Saturday, January 8, 2011

Accelerate helping to elevate area players' games

Last summer, I wrote about a trend I noticed had been growing: former pro athletes providing training to younger kids and teenage athletes in the area. You can click here to read that.

I think one of the reasons Mecklenburg County athletics have been exploding recently with a historic run of championships that is only going to grow, is this specialized training kids are getting from former athletes who know what they're talking about.

Former Florida Gator football star Tony George's Heat Fitness is a perfect example of this. I've seen kids go in looking one way, and performing one way, and come out totally different. And it's not just George. Former NBA players Jeff McInnis and Muggsy Bogues have trained some of the best players to come out of this area recently. They know what it takes and what you need to get to the next level.

Charlotte is chock full of training options as people have found ways to further monetize athletics. Trainers at Carolina Courts, Velocity Sports and Athletic Republic all do a wonderful job, I've seen and heard, with helping athletes of all ages improve.

After getting a torrent of emails lately about this topic, I decided to revisit one of the facilities: Accelerate Basketball in Indian Land. This place is devoted to basketball and owner/operator Brandon Payne, a former college basketball coach, has turned his love of basketball and his love of fitness into quite an impressive basketball factory.

He's got a roster of more than 100 kids of all ages regularly training and some of the area's top players frequently stop by, including former Charlotte Christian star Seth Curry, now at Duke. Payne's services have spread by word of mouth and YouTube video to as far away as California and London. A group of California teens plan to visit to work out over a spring break and a 20-year-old London player will also come in soon. Also Payne said he's had interest from out of state businessmen about franchising.

Why the interest? Winning the college scholarship has gotten awful competitive and parents are willing to try to get their kid every advantage. And Payne has a very unique way of developing basketball players using drills involving tennis balls and ropes and ladders and steps. He's become well versed in exercise physiology and brings in experts, like chiropractors and specialized fitness trainers, to help fill in the gaps.

Players sign up on a website for hour-long classes which are offered at fairly convenient hours, even for working folks, seven days a week. For a flat fee, you can take unlimited classes with a group, almost like a YMCA workout class, or you can register for one-on-one sessions or other specialized training regimens.

Accelerate also offers a "shooting gun," a contraption that passes balls towards you that you then shoot in the hoop. For a fee, you can use the gun and have your sessions videotaped, allowing Payne's team to coach you on form.


Accelerate also offers video services to tape players during games for coaching "film" sessions or to create those YouTube highlight videos that parents send to college coaches (or just post on YouTube to brag about their 9-year-old's dribbling ability).

I have visited almost all of the local facilities and I think we are lucky to have these kinds of options locally. I would always consult with my doctor if my young ones were starting this kind of training and to make sure it was offset with other kinds of physical activity and didn't include heavy weights before, say, teenager years. But I do think training makes a difference, and we've got some excellent options, like Accelerate, here.

20 comments:

Greg Acripolos said...

Langston why can't you all at the Disturber do more of this kind of thing? This is news I CAN use. I have two kids, nearly tweens, that love basketball and football and we're always trying to find something to get the video game controller out of their hand. We're going to sample some of these.

Thanks

Anonymous said...

I agree with Greg, but Langston my kids are into baseball. What training options are out there like that for them? We've been DYING to find something like Accelerate for baseball.

Anonymous said...

LDub, for what its worth. We did Velocity and didn't like it. Kind of repetitive. Then we did Athletic Republic. It's awful hot in there in summer (no AC) and they want to lock you into a contract like a cell phone. It's also expensive. Tony George has been wonderful and economically better. My only issue is we live in Highland Creek and all these trainers are on south end. Why can't someone move north?

Mike T said...

Anyone know how much this stuff costs? Sounds good enough

Anonymous said...

Depending on the programs, (scheduling, etc) these can run anywhere from a few hundred dollars, into the thousands. This stuff is great for elite athletes, but be careful with very young (12 and under) athletes. And for baseball, there is Carolinas Baseball Center, and Architech Sports. IMO Architech Sports is the most comprehensive training program

Anonymous said...

Can't say enough about Accelerate. My son's athletic ability has improved so much since he began training there and he has also gained so much confidence. Brandon and his staff put forth so much effort and truly care about these kids improving. Coach Payne and his staff have even come to see him play games. They are very reasonable in price and work with athletes in other sports-including baseball.

Anonymous said...

The one over off Independence, Athletic Republic, wants a lump sum up front like 600 bucks for so many sessions. I didn't like the facility. Accelerate is $240 a month which seems like a lot but it's unliimited sessions and access to all they offer. Like the writer here, we've been into a lot of these spots and I'd say Accelerate is the best group thing. I'd probably guess these NFL and NBA guys working with your kid would be great to. My son is a baseball player. I'd love to find an MLB guy around to work with him.

