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Saturday, December 19, 2015

"It's a Young Man's Game"

You hear "It's a Young Man's Game" a lot in society. Youth has athleticism, speed, quick reflexes, and faster synapses. 

I cared for an eighty-year-old retired Navy captain who competed regularly against twenty-somethings in fencing at the Naval Academy. "How do you do that," I asked. "What I lack in speed and quickness, I make up for in guile." The sixth sense is EXPERIENCE. 

The average age of the men's Final Four coaches last year was 62.5 years. Three-time defending champion UCONN coach Geno Auriemma is 61. Great coaches are lifelong learners. 

Coach Steve Smiley shares observations from retired Jazz Coach Frank Layden. 

Here are some excerpts: 

  • The only thing different with today's players is the quality of the athlete. Everything else is the same. Believes the fundamentals haven't changed. 
  • "Man-Me-Ball" is still the same, most important concept of defense. (Comment: We call that Ball-You-Man)
  • Don't ever want the offense to feel comfortable.
  • Red Auerbach = "we do 6 or 7 things, but we do them very well."
  • The idea of scouting opponents = "take away 2 or 3 things that they do great."
  • Stories about Thurl Bailey in team huddles and guys aren't paying full attention at end of practice: Screaming at them, "Shut Up, the man (Coach Layden) is showing us how to win games!" (Comment: The first price you pay is to pay attention)
  • The #1 goal in college is get a degree. (Comment: My primary goal is to return better kids and better students to families at the end of the season)