By: Dan Steinberg
D.C. Sports Bog
Dave Hopla, as you might recall, is the Wizards’ shooting savant, an assistant coach who can apparently shoot the basketball better than any human, and who once made 14 million consecutive free throws.
Oleksiy Pecherov, you might recall, is the Wizards’ lanky Ukrainian prospect, a young man who’s currently outfitted in a walking boot and has recorded zero minutes in his NBA career.
Welcome to the new look for my website, DaveHopla.com. I have worked hard with my web guy Rob to update my website. I will now have a little more interactivity with everybody through this blog and even have a few surprises in store in the upcoming months. Stay tuned!
By: Dan Steinberg
The Wizards’ new assistant coach, Dave Hopla, has to be the most intriguingly bizarre assistant coach in the NBA. This is a man whose Web site brags that he is considered by many to be the top shooter in the world, regularly knocks down 495 out of 500 shots, and once made 35,332 out of 35,979 shots during a lecture series. That’s 98.20 percent. When I jump out of bed in the morning, I don’t even hit the ground 98.20 percent of the time.
By: The White President
Years ago I attended George Mason University basketball camp headed by Paul Westhead. Each day we had a guest speaker, including some NBA stars like Washington Bullet Doug Overton. (WOW!)
One day our speaker was not an NBA player, so all the kids were upset. It was a shooting coach that was going to teach us how to shoot. The guy came in and introduced himself and started to lecture about the importance of shooting. During his entire lecture, he swished foul shot after foul shot. He missed 0 shots in fifteen minutes, and was talking the entire time.
The Washington Wizards announced today the hiring of Ed Tapscott as Director of Player Development/Programs and Dave Hopla as Assistant Coach/Player Development on Head Coach Eddie Jordan’s staff. Per team policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.
Continue reading Ed Tapscott and Dave Hopla to Join Wizards Staff
Doug Smith
Sports Reporter
The Raptors are minus a staff member.
Dave Hopla, who joined the team as a basketball development consultant last season, is leaving to become an assistant coach with the Washington Wizards, NBA sources told The Star.
Widely known as one of the better shooting coaches in the NBA, Hopla joined the Raptors staff last November after earning a reputation by working with such star players as Kobe Bryant, Ray Allen and Sue Bird of the WNBA Seattle Storm.
Continue reading Shooting Coach Leaves Raptors For Washington
Dave Hopla, acknowledged as the best shooting coach in the US, was brought in to help the Raps improve their percentages in what was to be a season of 100 shots a game average. The reasoning was obvious. If you could get that many shots, and your % was in the high 40’s, you were going to score 106 – 110 per game. And your lack of defence would not be such an issue. And your lack of offensive rebounds wouldn’t hurt as much, because there would be fewer rebounds under the opponents basket to get.
I did a little looking around the internet and found out a little more about Mr. Hopla. He is a regular on the motivational speakers circuit. His talks are entertaining because he shoots hoops all through his talks, making close to 99% of his shots. His theme is Success requires Practice. Here’s a summary I found from a website featuring Massie Lectures about learning:
Continue reading Puffers Posts, Dave Hopla Shooting Coach
By: Dave Feschuk
As a recent Raptors practice broke up, the best shooter in the gym was only beginning his work. Dave Hopla, Toronto’s shooting coach, stood on the free-throw line with ball in hand and a hoop to himself. As many players headed for the showers, the swishes began to rain.
Many minutes passed until T.J. Ford, the swaggering point guard, approached Hopla, who, with one bounce and one pump of the knees, was making one free throw after another.
Hire assistant coach Hopla to make ‘adjustments’
By: Doug Smith
Sports Reporter
Dave Hopla is a self-professed shooting “guru” who makes some of his living delivering motivational speeches and now he’s going to try to help the Raptors become better marksmen with his word and his deeds.
The team has hired Hopla as a “basketball development consultant,” which is a gussied-up title for shooting coach.
And for a squad that’s among the worst shooting teams in the NBA, any little bit of help can’t hurt.
Continue reading Raptors Take Aim At Better Shooting Numbers
Aim is to Improve Accuracy
By: Mike Koreen
Toronto Sun
At best, the Raptors have hired the perfect guy to lead the team out of its season-long shooting slump.
At worst, they have another man to keep an eye on those evil road scorekeepers.
Dave Hopla, who, according to his personal web site, is “considered by many to be the top shooter in the world,” is back with the Raptors for the second time in the past three years. But this time he has a more significant role.