Hard Coaching

What is "hard coaching?"

After a bad (JV) loss in 1971, Coach had us run for two hours. Didn't touch a ball, didn't play basketball. That wasn't hard coaching. It was dumb coaching. We lost because our opponents were better and we couldn't break their press. Punishing players for lack of skill or team coordination reflects primarily on the coach. 

After a UCONN practice, Geno Auriemma took questions. One was, "Were you nice to the 'girls' (including Breanna Stewart) because there were fans here?" He said, "I'm nice because they are babies. If I yell at them, they'll say, "Coach hates me.""

Everyone has their own definition of hard coaching. 

• Yelling. 
• More conditioning.
• Physicality during practice. 
• Task-oriented versus relationship-oriented coaching. 
• Truth telling 

Coaching well means effective problem solving. Coaching well impacts behavior, "compete level" and putting teams in the best position to win.

The psychological term is "deliberate practice." Here's an AI Assist:

“Deliberate practice” comes from the work of psychologist K. Anders Ericsson and colleagues, especially their 1993 paper on expert performance.

Ericsson used the term much more narrowly than it is commonly used today. It did not simply mean practicing hard, practicing often, or repeating a skill.

A good original-definition version is:

Deliberate practice is highly structured training specifically designed to improve performance by working on weaknesses just beyond one’s current ability, with immediate feedback, correction, and repeated refinement.

Its defining elements are:

• A specific improvement target. Not “work on shooting,” but perhaps “improve left-hand finishes against contact.”
• Tasks deliberately chosen to stretch present ability.
• Full attention and effort. Ericsson emphasized that this kind of practice is mentally demanding and cannot be sustained indefinitely.
• Immediate or rapid feedback.
• Correction and repetition. The performer modifies the action based on the feedback.
• Often a teacher or coach designs the work. This was important in Ericsson’s original conception because novices often cannot accurately identify their own deficiencies.
• Practice is primarily for improvement, not enjoyment or competition. Ericsson explicitly distinguished deliberate practice from play and from simply performing the activity.

That last distinction is useful in basketball. Playing five-on-five for two hours isn't necessarily deliberate practice. Nor is taking 500 comfortable shots from familiar spots.

A player who struggles to finish left-handed might instead spend a concentrated block attacking from one specific angle, receiving immediate feedback about footwork and release, progressively increasing defensive pressure, and repeatedly correcting errors. That is much closer to Ericsson's deliberate practice. 

One Sunday night, I showed Cecilia Kay (a rising eighth grader, the only player who showed up for extra training), reverse layups. She struggled with the footwork and didn't make many. 

The following Sunday, she made most of them on corner drives, from either side of the hoop. 

In the state championship against a team that dominated her team twice, she made two reverse layups, and her team lost by four, within two points in the final minute. 

Hard coaching impacts player development, preparation, and winning. Hard coaching isn't about "ego repair" because the coach's feelings were hurt or because she didn't have the team ready to play. 

Solve problems. Do your job. 

Lagniappe. "I'm here for all the smoke." 

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Best Basketball Metaphors

Metaphors abound, figures of speech where a word or phrase showing one thing shows another, making a direct comparison. Simplified, two distinct entities are stated as "x is y." Think "a bear of a man." 

Metaphors can move us. "Our offense thrived when we faced defenses that were sieves." 

After a loss, we welcomed the media in the locker room about as eagerly as we enjoyed "ants at a picnic." 

A plague of injuries descended as "teardrops in an ocean of sorrow."

Before long she became "The Franchise." 

The team's shot selection was no better than that of a blind monkey. 

Was the coach vaccinated with a phonograph needle? They called her “T” short for TMI - too much information. 

Not playmakers, the team's guards hoarded the basketball with Scrooge-like passion. 

The walk from the parking lot to the gym was about a five-dollar cab ride. 

Bad bounces became the norm, waves in a season drowning with bad luck.

Players absorbed her coaching with the attitude of energized toddlers told that it was nap time. 

"If brains were gunpowder, his team traveled light."

The coach decided to bypass a film session as he couldn't decide whether it was "Looney Toons" or Greek tragedy.  

She accepted her fewer minutes with the goodwill of a shark being robbed of a meal. 

His idea of shot selection never strayed. “The shot was available. Whether it was advisable was another matter.”

