I'm playing my first draft day college basketball game with 2019, and I just hit the games portion of my first year. So I'm coaching my first game and of course there's the work ref and yell at ref buttons. I can't help myself, I have to push buttons. So after I get a guy with three fouls in the first 10 minutes I try yell at ref and it looked to me like I got called for a technical or something because they kept control of the ball but I had to try twice to be sure. Lo and behold I got ejected from the first game I ever coached.

But the hilarity of that aside does anybody have any experience/advice for how to handle motivation in time outs during games? Does it even really make a difference? I've actually been floored by the volume of options for what you can do in this game and the coaching screen is no different. But does it actually make any real difference if I motivate? Every combination I've tried so far seems to just result in me being tuned out. In that regards it feels just like talking to my daughter.

Welcome to the forums and glad you've started playing DDSCB.

"Yelling" at the ref sometimes will not result in a T, but the likelihood is far greater than if you "work" the ref. And if you "work" the ref TOO much, a T can result as well..so this is pretty much reflective of real life. Sometimes working (or even yelling) at the refs can reduce the number of fouls they call though...of course that's hard to really determine for sure. And sometimes getting a T can turn things around for how your team is playing.

With regard to motivating your players during the time outs: I think it is worth the effort. Yes, often you get the response that they aren't paying attention, but even then its possible that there is a positive effect. And when you play enough and motivate enough you will notice there are other responses as well from your players. I believe that motivation can at times improve how your players perform.

(And hey! ...by the way....being tuned out by your kids doesn't necessarily mean that they aren't actually hearing what you're saying (at times) and might modify what they do. )

Yelling at the ref is not quite but almost an automatic T. I work the ref strategically. I find motivating during a TO helps, and I like to call plays as well. They work more often than not.

When calling a play after a timeout, sometimes the choice of players doesn't stick and it reverts to default. Also, it seems the play gets repeated a few times when I only want to run it once. Any thoughts?

ZorbaGarp wrote:When calling a play after a timeout, sometimes the choice of players doesn't stick and it reverts to default. Also, it seems the play gets repeated a few times when I only want to run it once. Any thoughts?

I was wondering about this, too. If I call a play during a timeout, do I have to go back and "uncall" the play to keep the team from running it again and again?

I've also tried motivation during timeouts, and I've never had a response other than the "wasn't listening" message. I figured it was because I'm a young, inexperienced coach, but my ratings are decent for a coach at my level. (I accidentally made my coach only 26 years old...)

I've never seen a problem of players running a called play over and over so I can't comment on that.

Sometimes calling a play during a timeout with the ball in the backcourt will result in a play being run, but it's always better to call the TO once the ball is in the front court. Occasionally a play won't execute simply because the player isn't comfortable with where he gets the ball, or other factors. And the pick and roll can be a bit frustrating, because the screener and dribbler often get reversed from the way you call it (it's pretty random).

As far as motivation goes, USE it! How you use it should depend upon your coach's temperament. You should coach the way you have set your attributes. Players playing for a hothead like Bobby Knight expect a little more screaming. If you are a coach with an average temper though, screaming at your players should be an option of last resort (used sparingly screaming at the team will fire them up, but screaming at an individual usually doesn't have very positive results. Showing concern at individuals who are underperforming will often get them to nod in agreement and play better, but it too should be used sparingly. Showing concern with the team is an option when there is no one that seems to be playing particularly well. By and large, though, I get best results by praising players who are playing particularly well. I usually wait to praise the team as a whole when everything is clicking on all-cylinders. You won't always get positive feedback from praising players, but you won't have them tune you out either. Showing concern and especially screaming too often, however, will almost certainly get the message that "players are tuning you out" which just makes a bad situation worse.

Bottom line though is, let your coach's temperament rating be your guide.