Anonymous said...

KID

Anonymous said...

$240 is a lot. They better be turning Clark Kent into Superman for that kind of cash. These stuff is for rich families.

Anonymous said...

This training works. My child was 200 pounds at 5-7 when he started working out with Bogues. Now he's 30 pounds lighter and starting. We're going to check into Accelerate after reading this.

Erika said...

Does anyone have a contact email for Bogues? What does he charge for individual bball session?

Anonymous said...

Hey if you want the best offseason OL/DL instruction you need to check out Mo Collins (Oakland Raiders Ret(prepstarfootball)My son trained all last summer and it took him to next level. Very fair pricing for sessions.

Anonymous said...

VTO Sports has the best football exposure events in the southeast. Mo Collins and his staff of NFL Alums do all the position coaching....very good.

Anonymous said...

blah, blah, blah. How much more wool can we pull over people's eyes?
Why should anyone think that just because someone played a sport, they'll be good at teaching it, or coaching. The fact is, most premiere athletes are horrible coaches, possibly because they can't relate to the role players who are so vital.
People keep listening to fast talking salesmen who are laughing all the way to the bank with their money.
I love a lot of these local, former pro players and elite athletes. But to give kids and their parents some fantasy that just because its (fill in the blank) coaching them, that they all of a sudden are going to be better is a bunch of hogwash.
What's next: selling ice cubes to eskimos?

Anonymous said...

The job of the parent is to research and find the best help no matter if the teacher played or not. It sounds like these folks have had good experiences and got value for what they paid.

There is always a negative person that is more than willing to spew negativity about just about anything.....If you have had a good experience please blog and educate..

Anonymous said...

Charlotte has had these training facilities for over a decade. I see kids all the time that make very small improvements while their parents spend big bucks, but they are better off than sitting at home on XBOX eating twinkies.

Baseball-S. Charlotte has 3 or 4 training facilities, they are all good, ask your instructor to be upfront & Honest about your kids potential. One thing now one ever talks about is the kids Motor & Drive.

Anonymous said...

For top-notch basketball skills training, please check out the National Basketball Academy. Click the following link for more information http://www.thebasketballacademy.com/about.asp?id=165&PID=1
or call 980-406-6910. Call today and receive 50% off your first evaluation training session.

Unknown said...

For the best shooting and scoring moves coach, call "The Shooting Guru", Coach Schickel, 704-942-4099. I have 3 sons who played or are playing Division I basketball in College and another who played on the JV team at North Carolina. I have worked and am working with players recruited by ACC and SEC schools. I have 20 years experience. My workouts are not "huffin and puffin"; instead, they are skill development which actually gets you better, noticeably so. For instance, most people worry about the ending on the shot - the elbow and the follow thru; but the ending of the shot is just a natural progression from the beginning. So if the beginning is off to some extent, the ending will be off - to some extent. I have created all kinds of little drills to address all kinds of problems players may have with their shots. These are for the beginning, middle and end of the shot. The results are like magic. As one player from the Dominican Republic that I had a Five-Star once said in his accent "Deese ees like maagic!"
I know how to build a great jumpshot. The form and technique are critical. It is NOT simply a matter of repetition and using a Gun. If someone has crap form to start with, repetition will not change crap form. At some point it will come back to bite you. I see tons of very athletic kids who love to play, but can't shoot a lick, and it breaks my heart. Because I know that at some point it will limit how far they will go. It is not enough to work hard. You need to work hard on the right techniques. You must spend the time to build great form, which I can help you do. Almost all great shooters have great form; for example, Michael Jordan and Stephen Curry. With great form, repetitions will now generate tremendous improvement in your shooting. I work with little kids thru Middle School, JV, Varsity, College and Professional players. My theme for what I do is "Shooting For Greatness!!!" As many have told me, I have been blessed by God with a gift, and want to share it with as many people as possible. God bless.

Coach Norb Schickel
Cell: 704-942-4099
www.coachschickel.com
704-942-4099

Anonymous said...

Who is Norb? And why is he putting out a personal add in an article which he is not even recognized. I think that this is in very poor taste.

Anonymous said...

Accelerate works. Plain and simple. They make you better and the price is very reasonable considering what you get out of it. 240 dollars isnt a lot if u come 24 times per month. That is 10 dollars per session, better than any personal trainer you will find. They care about your kid and genuinely want him or her to get better. With commitment and hard work and the workouts at Accelerate, you will become a better basketball player.