MADISON, Wis. — Any college basketball coach who's been around the game long enough knows that unsupervised summer open gym sessions for players are a crapshoot. In years past, when coaches couldn't instruct their teams, they had no idea if players were perpetuating bad practice habits on the court.
"Open gyms can go either way," University of Wisconsin assistant coach Lamont Paris said. "Are they playing hard? Are they getting back on D? Is anyone taking a charge? You never know."
Thanks to a new NCAA rule, college basketball coaches have a much better idea of what their players are doing in the summer. For the first time, coaches are allowed to work with players enrolled in summer school for eight weeks — for up to eight hours per week. That includes two hours of skills-related instruction each week.
"It's a good rule," Paris said. "We like to be able to get in the gym. In two hours, you can't get in there and overdo it. But you can get in there and get a taste. Selfishly, we like it as coaches."
In January, the NCAA approved the rule, which could drastically enhance athletic development of young players. Previously, coaches could not be in a gym with a player and a basketball during the summer, leaving it strictly up to the player to fulfill his workouts and improve.
Now, a coach can break up his weekly two-hour practice allotment however he sees fit. Some teams hold three 40-minute sessions during the week, and others hold one-hour practices. There are no limitations as to what teams can choose to work on during those sessions, from individual skill development to full-on practices.
Wisconsin has held two separate two-hour practice sessions on Tuesday afternoons so far during the summer. Drills include 4-on-4 and 5-on-5 work, as well as late-clock situations while the Badgers search for a point guard replacement for Jordan Taylor.
"I actually really like it," Badgers guard Josh Gasser said. "Especially for our young guys, they get a chance to learn the system. You're not just thrown out there in practice the first day kind of blind with the coaches. You get a chance to relax your nerves a little bit as a freshman. As an upperclassman, it just brings another level of intensity when the coaches are there. That's what I like about it. I think it's a good thing for college basketball."
Gasser, a junior, along with redshirt freshman George Marshall, are among the Wisconsin players most likely to help fill the void left by Taylor at point guard. And every summer practice session provides one more opportunity to gain a level of comfort at the position before the season officially begins in October.
"I think it's very beneficial," Marshall said. "Coaches get a chance to look at you progress throughout the summer. And also you get a chance to adjust to the coaches throughout the summer. So now going into the fall, you've already got a head start."
In addition to the weekly summer practices with coaches, members of Wisconsin's team participate in four weight lifting sessions each week with Badgers strength and conditioning coach Scott Hettenbach — who is entering his 18th full season with the basketball team. The sessions run Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday at 6:30 a.m.
"That's a good wake-up call," Gasser said.
Players also typically hold open gym sessions on Monday and Thursday afternoons and come in on their own for individual skill work the rest of the week. In other words, competing at the highest level of college basketball is a full-time responsibility, even when no one is watching.
"People have no idea what the commitment is for these guys during the season," Paris said. "Then you combine that with what they do in the summertime, it's full-time, it's year-round. These guys know at this level, in order to be elite, you have to commit to it year-round to get what you want out of it."
The opportunity for coaches to finally instruct their teams in the summer certainly doesn't hurt in the players' continual quest to improve.
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