Several days ago Nike asked me to fly to London and direct the skills portion of an event for the launch of the London School of Basketball with Kobe Bryant. One hundred hungry UK players packed the Jordan Legacy Court and the facility of Lilian Baylis ready to work

So I led the players through a Kobe Bryant Workout. From ball handling and driving to his mid-range footwork for the finish. Overall, I didn't know what to expect from Kobe during the event. When Kobe first arrived, I asked him first and foremost if he'd like to do anything particular with the players. He responded, "No, I'll just observe and critique."

But it didn't take long for him to get heavily involved on the teaching side. I would teach a skill or a set of footwork while Kobe would roam the court and watch. Then at times, Kobe would tell me to stop the action. He then would give further insight into the skills being taught or reinforce the teaching points in his own words. And when Kobe talked and demonstrated, the players listened!

Kobe would then turn it back over to me and we'd continue. It was up to me to teach these players how to drill for Kobe's skills as Kobe looked on. And this process continued. As a skills trainer, I was of course fascinated. I spend countless hours studying the skills and habits of the world's greatest players, and Kobe is no exception. It was great to have Kobe Bryant reinforce the teaching points I've taught everywhere I go and it reminded me again, that we at Hoops City U have our act together.

At the conclusion of the event Kobe pulled a player from the group and had me stop the action one last time. He then proceeded to demonstrate and bring the player through his patented back pivot series at a basket. It was ironic considering the first video I released on You Tube was teaching the same series.

Kobe talked about the importance of having "combinations" offensively, mixing moves together, and possessing a variety of counters and counters to those counters. For instance, He specifically taught us one of his shooting regimens. Starting with his back to the basket, he first pivots for a mid-range shot. Then he pivots, shot fakes, and uses a cross step for a one dribble pull-up. Following that he pivots, shot fakes, and steps strong side for a one-dribble pull-up. He then mixes up his combinations. Maybe he cross steps, pulls back for a shot fake, and then steps strong side for the drive. The point is a player needs to train for every possible combination of moves and counters. It's a message of preparation and focus.

But how prepared is Kobe Bryant? The real revelation is in what he said next. He's so focused to the details in his training, that with each one of those moves he doesn't move on to the next combination until he has made 150 shots. IN A ROW!!!

You read that right. He makes 150 Mid-Range shots in a row to keep his muscle memory up to date and fresh. See, that's what makes Kobe Bryant the best active player in the world. (Michael Jordan said it also you know!) He has the rare ability and competitive drive to lock himself in the gym and lock himself in a moment. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. He doesn't get bored. He's focused on the process and looking toward the finish line. You want to be the most skilled player in the world? First you need to ask yourself, are you willing to do that? That doesn't mean you will have the ability to make 150 shots in a row. That's just first asking do you even have the patience to make 150 shots from one spot and one move? That's special!

That being said, in the big picture of things Nike London is doing a great thing for the city of London and British Basketball. They have an initiative to keep players off the street and get them exposed to the beautiful game of basketball in a whole new way. As Hoops Fix explained, the London School of Basketball will be a network of coaches committed to delivering coordinated basketball across London while increasing sustainable participation in the sport." Overall, the London School of Basketball, Nike, and Kobe Bryant gave a great event and a legendary experience to the city of London and I am honored to have been a part of something bigger than myself!