didn’t stand out with his size, athleticism or quickness. He did stand out when I learned how he found out about Next Play. Ryan shared with me, “He’s the one I was telling you about!” Hmm. “The one I train at 7am downtown at the park.” You see, many of the kids in our program have been introduced to Next Play via Ryan’s training business. Again, Ryan is ranked #1 in the state of Pennsylvania, and likely the world.

Dylan’s parents later shared with me that they “are not the private trainer types.” Mom shared, “We told him if he showed his commitment to getting better on his own, that we would find him someone to help him get to the next level and help him grow.”

7am workouts! Kids, are you listening?

Just this morning, I received a text from a six grade parent that also had photos for proof. 5:30am, Next Play baller Sean T was working on his free throws. Sean made our 5th grade team last year and while he was a big baseball player he has developed a love for basketball. Sean has committed himself to improving his game and progressing, as does the level of play with our 6th grade AAU teams.

When I talk about Sean, I say that he’s a kid who makes us better. First by being a great teammate, being coachable, and always giving it his all. Second and more importantly, because of the person that he is, kind, caring and a ball sharer. It’s fun to play with Sean.

Similar to Dylan, neither woke up with exceptional size or natural speed/athleticism. But both understand what it takes to be great, and are developing the skills and daily habits that will make them successful on and off the court.

As Michael Jordan put it, “Some people want it to happen, others wish it would happen, others make it happen.”

What do you choose?

This inspires me to not hit the snooze button.

Written By Coach Matt Paul

Coach Meg & NPB Girls Program

Bobby Dibenedetto, a new parent with the Next Play family and highly successful soccer coach. His daughters had previously played for a local competitor, but he called Coach Meg (McCullough) "the real deal" after just two games last spring.

Coach Meg coached two girls teams last spring, a 5th-6th and an 8th grade team.

For those who don't know AAU basketball, it can be an uncontrollable animal and a beautiful experience at the same time.

There are many boys AAU programs out there, from mom and pop to well oiled sneaker sponsored circuit teams. On the girls side, there are fewer options unfortunately, and good coaching is sparse. Few even know the difference.

Meg’s college coach at the University of Pennsylvania, Mike McLaughlin described Meg as "one of his favorite players of all time." That's high praise from one of the most successful basketball coaches and fastest to reach 400 wins, as he did so in his first 459 games as a Head Coach.

In her second year, Coach Meg will lead and direct the Next Play Basketball Girls program, while also assisting the boys. She led a 5th grade boys team to victory while overcoming a 13 point deficit in the second half.

My daughter Finley, now a 6th grader, got a taste of AAU basketball under the leadership of Coach Meg. Having been around kids and basketball for the past 20 years, I can tell you that Coach Meg has had an incredible impact on my daughter. Finley looked forward to practice and Coach Meg's style was exactly what Finley needed... knowledgeable, kind and caring. In short, Coach Meg helps bring the best out in kids, and especially girls.

I fully trust my own daughter with Coach Meg and would highly recommend any boy or girl to play for her.
Check out Coach Meg and Next Play Basketball as we look to fill roster spots on our middle school girls teams this coming weekend.

Unheralded McCullough leading Penn women's basketball from the point

Written by Coach Matt Paul
Sign up for Tryouts this weekend! www.nextplaybasketball.com/team

“Focus Daniel San”

My son’s name is Richie, and he’s named after my old man. He’s 10 and 1/2.

Richie once spent four hours glued to a brown leather couch watching YouTube videos of fortnight players. He has the ability to focus, for hours.

I missed his team’s 34-32 basketball victory on the road yesterday afternoon. We chatted about the game briefly via text. He shared that he didn’t play well and went 1-6 from the foul line.

Richie’s latest electronic focus is Netflix hit show Kobra Kai. Not made for a 10 year old, but Richie has seen enough adult material on Tick Tok that this is child’s play, sadly. And now I know, Kobra Kai advertises its scenes on Tick Tock. That was a lightbulb moment for me.