Confidence and performance differ. “Her confidence often arrived several possessions before the evidence.”

Mike's role of "foul machine" filled a need we had no use for. 

To paraphrase Churchill, "Wins are unreachable destination if you stop and throw stones at every barking dog." 

“She never met a shot she didn't like.”

Hit the floor like a starving man on a Christmas ham.

She played with so joyfully that we called her "Disney." 

Metaphors aren't necessary but they help us get our point across. 

Lagniappe. Find things to steal. 

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Basketball - Hard Times

“If it’s hard to write, then it’s probably worth writing.” - Neal Allen and Anne Lamott in “Good Writing”

Kara Lawson says, “Handle hard better.” Truth can be hard to tell, to take, or to write.  

Winning a Trade.

"Experts" grade deals immediately. Media and fans lose their minds overnight as they think another GM has fleeced theirs. Results often take years to reveal who 'won'. In "Never Split the Difference," Chris Voss wrote, "Negotiation is not an act of battle; it’s a process of discovery. The goal is to uncover as much information as possible."

Maybe trading Jaylen Brown dooms the Celtics to mediocrity. Maybe it will take awhile to know.  

“The Know-Nothing Party”

Some feel that Bird, Magic, and Jordan saved the NBA. There is always a crisis to resolve. In the late 1850s, the "Know-Nothing Party" arose as anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic. The US slavery crisis overwhelmed the former and the Know-Nothings disappeared. Knowing-Nothing shapes a weak ideology. 

“Who Died and Made You King?”

Mom used to say, "Who died and made you king?" In the television hit "Cheers," Cliff Claven was a "know-it-all" postman with thankfully "little known facts." New basketball fans share their imagined wisdom. And one "pundit" described a WNBA star as the "white Steph Curry." Do better.  

“Doubting Thomas”

"Seeing is believing." A potent argument for skepticism arises from a lack of skepticism. Sometimes a sun is the center of a planetary system. Sometimes it's complicated. After Indiana was eliminated, some said the WNBA interest was done. What if "disconfirming evidence" appears? 

“People only pack arenas in the WNBA because of Caitlin Clark” Atlanta in game 1 of the semifinals. https://t.co/c5qF95H3Ov

— We Here Now 😎 (@AngeShedeway) October 4, 2026

Our experience and knowledge, however great, still result in uncertainty and misjudgments. 

Lagniappe. Clear a side and exploit it with the SLOB. 

SLOB Blind Pig A special call to look for a sneaky bucket Empty the back side and time up the hard curl to hit it on the fly https://t.co/PcOPQU5Gi8

— Matt Hackenberg (@CoachHackGO) September 21, 2026

Basketball - Are You a Better Coach?

What have you done to become a better coach? 

Like General Hal Moore, "Find one more thing..." 

Experience shapes our coaches, sometimes negative experience. "Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want."  

Experience the Whole League

Ironically, basketball throws us "softballs" and right hooks. What percentage of games are won mostly because one team shows up prepared and fully engaged and the other something less? 

With the talent in the NBA, if a team could show up fully 'juiced' every night, could they win thirty-five games? 

Areas to Improve Upon

Mazzulla's concept of learning from the 10-15 bad possessions each night, if embraced and seldom repeated, would make all the difference in the world. Coach's say over and over:

Find quality shots, take care of the ball, allow only "hard twos" and let's foul intelligently. And it's hard to get the message across.  

Whom Do I Want to Become?

Seek contribution, not validation. I've written Picasso's words fifty times, "Good artists borrow; great artists steal." Be eclectic and steal something great wherever you can. 

A Product of the Experiences That You Go Through

Life brings joy and sadness, exhilaration and misery. Share what worked and what brought excruciating pain to you as a player and as a coach. Support players when the "worst play ever" happens. 

More Experiences 

Learn better teaching methods. Study player development, psychology, and strength and conditioning. That doesn't mean we have to be the Mighty Oz. Use the resources available to make others and ourselves better. 

I knew a doctor assigned to a high value operation. He was smart, well-trained, and arrogant. "I can keep anyone alive for 24 hours." That works until it doesn't, in war zones, industrial accidents, and critical illness. There are only two kinds of people - humble and those who will be. 

Lagniappe. This sounds about right. And difficult and not entertaining, because defense means work, pain, and suffering. 

