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Tuesday, September 17, 2024

Basketball: Navigating Hard Conversations

Better job performance often depends on communication and collaboration. Acquiring more tools including artificial intelligence can raise our effectiveness.

Here's a link for possible prompts for AI. 

And here's a conversation that ChatGPT generated for a hard conversation with a player:  

Introduction: "Hey [Player's Name], do you have a moment? I want to have an honest conversation with you about your role on the team moving forward."

Acknowledgement of Contributions: "First, I want to acknowledge your dedication to the team. You've put in years of hard work, and your leadership and experience are truly valued by the coaching staff and your teammates. You've been a big part of our success."

Statement of the Issue: "However, I’ve had to make some tough decisions regarding playing time and how we structure our rotations. Based on what I’ve seen in practice and during games, your role on the court is going to be reduced. I know this isn’t what you want to hear, and it's a difficult conversation for me to have because I respect you as a player and as a leader."

Explanation: "This decision comes down to what’s best for the team. We're at a point where certain matchups and skill sets are more effective for the direction we need to go. I’ve noticed that [mention specific areas: e.g., speed, reaction time, or other technical/strategic aspects] have been areas where others have been contributing more lately, and that’s influencing these choices."

Acknowledge the Challenge: "I know this is frustrating, especially given how much effort you’ve put in over the years. It’s not a reflection of your overall abilities, but more about the team’s current needs."

Invitation for Dialogue: "I want to give you space to share your thoughts on this. It’s important to me that we’re on the same page, and I’d like to hear how you're feeling about it."

Future Role: "Moving forward, I still see you playing an important role off the court, especially in guiding the younger players. Your experience is invaluable. I also want to be clear that this doesn’t mean the door is closed for you in terms of more playing time, but that will depend on how things evolve in practice and competition."

Support and Expectations: "If you’re willing, I’d love for you to stay engaged and continue pushing in practice. If there’s anything specific you’d like to work on or talk about improving, I’m here to help. I want to make sure you’re getting the support you need to be the best version of yourself."

Closing: "Again, I respect you, and I know this isn't easy to hear. If you need time to process this or want to revisit this conversation, just let me know. I’m here to support you however I can."

There's no magic formula and a computer script won't make hard easy. 

  • Always have another adult in the room during such a conversation. What you say and what players say they heard differ. 
  • Some coaches notify their superiors (e.g. ADs, Program Directors) before major changes. 
  • A study examined human versus machine learning creativity with independent judges. The machine won 35/40. 
Lagniappe. ChatGPT (AI) has advantages to assist with regular, high volume communications. It may help with some Email, report generation, and business/coaching presentations. 

Lagniappe 2. I've been fortunate to have groups with a post player who trained up. Hoops Companion suggests other ways to attack the rim. 

Lagniappe 3. Keep analogies in your back pocket. Ted Lasso had "Be a goldfish with a ten second memory. Here's a penguin lesson. 

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