As his coach for other sports, I’ve used the line “focus Daniel son” with him and his teammates. They’d always look at me funny, but it very often got them to stop what they were doing. Well, the light bulb finally went off last night when Mr. Miagi showed up as a flashback in Kobra Kai season …. Whatever.

Richie turned to me and said, “Dad, if I lose focus on the foul line, I want you to yell out “Focus Daniel Son!” That made me smile.

I replied, “You don’t need me or Mr Miagi, you need to develop your Next Play Mentality.” Make a shot, focus on the Next Play. Miss a shot, Next Play it.

It’s a life skill that as a 45 year old, I too need friends and family to help me refocus on things that I can’t control or impact about my future and my kids’ future.

For the thoughtful type, the over-thinkers, and the overly sensitive, developing the Next Play Mentality is life changing.

We look forward to helping more kids this spring, and help them to develop and grow both on and off the court.

Written by Coach Matt Paul

Sign-up for Tryout to Join NPB Family

Afraid to Shoot? What are the consequences…

The first time I witnessed this, I was 12 years old, the same age as my daughter. My brother was a starter on the 87-88 Cardinal Dougherty High School basketball team, a team that was fun to watch, had pieces that fit, and was talented.

My brother’s role was to shoot the three, as the new line / three point shot was adopted into the high school game just a year before.

At 6’1 and having average athleticism relative to his teammates and the Catholic league, my brother knew his role and played it well. Until he didn’t.

If he missed his first shot, you could almost bet he would hesitate or pass up his second shot. The horn would sound and my brother would walk to the end of the bench, rather than sit closer to the coach responsible for putting him in the game. My father had a hard time with his choice, but it was his choice.

My brother and I have talked quite a bit over the years as the difference between kids and sports. Why do some play with confidence and some not? He’s right, confidence is the key ingredient for having success in sports. But how do kids develop it?

One of the key tenants of the Next Play Basketball program is to prepare well and play confidently. Shooters shoot, so long as we take good shots. Knowing that distinction takes time.

I’ve said repeatedly that one of the best shooters I’ve played with or against is Tommy Whitworth, a fellow CHA Blue Devils who was a few years behind me in school.

In our weekly game, Tommy would pull the trigger on his three ball from wherever he wanted. He didn’t care who was on his team, (well sometimes I would ice him out and not pass to him if the ball didn’t come back), Tommy believed and likely still believes that he’s the best shooter in the gym.

Over a beer at Halligans Pub, I asked him how he developed that. He said, “When I was younger, my mom would yell ‘Shoot’ so I did.” Notably, all four Whitworth’s were knock down shooters. Pure. Mrs. Whitworth had the formula.

My brother didn’t have that. He had the “if this one goes in and I feel that feeling, I’m gonna let the next one fly.”

You can see it when kids lose their confidence. Head down, reluctant to take shots they would normally take because of this or that reason. It happened to my 10 year old son a few weeks ago.

Richie has more Tommy Whit in him than he does my brother. But in that game, he was scared to miss. His buddy Brian, whispered to him during the game, “keep shooting” but it didn’t change Richie’s behavior.

It was in his head. When fear of failure creeps into one’s head, it’s like staring frozen at the plate with an overpowering fastballer on the mound. Coach McKillop would say, “It is like shooting with two defenders in your face.”

As coaches, we give our players the tools / drills to be successful. We aim to create game scenarios so they don’t have to perform without practice.

But it’s the between the ears thing, the mental confidence and belief that is the key. Mrs Whitworth knew it.

We’re looking for coaches, Mrs Whitworth, are you available?

Written by Coach Matt Paul

Tryouts start on January 22nd. Make sure to sign-up!

Next Play?

After my timeout message about focusing on the next play, I asked the girls to put their hands in. I began, "1-2-3" and in unison the girls belted out, "Next Play!" 

