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Roy Puts Heels On Jordan's/Worthy's Plans

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Roy Puts Heels On Jordan's/Worthy's Plans Empty Roy Puts Heels On Jordan's/Worthy's Plans

Post  Carolina Kat Mon Oct 25, 2010 8:20 pm

Roy Williams puts Heels on the run

BY ROBBI PICKERAL
Observer Staff Writer

Posted: Monday, Oct. 25, 2010
Roy Puts Heels On Jordan's/Worthy's Plans 857-coldecock0625_G561EV4J2.1+Williams.JPG.embedded.prod_affiliate.138

UNC coach Roy Williams implemented an old-school conditioning plan during the offseason.

Of all the disappointments from last season's 17-loss debacle, North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams was most irritated by his team's lack of toughness. So during the offseason, he brought back an old-school conditioning plan.

"Run, run, run, run," he explained.

"This year was the exact same program [that we ran] in the fall of 1981 with James [Worthy] and Michael [Jordan] and Sam [Perkins]," Williams said last week. "... I was the guy that did the conditioning program when I was Coach [Dean] Smith's assistant. I loved it, I thought it taught our teams what they could do - more than they thought.

Sticking to it every day, and never giving in, was something that was important."
And it's something that may be even more important now, after a season in which the Tar Heels struggled with confidence, focus and work ethic, as much as shooting, defense and speed.

"Coach was trying to put us in the right mind frame for this season," junior forward Tyler Zeller said. "... Last year, you could argue we weren't in the right mind frame."

In recent years, UNC's fall conditioning program had consisted of running twice a week, with a final test of a dozen 33s (which are run on a basketball court). But this preseason, Williams increased the workouts to three times a week over four weeks - with a final test of a dozen 200-meter sprints (with 90 seconds rest in between).

The change didn't come without some grumbling. The first week of conditioning, Williams heard there was some angst building. But the coach, who is determined never to repeat last year's losing feeling, immediately nipped it in the bud.

"I went in the locker room, and told them, 'Do you think I just pulled that out of the air?

This is what I got guys to do in 1982,' " Williams said. "And I looked at Leslie [McDonald] - not that he was a culprit - and said, 'You want to be like Mike [Jordan]? Then be like Mike. Get your butt out there and do it.'

"John Henson was over there panicking, about to stress out, and I told him to shut up and run. He did it successfully, and now if you ask John what the key to running is, he'll say, 'Shut up and run.' "

The first week of the workout, players were running a mile, followed by two 200s. By the final week, they were running a 400, followed by 10 200s. Zeller said that pushing to improve each workout gave players a sense of accomplishment and an understanding of what hard work can yield.

"It challenged a lot of people, and you push yourself beyond what you're used to," he said. "I think pretty much everyone on the team would agree that it's the toughest thing we've ever done, as far as conditioning - or anything, as far as running."

Williams said that with the exception of a few cases, he was pleased with how his team fared. Players who met their individual "tough time" were rewarded by getting to opt out of wind sprints at the end of the first week of practice.

The payoff, he hopes, will be more victories.

"It's not necessarily directly conducive to basketball training, because you don't run 200 meters on a curve in a basketball game," Williams said. "But this was tough.... And it will be even better next year, because we'll make it a little bit tougher, and they'll be a little more experienced with it, and they'll realize that they can do it. Hopefully, they'll get that kind of attitude during the game."

Carolina Kat
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