Introduction to the Constraints-Led Approach · Video clinic
Design basketball practices that transfer to games
Learn to design small-sided games, adapt constraints for your players, and help practice skills transfer to competition.
$49one-time payment
Get instant access for $49Resource language: English. The clinic recordings and included materials are currently in English.
Real reviews
What coaches tell us
Rated 4.7/5Just great stuff!
In this clinic, Alex nicely summarizes and translates dense academic research into easily understood terms and relevant activities. I have purchased several of his products and spent uncountable hours on his website, podcasts, videos, and social media. He has changed my thinking and approach to coaching.
Game/Practice Changer
It was a great learning experience watching coach Sarama taking the newest theories of motor learning and applying it for basketball coaches and players. It is a game/practice changer, a must for coaches at all levels
Diving in to CLA has been a great…
Diving in to CLA has been a great experience. It has provided the logic behind the training and it has given me inspiration to be a more effective coach. The complimentary information has been very helpful.
Video clinic
What’s inside
35 lessons in 2 modules. Watch on any device, at your own pace.
Module 1 · 18 lessons
Theory Behind the CLA
- The Traditional Approach
- Constraints and Emergent Skills
- Applying the CLA in Youth Basketball
- Affordances
- CLA vs the Traditional Approach
- Perception-Action Coupling
and 12 more
Module 2 · 17 lessons
Applying a CLA
- Shield Tag
- Finishing with Beginners
- Smile 1-on-1
- Guided Defense with a Novice
- Protection Plans
- Adding a +1 to SSGs
and 11 more
From coaches
In their own words
The CLA has changed the way I coach and teach the game from the youth level on up. Learning how to constrain players in ways to lead them to find their own solutions has improved their confidence and performance. It is worth the effort and work from coaches to help coach up better basketball players.
I've always asked as a new coach why coaches still use the same practice methods from when I played as a player. And then I found the CLA. It gave a new clarity on how to approach my program and the implementation of the CLA.
I genuinely believe that implementing CLA has played an important role in helping our players develop and understand the game better.
This is my 1st year using CLA as a High School Girls Basketball Coach. It was our first year in our states largest classification and we lost in the 7A state championship to Hoover who has won 5 straight state titles. We gave them their 1st home loss in 8 years earlier in the season and they beat us in the championship game. Our final record was 33-3.
I’m one week into my season, and my boys have a greater understanding of transition offense than all my other years before. The boys often tell me that they’re starting to understand things easier because they see the purpose when doing CLA rather than on-air drills!
I started with traditional block training but nothing went well in games. Strong players dominated the ball and couldn’t pass. Weak players never scored and turned the ball over constantly. Using CLA activities such as 1v1 with guided defense and 2v2 with guided help defense helped all of my players develop individual and team basketball abilities.
Is it right for you?
Who this is for
A good fit if
- You coach any age and want practice skills to show up in games.
- You want to design your own small-sided games instead of copying drills.
- You coach youth players or beginners and want games they can succeed in.
Not the right fit yet if
- You want a ready-made library of games to run tomorrow. Start with the Small-Sided Games Book.
Not sure? Compare all products.
Alex Sarama
- Founder of Transforming Basketball
- Head Coach of the WNBA’s Portland Fire
- Former Assistant Coach and Head of Player Development for the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers
- Author of the Amazon bestseller Transforming Basketball
- Coach developer for multiple federations and clinician in 40+ countries
Alex Sarama has been featured in
Everything included
Introduction to the Constraints-Led Approach
- An online basketball CLA course taught by Alex Sarama
- The full on-demand clinic across all four core areas
- Practical basketball examples and small-sided games
- Instant access the moment you purchase
- Lifetime access. Rewatch on any device
- Email support if you have questions
$49one-time payment
Instant access. Lifetime access.
Get instant access for $4914 Tage Geld-zurück-Garantie
If it’s not right for you, email us within 14 days of purchase and we’ll refund you in full.
For courses and workshops, refunds apply if you’ve completed less than 30% of the content.
Secure checkout · Instant access · Email support
Questions
Before you buy
What is included, and is it live or on-demand?
It is a fully on-demand video clinic across all four core areas (the reasoning behind the CLA, functional vs fundamental, designing small-sided games, and applying it with youth players), with practical basketball examples throughout. There are no scheduled sessions; watch at your own pace.
How does access work, and which devices are supported?
You get instant access the moment you purchase, and a confirmation is sent to your email. Watch on desktop, tablet or mobile, wherever you coach.
Do I get lifetime access?
Yes. This is a one-time purchase with lifetime access, so you can come back and rewatch it as often as you like.
What level of basketball is this suitable for?
The principles apply across youth, high school, college and beyond, and a dedicated section covers adapting constraints for young players and beginners. It is built to be accessible for coaches at any stage.
Do I need prior CLA knowledge, and does this mean I stop teaching technique?
No prior knowledge is needed. The clinic starts with the reasoning behind the approach before moving into application. And it does not replace teaching technique: the CLA is about designing learning environments where skills transfer within the context of the game. How players move still matters, but they develop it against constrained defenders rather than in 1v0.
What is the refund policy?
14-day money-back guarantee. If it’s not right for you, email info@transformingbball.com within 14 days of purchase and we’ll refund you in full.
Start designing better learning environments
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