A Uniquely Different Basketball Camp

Basketball is more than just learning how to shoot and dribble. It’s more than just a bunch of kids running around trying to score.

While most basketball camps “kind of throw the ball out there and try to make money and there’s not a lot of teaching going on,” says Coach (“Doc”) Oliver Eslinger, head basketball coach of Caltech and the man behind Doc’s Youth Basketball Academy, “I want ours to be all about teaching, teaching how to play the game the right way, teaching strong fundamentals and skills and using a lot of the drills we do.”

By teaching the fundamentals, students of Doc’s camp will learn not just the basics of the sport, but also the rules, and intangibles that go along with it.

“I want to make ours a balance of interaction and building relationships but also teaching the right way how to play instead of a lot of what we see out there now,” says Eslinger.

Other camps usually take the tallest guy and automatically make him a center, while the short ones are turned into guards, but Eslinger’s camp’s philosophy is not about that. It’s all about being versatile.

“Our philosophy is we want to teach all the skills to everybody and provide opportunities for versatility, because we’re trying to create complete basketball players,” says Eslinger.

Though the camp will be mainly about basketball fundamentals, the psychology behind it is also taught. The mental game is just as important.

“How you learn and how you’re able to improve by learning life skills like being able to communicate, being able to look in a coach’s eyes, being able to ask questions, being able to focus. I have a doctorate in sports psychology and that’s where the part of that comes in,” says Eslinger.

Registration for the camp will be up to May 6th to ensure enrollment, though Eslinger says “we’re going to keep it open until the beginning.”

Start of the Academy will be on June 17th through the 21st, Monday to Friday with a second session from June 24th through the 28th.

For more information on Doc’s Youth Basketball Academy, or to register online, visit http://www.docsbballacademy.com or call (626) 395-3264.

You can also contact Doc via email hoopitup@caltech.edu.