 

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Ten Best Lessons from Basketball Losses

Learn from every experience. Losses often teach more. Compile your lessons as a coach and as a player.

1. "Control what you can control." If a player "goes off" and 'shoots the lights out', did we adjust by trying to deny her the ball, keep her from her 'spots', and contest the shots without fouling? 

2. Stay positive. "Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater." Build on the positives, while recognizing needs. 

3. Be accountable. Never allow results to become, "winning reflects coaching and losing results from playing." 

4. Toughness is a skill. Train players via the weight room and physical practice to meet the challenge of physical teams. "How you play reflects how you live your life."

5. "Be on the same page." Losing a game because of confusion about our principles (e.g. PnR coverage) causes lasting psychological pain. As coaches, we are accountable. 

6. Shot selection is not a suggestion. Players need to know and adhere to what good shots are for them. As Bilas says, "It's not your shot, it's our shot." 

7. "Don't be in a rush to win" out of the box. Being in a rush to force pressure or transition when an opponent has physical advantages or preparation can cause quick deficits. Play uphill against strong teams at your risk. 

8. "Foul for profit." - Kevin Sivils  Fouling perimeter shots, threes, late shot clock, bad shots, or frustration fouls are unacceptable. 

9. "Watch more video." Reduce failed pattern recognition and low basketball basketball IQ. Keep a "video library" in a journal or electronic media like a spreadsheet. 

10.Make sportsmanship an entree not an occasional side dish. How players and coaches conduct themselves on the court impacts how they live. "How you do anything is how you do everything." 

Lagniappe. "The quality of the shot relates to the quality of the pass." - Pete Carril   There's data. In shooting drills, emphasize pass quality. 

NBA catch-and-shoot threes went in at 42% off a strike-zone pass and 29% off a bad one.

That made me think about something we rarely talk about: the defender who affects the shot might not be the one closing out.

New newsletter: https://t.co/DtdoSN5FQv pic.twitter.com/QMWDX2neSu

— Mike Jagacki (@Mike_Jagacki) September 29, 2026

Basketball Cliches

What we don't know can hurt us. 

Everyone has heard 'the first rule of medicine' - "Do no harm." Ever heard of rule 1b? "Never dump work on your coworker." 

“Defense wins championships.”

Or does excellent basketball win championships? You cannot win a game 0-0. And you won't make your high school team as a defensive demon with the offensive skills of an octopus. They say you have to play both ends, but the news disputes that. 

“Take what the defense gives you.”

That's works until they give you nothing. As Mike Tyson said, "Everyone has a plan until they get hit in the mouth." 

“Play one possession at a time.”

Taken literally, what alternative do you have? Never has anyone described game planning, "one possession planning." There's a line in The Transformers (1986), “Would you like to beg for your lives? It sometimes helps… but not often.” Preparation beats false hope. 

“The ball has energy.”

The ball does not. Players create energy by moving the ball before the defense can recover. 

“Good teams find a way to win.”

Sometimes. Bad teams find a way to lose. Sometimes bad teams find a way to win..or two bad teams play each other.

“You can't teach size.”

Size, athleticism, and skill are raw materials. Meatloaf sang, "Two out of three ain't bad."

“It's a make-or-miss game.”

Ignores everything the where, when, and by whom those shots arise. "Bad shooters are always open."

“Feed the hot hand.”

The Hot Hand Theory has supporters. Then the "heat check" results in the cool hand. 

“Players make plays.”

Coach K said it another way (loaded with talent) - "Basketball isn't about running plays; it's about making plays."

 
“We need to want it more.”

The worst broadcasters say, "It's all about which team wants it more." That's a load of hoarse manure. Find players who want to screen, sprint back, box out, communicate, and make the extra pass.

 
“Leave it all on the floor.”

Playing hard won't hurt. Without enough talent, you'll be more fun to watch and lose a lot. 

“Control what you can control.”

Yogi Berra would love this foundational principle of Stoicism. "Their guys better not control more than we can." If you have players that confuse back door with screen (door), then it's a long winter. 

“Trust the process.”

Only if the process deserves trust. Repeating a flawed process with conviction doesn't cut the mustard. 

"Success Is a Choice." 

I'm picking on Coach Pitino's book title because coaching at a school without football is a choice, allowing you to pay your guys more. He practices what he preaches. 

