Coaching: Basketball Organization, The Toolbox Never Gets Criticism or Credit

Praise goes to the carpenter or the tools, but seldom the toolbox. You know the expression, "It's a poor workman who blames his tools." Never, "it's a poor workman who blames his toolbox."

As butchers, bakers, and coaches, we accumulate tools unique to our profession. Tools are concepts, objects (Coach Izzo's football helmets and shoulder pads to teach rebounding), libraries of books, videos, and drills, and style from master of the living room to professor to dictator. Most of us combine tools including previously described "tools of refinement." 

But what comprises our metaphorical toolbox? Methods are to our toolbox as books are to a library. 

Our toolbox is unique and complex. It blends our millions of synapses and the physical Fort Knox holding our playbook, drills, practice schedules, and myriad of coaching resources. It holds the wisdom of mentors and the lessons of victory and defeat. 

What builds a better toolbox? Toolboxes are flexible. The toolbox expands or contracts as we revise the content and mixture. We apply it through technology transfer into our players and teams and the broader basketball community. Tools are only as good as the craftsman who wields them. 

What belongs on the top levels of the toolbox? In Stephen King's metaphorical toolbox, he includes vocabulary, grammar, and the paragraph. Our basketball toolbox drawers, includes philosophy, structure, shields, experience, and miscellaneous tools. 

Philosophy. Just as no single Greek philosophy dominates, basketball evolves. The Eras of "Post Centrality" yielded to Transition, Triangle, and the New Age blending perimeter play, basket attack, and free throws under the umbrella of Nerdball. Dominant philosophies "trickle down" to lower levels as coaches adopt styles of professionals. It's neither seamless or painless as we watch "airball after airball" at developmental levels. 

Structure. The second draw of the toolbox holds "architectural" tools to build offenses. Proponents of one or another structure (e.g. dribble drive, Princeton offense, Horns, read-and-react) compete for the attention (and dollars) of the educational community. 

Shields. We could call the third draw "Kryptonite" because its where we store the individual and collective tools designed to defeat Superman. In an era of offensive excellence, building better defensive players and systems to contain irresistible forces is the frontier. Sculpting mobile, switchable defenders comes from tools in this level. 

Winning the hearts and minds of the basketball world is tough. Followers of Kenny Rogers understand...

Every gambler knows
That the secret to survivin'
Is knowin' what to throw away
And knowin' what to keep
'Cause every hand's a winner
And every hand's a loser
And the best that you can hope for
Is to die in your sleep."

Refine our toolboxes. 

Lagniappe. "The only easy day...the hand of God...and second chances." 

Lagniappe 2. Writing advice from Stephen King in On Writing: "I would argue that the paragraph, not the sentence, is the basic unit of writing—the place where coherence begins and words stand a chance of becoming more than mere words."