Mack's Weight Training Philosophy

[Sultan__of__Swine]

I found this very interesting when hearing Chris Mack's press conference yesterday. I especially agree with his point about all of the stoppage time in college basketball and the advantage of tiring out the other team is in many cases negated by all of these stops in play. So, why not bulk up your team and be more physical? Makes a lot of sense. So many times Louisville would have a team on the ropes and a foul would occur and bam....TV Timeout. I saw it over and over again. Very frustrating when you're attempting to wear down your opponent and tv timeout or a video review.

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THERE’S A DIFFERENT APPROACH IN THE WEIGHT ROOM. Longtime strength and conditioning coach Ray Ganong has announced his retirement, and Mack said he sees some differences in the way he directs strength training under new coach Andy Kettler, who came to U of L from West Virginia.


Asked about his approach, Mack said, “I think it's very different.”


Elaborating, Mack said, “No. 1 I think that Coach G was a guy that did what coach asked. He wanted his players to be able to run up and down and press and play for 40 minutes. And I think that's obviously why they were very successful. But in basketball there's a million ways to skin a cat. I want our guys to be tough. I want them to be physical. Somebody said the word big. We don't aim to get our guys big. We aim to get them stronger. I think that's what coach Kettler puts his focus into with our guys, getting them stronger. He obviously came from a place at West Virginia where they weren't stuck in mud in the half-court. They played full-court basketball, they pressed, they were as physical as any team in the country. So I think there's a little bit of a misnomer when you start to think that Coach Mack just wants his guys bigger and we're not going to be able to get up and down the floor. There's so many timeouts now between TV timeouts and coach-called timeouts, that I think there's ample time for your guys to rest and be able to recover and play fast and play the way we want to, in an aggressive, attacking style.”

 

[shadow force]

I would like to see some added toughness and the strength to finish through contact from guys like VJ and others.

Also hoping the added strength helps on the boards and getting into good position on the floor.

The thing with players under Pitino was that I never worried about their cardio and overall conditioning, I was more concerned about their lack of strength and physicality. Hoping the new strength coach and CCM's focus on toughness can help in those areas.

 

[Cue Card]

I would like to see some added toughness and the strength to finish through contact from guys like VJ and others.

Also hoping the added strength helps on the boards and getting into good position on the floor.

The thing with players under Pitino was that I never worried about their cardio and overall conditioning, I was more concerned about their lack of strength and physicality. Hoping the new strength coach and CCM's focus on toughness can help in those areas.

100% agree. The lack of strength was always a concern with PItino's teams. The only players who were really strong came in to the program that way. I don't recall anyone getting physically stronger after coming to the program. ALL got in better shape and lost body fat. That doesn't mean more strength. It's just means less body fat and better cardio.

Coach Mack's approach and philosophy is spot on IMO. Teams have to be stronger and tougher to excel. Being in better cardio shape doesn't mean what it used to mean. Way too many timeouts now to wear teams down by running them into the ground. Why not bang on them, lean on them, to wear them down? It's a boxer's approach. I like it.

 

[Morgantown Card]

 

[Morgantown Card]

The thing with players under Pitino was that I never worried about their cardio and overall conditioning, I was more concerned about their lack of strength and physicality. Hoping the new strength coach and CCM's focus on toughness can help in those areas.

The narrative lately has been that Rick's teams were soft. Recent years, I agree. A lack of an enforcer was sorely missed these last few years. The Damian Lee team would have been the best team in the country had they had a banger down there. Chinanu and Jay Johnson was coming into that role, but they didn't have a Montrezl who could just bully and scare people. Donovan's last year REALLY missed having that guy, and so did last year's. Looks like we can look forward to more Luke Whitehead types, which is awesome.

 

[REDFISTFURY3]

I'm a firm believer in fitness and BMI however i always felt Rick's teams where too dam skinny. Yes they were in shape. But where never physically strong except like another poster stated came into the program strong. When i go to the games at the yum the first thing that would alwys stick out too me was the physical size of certain teams compared to ours and not talking just height. VA,NC etc players where just massively larger . So a change in physical body comp is needed especially with this team. Maybe VJ gets strong enough too finish through contact.

 

[nccardfan]

There’s probably a medium out there or middle ground but what you are prescribing too is teams like Cincinnati and West Virginia, who often had the label as being thugs. UC and Xavier even had some of those games. However, I don’t recall UC or WVU winning a title with that mindset. Also I wouldn’t say that Duke’s players look like they live in a gym. Brandon Ingram and jayson Tatum barely weighed 200 lbs.

 

[REDFISTFURY3]

Duke players never need to be physically opposing because they are usually the best of the best players period.They are already talented opposing.

 

[Chapman123]

I'm a firm believer in fitness and BMI however i always felt Rick's teams where too dam skinny. Yes they were in shape. But where never physically strong except like another poster stated came into the program strong. When i go to the games at the yum the first thing that would alwys stick out too me was the physical size of certain teams compared to ours and not talking just height. VA,NC etc players where just massively larger . So a change in physical body comp is needed especially with this team. Maybe VJ gets strong enough too finish through contact.

I'm no coach for good reason but I feel like your big men need to be big, strong and tough. Your guards lean.

 

[zipp]

Weight and strength are fine as long as they don't come at the expense of speed and stamina. Then they're not...

 

[Morgantown Card]

Weight and strength are fine as long as they don't come at the expense of speed and stamina.

That's what she said.

 

[Senore2006]

Count me in a fan of Mack's take on hoops fitness. And does anyone think somehow, his hiring of the WVU trainer was not a feisty as hell, dynamite move? This guy was Huggy's strength coach for 10 long years and all they did last few seasons is run, run, run. Even if Mack only integrates a real proactive role for the press and uses it rarely, it could even be more effective. So speed, it seems to me, also looks like it is in the works.

But we have had many chisled looking studs out there on the floor, lol. Ellis Myles, Trez, Otis,Chris Smith, Chane - big Mr. Olympians, lol. It wasn't that rare under Pitino. After all, look how much we won. It is interesting seeing Nwora's development, especially seeing as how he came at conditioning from another end - being fat. Putting is weight s much harder then taking it off.