Lagniappe. Dean Smith met with players regularly. Cody Royle shares details. 

Developing a Basketball Ecosystem - "What Everyone Knows"

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." - Chinese Proverb

Basketball offenses evolved with rules changes, concept changes, and player development.

New and experienced coaches can benefit from rethinking ideas and approaches. There is not always an analogy. In Golf Is not a Game of Perfect, Dr. Bob Rotella recommends walking the course backwards from hole to tee to plan course management. That won't work "rim to top." 

Coaches often hear, "everyone knows that." Everyone knows to take good shots, limit turnovers, win the rebounding battle, limit transition hoops, deny direct drives, don't commit dumb fouls, allow "one bad shot." And in every game, what everyone knows gets ignored or forgotten. 

Share concepts:

• Player development
• Creating advantage
• Understanding the 'chain' of offense
• Exploiting defensive mistakes 
• A favored ecosystem

Player Development

Each player could envision "four ways to score" from among offensive rebounding, free throws, drives, shooting, cutting to name a few. 

That applies to 'common plays' such as PnR ballhandler, PnR roller, give-and-go, and individual actions from the wing and post. 

Among those individual actions, each player should develop a "go to" and "counter" move. The player has to have them in "their bag."  

 Creating Advantage

Advantage comes from separation and finishing. 

Separation is with or without the dribble, with cutting and/or screening. Screeners adopt "the screener is the second cutter." 

The Chain of Offense

The chain links spacing, to player and ball movement, to the "scoring moment." Contemporary basketball emphasizes layups, threes, and free throws as the "high velocity scoring moments."  

Exploiting Defensive Mistakes

In "Why the Best Are the Best" Kevin Eastman explained that the 2008 NBA Champion Celtics allowed 32 points in a game against the Lakers because of defensive mistakes and errors. Do we believe that high schoolers will make fewer mistakes? 

Common mistakes are missed assignments, poor communication, unchallenged shots, lack of help, poor defensive rebounding, and undisciplined fouling.  

Inhabiting Your Ecosystem 

Explain clearly to your team your expectations with specifics (examples)

• "Playing hard" means ball containment, no middle, limiting transition via specifics
• Sending 2 or 3 to the offensive boards (your choice, not theirs)
• "Greenlighting" specific players taking three-pointers
• Specifying pick-and-roll coverages  
• Observers should have a clear idea about offensive and defensive intent. If they can't, is it a clarity of purpose issue or execution?  

Patriots special assistant Ernie Adams kept a sign on his desk, "Stamp out bad football." A sign isn't necessary, but make the intent so. 

Lagniappe. Coach Hoiberg focuses on preparing his team for what they will see the most. 

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Lagniappe 2. A Hollywood analogy from Coach Chiesa 

A successful team is similar to a "hit" movie. Each template has 1) talented stars 2) skilled supporting cast 3) behind the scene contributions 4) inspiring director. All the components working in selfless harmony on set. #OscarNight

— Gordon Chiesa (@gchiesaohmy) March 15, 2026

 

Basketball - The "Third Eye"

Factors affect us beyond consciousness. In "The Mazarin Stone," Sherlock Holmes tells Dr. Watson that he will watch him in absentia with "the third eye." The third eye is intuition.  

Research on expertise, from chess masters to clinicians, shows that the experienced see patterns that novices literally do not. That is the rational core of what traditions have called an inner eye.

Pattern recognition belongs to observant basketball minds. 

The "third eye" saw this action before it evolved. The defense did not. 

Intuition sees actions yet to unfold

• Back cut
• Slipped screen
• Rejected ball screen
• Stolen wing-to-top pass
• Chance to take a charge 
• Corner cut to rebound
• Evolving flex action
• Zoom action 

"See the game" before it happens 

• Play a lot 
• Watch your video
• Study video with commentary/annotation

Scout with Bryan is one of the best sites with commentary 

Lagniappe. Of course, scoring matters. So does everything else. 

One of the best things you can teach a young player:

You don't need to score to play well.

Defend.

Rebound.

Sprint.

Communicate.

Cut.

Screen.

Make the extra pass.

There are a lot of ways to impact winning.

— Pat Freeman (@pwfree23) September 30, 2026

Basketball - The Unit of Play Is the Possession

Depending on the level of play, a game features 70 to 100 possessions each for offense and defense.

