Glendale college women’s basketball coach Weiss tips off new camp
GLENDALE — Conducting a youth basketball camp was something Glendale Community College women’s basketball coach Joel Weiss had in mind for a while.
As a kid, Weiss attended numerous camps to help him grasp the fundamentals and establish a greater appreciation for basketball.
Now, Weiss would like to give back. Weiss scoped out an itinerary that put him in line to conduct a basketball camp and share his knowledge and interest.
Weiss launched the inaugural Glendale Community College Basketball Camp, which began Monday and finished Thursday, and had about 20 participants attend.
“When I was a kid, it was a lot of fun going to all kinds of camps,” said Weiss, who took over at Glendale in 2016. “You just remember going out there and learning a lot and that’s one of the main goals I’ve set up with this camp.
“Social development is a very big thing, in addition to learning how to shoot, rebound or defend properly. You want [the campers] to feel great being here.”
Weiss and his assistants worked with the participants on an array of fundamentals.
Weiss stood underneath one of the baskets and watched five campers take part in a layup drill. Whether the layups were made or missed, Weiss offered encouragement.
“You see what their strengths are and what they need to work on,” said Weiss, whose team finished third in the Western State Conference’s East Division last season. “You see what hand they best dribble with and then work with them on getting up to speed with the other hand.
“We want to see them pick up a basketball and just keep playing through. You just try to get them to develop across the board in all of the skills.”
Andrew Azizian, 13, took part in a shooting drill in which he shot from where blue tape marks were set up.
“There are a lot of interesting drills,” Azizian, a Glendale resident, said. “You find out what you can do, plus there’s other drills here that will make you better. We’ve learned how to dribble while trying to get past the defender.”
Marie Kaloghlian of Glendale participated in the same drill.
“Wanting to improve my shooting is one of the reasons I wanted to come here,” Kaloghlian, 12, said. “Just to be here is a lot of fun and I’m just going to keep working on a lot of different things.”
Weiss said he expects the event to grow, though it might take some time for bigger turnouts to happen.
“I think there will be more people attending down the road,” said Weiss, who is 32-22 at Glendale. “We’ll get feedback and see what we need to improve on. It will just take some time before word gets out about the camp.”
Twitter: @TCNCharlesRich
