Elimination of data entry and instant access to player results. If you have done any research on an athlete evaluation app, you might think these are the leading features of switching over from pen-and-paper evaluations.

With SkillShark, a top-rated athlete evaluation app that is customizable for any sport, boosts a myriad of vital features to make the evaluation process engaging and efficient for coaches, players, and parents alike.

Let’s dive into the top 5 features of SkillShark!

1. Player Report Cards

If an athlete has recently completed a tryout without making their desired team or feels they’re falling behind during practice, player feedback stands out as a fundamental avenue for improvement.

With SkillShark, player report cards are automatically created after each evaluation, whether a tryout, skills camp or mid-season evaluation. Athletes obtain a clear understanding of their performance scores on executed skills and their comparison against the team’s average.

Athlete report cards in SkillShark

Additionally, comments and videos can also be added to the player report card, enhancing the level of feedback provided to athletes and their parents.

Comments: Coaches/ evaluators can create pre-filled comments ahead of time, which can later be added to the report when an evaluation takes place.

Videos: Coaches/ evaluators can record an athlete performing a specific skill and attach the video to the report card. This enables athletes to visually observe themselves performing a skill, making it easier to apply the written feedback they are given such as, “Position your shooting elbow directly under the basketball, forming a straight line from your elbow to your wrist.”

Personally, I liked seeing the videos — I think it’s fun to see what you all are doing and shows a side of the training that we don’t see! 

Sports Parent

2. Developmental Resources

Train and develop your athletes using your very own resource library of resources: PDFs, videos, infographics, and more. Developmental resources enable athletes to improve their overall performance within a given skill(s) outside of regular practices.

How does this feature work? If a player receives less than *set score* on a specific skill (exact score will be set by you), a developmental resource, in the form of a PDF or video, will be attached at the bottom of the player’s report card.

Let’s give an example. Before your mid-season basketball evaluations, you set the criteria so that any athlete who scores below a 6 on dribbling (ranked on a scale of 1-10) will receive a YouTube video on the “Best Dribbling Techniques.” After your mid-season evaluation is complete, all athletes who scored a 6 or below on this skill will have this video automatically attached to their report card.

SkillShark is an essential tool for all youth sport organizations to take advantage of. As coaches, it is our job to provide both reinforcing and constructive comments to young athletes. SkillShark has helped immensely with our player development and provides a superior solution to our program.

Bill Edwards. Hofstra Head Coach

3. Live Event Leaderboards

Build excitement and friendly competition among your players at any event with LIVE leaderboards, ideal for combines, camps, showcases, or tryouts. Aside from building competition among players, leaderboards are equally as engaging for parents and fans as they can get a good visual of their athlete’s performance.

Did you know that our leaderboards are completely customizable and will allow you to display LIVE data at any event? As scores are inputted into SkillShark, player data is automatically synced to the leaderboard and results are instantly displayed.

Additionally, you can create groups on your live leaderboard. For instance, you can create a leaderboard group displaying Top Hitters, Top Fielders, and Top Batters for a baseball or softball combine.

4. Athlete Self-Assessments

Practices and tournaments are not usually a conducive environment for athletes to reflect on their performance. However, when athletes are provided with a self-assessment that can be completed from the comfort of their own homes, they are more likely to take the time to reflect on their performance during the season.

Self-assessments enable athletes to respond to pre-selected questions concerning their performance, mental well-being, and goals. I.e., Questions such as:

• How would you rate your dribbling ability on a scale of 1-10?
• On a scale of 1-10, how apprehensive do you feel before practices?
• What 3 skills would you like to work on before the season comes to an end?

Coaches can then leverage the data gathered from these self-assessments to further enhance their coaching approach. This could come in the form of adding additional drills to help players improve on a select skill they identified as wanting to improve. Or this could result in extra one-on-one “pep talks” after practice to dive deeper into an athlete’s mindset who identifies as nervous before practice.

5. Integrations: PocketRadar

Assessing players on hitting, pitching, and ball velocity for baseball and softball is no longer subjective. As SkillShark has recently integrated with PocketRadar, velocity metrics such as change up, drop ball, fastball, and rise ball can now be captured on a speed radar and automatically uploaded into the app.

Eliminate intricate formulas and calculations when it comes to measuring radar-related metrics. After velocity metrics are captured and imported into the SkillShark app, leverage this detailed data instantly to rank and compare players, bringing you closer to drafting top teams.

Pocket Radar Integration

Wrapping Up

What once started as an app to easily score players on a mobile device has turned into a multi-faceted software, with features focused on athlete development and engagement. Regardless of whether you are coaching new or returning players, providing clear feedback and facilitating opportunities for self-reflection can significantly enhance player development.