High school practices are heating up all over the country as teams prepare for the rapidly approaching season. Allen Iverson made the notion of practice important to the average fan (his famous quote “practice, we’re talking about PRACTICE” was taken out of context by the way), but daily practice is arguably the most critical factor in team success. The approach to practice and how much a team gets done in the allotted time will determine its success. The goal of a team is to get better each day and the goal of individual players is to earn a college scholarship.

But is the college-bound high school player ready for a collegiate practice?

Often times the first day of college practice is a life-changing experience for a hooper. It’s the day their confidence goes to another level (“yes I can DO THIS”) or they realize they have alot of work to do to get better. Some players rapidly excel and get better and adjust, while others simply don’t want to work hard enough. As a few NBA players have told us on our “In The Paint” podcast, high school was easy for them. Their talent level meant they could take a play off or dominate when the time called for it. At the college level, many find out things are not so simple. Forty years ago when national player rankings became prevalent and the elite players were nationally known, many of them did not know each other and some of them played against perhaps one other player of their talent level and size during the course of a high school season. Many high school stars were flameouts for this reason and evaluations have got better over the years as more of the elite players have gone up against each other.

Many don’t like the fact much of the national Top 100 talent is matriculating to National Interscholastic Basketball Conference (NIBC) programs or other high-powered academy-type programs. One of the reasons high level players transfer is to practice against other players their size at the position they look to play in college. While high school stars often have to play (and be evaluated) out of position, there are P5-bound backups at NIBC schools, so often times those players go into their first college practice a bit more ready.

Let’s take a look at five major differences between a high school and D1 college practice:

Planning
There is alot more that goes into a college practice in terms of what is going to be the focus and what the team is going to work on. In high school, the practices tend to be more more repetitive and general in nature with everyone expected to work on fundamental aspects of their game. College players have to work out and prepare much more on their own to be ready for practice. “A college practice is more in-depth and there is more resources and more coaches,” said a coach with experience at the Power 5 level and as a high school head coach. Players are on a tight schedule and have many more concepts and sets to work on and perfect at the D1 level. And they are expected to pick up on them quickly.

Re-Teaching
A current high school coach who also coached in a P5 conference stressed this concept as a huge difference and one recruits must understand if they expect to excel. “I find myself re-teaching often at this level and it’s okay, I understand it’s part of the learning process. In college a coach is going to say it once or twice, and then we’re going to look for someone else who gets it. If you don’t get it, you’re out of luck.” This speaks to understanding the game, basketball IQ and the desire to get better. A great player is not only good physically, but is able to quickly pick up on concepts, remember them and apply it to live situations. A great high school coach knows how to get through to his players, pushes them to be the best player possible and commands respect. Here is what one college coach told Basketball Weekly in the 1970s about Morgan Wootten, the legendary high school coach from DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, Md.) who was the nation’s most well-known coach at the time who turned down head coaching job at Maryland and N.C. State, among other gigs. “You have to be careful recruiting DeMatha kids. What you see often times is a player who will peak playing for DeMatha. He’ll never be better than he is playing for Morgan because he’s such a great coach."

Attention to Detail
Coaches want specifics worked on during certain offensive sets and players need to be in the correct positions in order for defensive sets and concepts to work. In high school, an elite player can often free-lance if something doesn’t work and can get away with. In college that is simply not the case. Every player is scouted out thoroughly and opponents know teams’ tendencies and individual strengths and weaknesses much more than high school. How much a team improves depends on the attention to detail and executing what the coaching staff wants. Nearly every player at the D1 level is naturally good; it’s improving the details a coach stresses that could be the difference between winning and losing.

Roles/Spacing
This is a critical point in the difference between the two levels of play and one that is glaring when taking in a practice at both levels. In high school, the team’s best offensive player will naturally “go get the ball” or gravitate to where the ball is when it's not in his hands, especially in a situation where a shot clock is used. This is a big no-no at the college level and usually something the coaching staff will point out or stop practice for early in the season. After passing the ball, the offensive player usually cuts or screens away in order to maintain proper spacing. The spacing (getting wide or tight) of a college offense is so important because the battle for spacing is so crucial to success at the collegiate level. The timing of screens and being patient for them is critical at the college level. Good high school teams cut with purpose and screen well. Elite high school players can get away with being out of piston on offense, but can’t nearly as much at the P5 level. College defenders are much more talented and committed, and there is less space to operate, so players quickly find out that college coaches stress the importance of proper spacing and taking a quality, open shot and a makeable shot. They want to avoid junk shots or shots that will leave the other four players out of position.

Intensity Level
One thing early in a college season that really pisses off coaches is when players don’t hustle back after a made basket. They’ll definitely stop practice or stress that. Transition defense is paramount in college. Understanding the intensity level needed to play college basketball is important. High school players can get away with loafing, especially if they are talented offensive players. This is not the case for college players. A good high school coach makes the experience quality for everyone and realizes everyone is not going to the NBA. While many do dream of going to the NBA, there are still some realistic kids (usually they do well in school, too) that realize pro basketball is not in the cards, but they like the experience of being on the team. A smart coach helps those kids, too, and makes practice fun at time. After all, players in high school are still teenagers who want to enjoy the process. College basketball is big business and the fact a coaching staff’s livelihood is on the line is reflected in their approach to practice and how serious it’s taken.

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of Ballislife.com. He can be reached at [email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter: @RonMFlores