Above- The- Rim

Above- The- Rim Basketball, is an elite player development and skills training company operated by Carlos and Deion Clark, for athletes of all abilities. We serve the Greater Naples area. We work with players from 6th grade through college/professional. We offer a variety of training services including Personal Training, Small Group Training, and Team Training.

Our goal is to produce fundamentally sound basketball players who play hard, understand the game, and are capable of competing at a national level.

We work with all age groups, boys and girls, with a variety of skill levels ranging from beginner to advanced. We teach the same shot mechanics, ball handling, offensive and defensive fundamentals and footwork that are taught to today’s collegiate and professional athletes.

We strive to assist every athlete that works with us to reach their full potential as a basketball player. We aim to inspire and motivate our clients to set lofty goals then work hard to achieve them. Our approach to this process includes intense, innovative skill development training of the body and mind, becoming a student of the game and understanding that the best way to reach your final destination is through persistence, discipline, and commitment to the process. Basketball players are made, not born. We don’t dispute some are given better genetic tools to work with, but nobody is born with a jumpshot or a killer crossover, those skills are earned over time. Remember - there is no microwave success.

However, the developmental process for basketball players is in the midst of a metamorphosis due to highly competitive youth, high school and AAU programs and the pursuit of college scholarships. Raw athleticism alone may no longer be enough to secure a spot on these elite teams, and certainly won’t gain anyone a college offer. Fundamental skills are now the deciding factor between athletes today, and the competition will only increase. The late great Kobe Bryant’s thoughts on a trip to Europe years ago: “8 year olds, 9 year olds – they go left, they go right. The older ones dribble, shoot, and pass with the either hand. You’ve got bigger kids who can shoot from the outside, who can handle the ball and play different positions. A lot of young players that are so skilled. And now you’ve got kids here in the States, 20 year olds, who can’t do those things. Man, you’ve got max players in the NBA who can’t do that.”

Example of Skills Covered/Learned:

Shooting Mechanics (stationary shooting, off the dribble), Jab Step Series, Dribble Separation, Weak Hand Development, Finishing around the basket, Advanced Dribble Scoring Methods, Post and Perimeter Work, Triple Threat Series/Separation, Footwork, Agility and Conditioning, Defensive Work, Team Chemistry, Leadership, Basketball IQ, and much more.

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

These sessions are for players who seek 1 on 1 attention to maximize their skill development. These workouts are designed to replicate the pressure of game speed situations and assist in the execution of basic and advanced fundamentals under that pressure. We encourage our clients to get out of their comfort zones and make mistakes as a part of the learning and developmental process.These sessions are the most intense workouts we offer.

SMALL GROUP TRAINING:

Small group training allows players to work on their skill development in an intense and forward thinking atmosphere. These sessions contain the same fundamental curriculum and concepts as the 1 on 1 workouts but allow for situational competition and workout variations. Small group workouts typically consist of 2-6 players.

TEAM TRAINING:

Teams rarely focus on individual skill development, instead, their primary focus is on the offensive system being ran, but if you can't pass, can't pivot, and can't dribble, it doesn't matter what offense is run as even the best of those systems are ineffective without execution of proper fundamental skills. Team training sessions are geared toward developing individual skills within a team environment using that team's concepts and philosophies. We have and currently work with teams ranging from: youth, middle school, high school, and AAU/Club organizations.