Friday, October 17, 2008

Is Tonight The Night & News

I have been sitting at my computer for an hour now and I have started and deleted three different articles after only a few sentences. Anything I had to say either seemed like old news or just plain uninspiring.

So I finally decided to write about the white elephant in the room,…what is going on with my shooting so far this season?

I will do my best to give you my honest assessment.

I believe in my day to day preparation. I believe that there would be very few, if any, other players in Australia that put in the extra time shooting that I do. And I am talking about both during the season and the off-season. I believe that like anything that someone practices over and over and over, shooting for me is like second nature.

No one is on their game 100% of the time, no matter what your job is. Like any other job for any other employee, I will face lean times. The mark of a professional is how they deal with these times and their ability to push through to the other side.

So here is my day:

As per a normal day I head out to our practice facility in the morning for training. After our team session has finished, I do my individual shooting practice. On any given day I will make anywhere from 100 to 250 extra baskets. This is something I have done for the duration of my career.

I do not deviate from my routine because it has served me well for so long and I believe that extra time is going to get the job done. If I start to second guess myself and deviate from the tried and tested, it is easy to become confused on what is working and what is not.

The next question would be how long is it going to take to get my shooting groove back?

If I knew that, I’d be the first to share the information. At this point all I can do is be aggressive without forcing the issue. A little trick that us shooters also use where ever possible is to find ways to manufacture some “gimmie” baskets. Things like easy layups or free throws easy any pressure we put on ourselves and are a great kick toward getting back into a rhythm.

Of course the extended break we have just had over the past few weeks also allows me some solid practice time which can’t hurt either!

The bottom line is that I know the extra hours I put in will eventually pay off. Whether on Friday, I cannot be certain. However I will persist with what has worked for me in the past. JR will get his groove back.


You can find my article in the Townsville Bulletin every Wednesday.

News

- New Zealand Breakers score home win over the still winless Gold Coast Blaze.

boxscore game recap

- Fox Sports coverage begins next week. You will see me live!

- Brian Goorjian fires up again. This time about the draw. And you can boo him if you want.

- South Dragons love Mika Vukona's attitude.

- Around the NBL with Boti Nagy.

- Fox shows no love for the west.

- Chris Anstey trying to spice up local derby.

- Cairns getting ready for the Blaze challenge.

- Lindsay Tait to play game 100.

- Red Dust Role Models

- Rychart cleans up.

Hinder and Homicide

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Rillie-please shoot. I do not pay to watch you make the extra pass to someone who is not going to make it.

Tell mr homocide that if he does not start finding you on the break instead of williamson i may jump out of my seat and do it for him.

Carolyn Hastings said...

JR, you are breaking my heart. Just think of this as a regression to the mean, the manner in which averages are achieved, etc. Sometimes I think about writing and nothing comes to mind. Or I think of something ridiculous. When I sit down at the keyboard, however, the truth is in my fingers. Keep believing!

John Rillie said...

Anonymous:

I will take your advice into Wednesday's game. Hope to see you there cheering us on and I can give you a shooting display to rememeber.