The five 6th grade Next Play Spring AAU team players broke the huddle and walked onto the court.

Julia turned and smiled, "Oh, I get it. It's not just the name of the program." I smiled, too. We had been together for a few months when the light bulb went off for that 12 year old. We want our players to focus on the next thing that is coming at them.

Our Next Play Basketball program is designed to help players develop their confidence, skill, and understanding of the game. We teach and preach Next Play. 

We want the players to stay even keeled on the court when things are going well or when they aren't. Miss a shot, “Next Play!” Turn the ball over, “Next Play!” The players routinely call this out to one another to help the team move forward and focus on what's next.

Sometimes the players get excited when things are going well and celebrate or even over celebrate and And-1! In basketball, the game is fluid and there's a lot of ups and downs. We preach "Next Play."

We want our players to learn how to settle themselves, to "be in the moment" and get ready for the next play!

It's been a lot of fun helping players like Julia develop the mindset that will help her on and off the court! We look forward to our returning players and the new players who are eager to join our family.

Written by Coach Matt Paul

Tryouts for our spring teams start on Jan 22nd!

Big Smooth

7th Grade AAU Basketball…If you haven’t witnessed an AAU Basketball tournament, let me paint you a picture. Teams typically get to play two games on a Saturday, and one Sunday morning. If they have the best record in their bracket, they get to play a game in the afternoon on Sunday. Sometimes, teams want to play in that game, and sometimes the wheels fall off and parents, kids and sometimes coaches wish the Sunday afternoon ends up with a lemonade in hand, and not a meaningless championship.

So, a lot of games get played. And sometimes, and depending upon the team and AAU program, some games can get really sloppy. Our program, Next Play Basketball, prides itself on doing things the right way, preparing properly for every game to build good habits and fundamentals. We pride ourselves on taking every game as it comes to us, and play team basketball with the goal of building upon successes from the previous games and learning from our failures. Each week, each tournament, is like a test.

This past weekend’s test highlights 7th grader Franklin Gilbert, aka Big Smooth, from Doylestown. He misses his first seven shots of the game, and our team is getting down on themselves and losing by double digits with an opponent who is out for blood. It was great theater. If you saw the way Big Smooth shoots the basketball, you’d think the ball was going in every time he shot it.

We called a timeout, made some adjustments. I noticed that Franklin had the opportunity to take his 8th shot, and decided to pass it up, a sign that his confidence was “shook”, a term from the courts meaning he didn’t believe in himself. I reminded Franklin that he was best shooter in the building. I believed it, and wanted him to hear it, and his teammates to hear it as well.

These games go fast, and the pace of the game can be at a torrid pace. His teammates kept finding the Big Smooth, to which the fans in the stands began asking “Why are they leaving that kid open?”

I’m glad they didn’t key on Franklin, as he caught fire like Steph Chicken Curry. The Big Smooth ended up with 20 points, and Next Play Basketball enjoyed a memorable come from behind win, having been down five with four minutes to go. NPB won by 11 in dramatic fashion, displaying great team basketball to the delight of the crowd, as the Big Smooth floated down the court after making shot after shot.

There are many lessons that we learn each day and each AAU tournament weekend. This week’s lesson was provided by the Big Smooth. Sometimes it’s hard to believe in yourself, especially when things aren’t going your way, or when the results are what you are looking for. Sometimes you need to be reminded that the work that you’ve put in will be good enough. Sometimes you just need to take a break and refocus. Sometimes the ball just doesn’t go in. But if you believe the ball will go in, and you make adjustments, and your teammates get you the ball, you learn that shooting the ball, a la “shooting your shot” is the same life lesson that we all must learn. Raise your hand. Get the question wrong and learn from it. Take on that new business opportunity even though the last one didn’t work out the way you had planned. Take that new job, even though it feels scary and uncertain.

Thanks, Big Smooth for the lesson. It’s a lesson for us all.