The unit of action crosses domains:

Writing inhabits sentences.

Baseball informs "the pitch."  

Screenwriting portrays the scene. 

Playing "harder for longer" implies the ability to maintain focus and "win more possessions." Celtics Coach Joe Mazzulla emphasizes post-game the 10-15 possessions that you'd want to do over. 

• Poor transition defense
• Noncompetitive shots
• Fouling perimeter shots

In football, Bill Belichick says that every game has five or six "gotta have it" possessions. In basketball, the number approaches zero in blowouts and more in nail-biters. 

Still, some possessions are eye-openers. Watch more video with players. 

A'ja Wilson personifies the "possession ender." She blocks the shot and gathers the rebound. 

Shot creation is a dramatic evolution in the women's game. Gray goes full-on Jerry West with a hard "pound dribble" into a mid-range bucket. 

Understand tendencies. Going left, Clark looks to "pull." Drop coverage on the PnR plays into this. 

Basketball is a "game of separation." Separate with the dribble, the cut, and combination including screening and cutting. The Aces run a beautiful staggered screen and earn an easy deuce. 

"Below the rim" doesn't imply a lack of craft. Gray leverages the PnR, keeping Clark on her hip, drawing two, and getting an assist. 

Earn success "possession by possession" with exceptional anticipation and game understanding.

Lagniappe. There's far more to basketball than X's and O's...everything matters. 

Stay in coaching long enough and you realize X’s and O’s are the easy part. Communication, culture, adaptability, and seeing things as they are matter more than scheme ever will. Scheme doesn’t always win Friday. Sometimes the other stuff has to.

— Coach Lowe (@CoachLoweIA) September 26, 2026

Basketball Resets

Everyone loses focus.

Learning mindfulness, give yourself grace when your mind wanders. Return to the breath. Listening works the same. During a podcast, film session, or classroom lecture, someone else's thoughts disappear among ours.

Basketball players wander, too. They return to the missed shot, the bad call, who's watching, playing time, or a possession three trips ago. The important skill isn't perfect concentration. It's coming back.

Productive people reset better.

Rubber Bands

Complaints aren't solutions. Action directs solutions.

Put a colored rubber band around one wrist. Each time you complain, move it to the other wrist. This creates awareness. Awareness interrupts the habit.

The basketball applications are obvious. Bad call? Move the band. Coach took you out? Move the band. “I'm tired.” “We can't guard them.” Move the band.

Wooden's standard applies: "Don't whine. Don't complain. Don't make excuses." The band says, "return to what you control: the next possession."

Paper Clips

Salespeople face the dreaded cold call. Contacts are like fishing. You can't catch anything without a line in the water.

One salesman kept two jars on his desk. One held 100 paper clips; the other was empty. Every time he made a sales call, he moved one clip. His job wasn't to make a sale. His job was to empty the jar. He became the sales leader by "brute forcing" sales. 

Basketball players can do the same.

Put 50 clips in one cup. Move one after every correctly executed weak-hand finish. Or every five made free throws. Or every possession of film reviewed with a notebook entry.

Don't say, “I need to become a better shooter.” Move the clips.

Winners Are Trackers

Darren Hardy writes, “Winners are trackers” in The Compound Effect. 

As a kid, I tracked free throws on old-school graph paper. My goal was eventually to make at least 90 of 100 every day. It took years to get there.

I made 100 of 100 only twice. Graphing measured shooting, concentration and will. Making free throw number 93 after missing number 92 is different from free shooting.

Track what matters. Free throws. Turnovers. Offensive rebounds. Deflections. Strength work. Sleep. Film study. What we measure, we value. 

Pomodoro

Learning is fundamental to sport.

The free Coursera course Learning How to Learn teaches the Pomodoro technique: concentrate for about 25 minutes, then take a short break. That works for athletes, too.

Twenty-five minutes of focused film study is better than an hour of “watching film” while checking your phone.

Attention is finite. Be intent. Recover. Repeat. Keep the main thing the main thing.

Schedule the Work

James Clear ("Atomic Habits") writes about the power of systems and consistency. Large outputs come from small amounts of work repeated relentlessly.

Three pages a day eventually becomes a book in a hundred days. 

1,000 summer shots a day became Kobe Bryant. 

Coach, writer, and speaker Kevin Eastman described reading for two hours a day. Every day. Over time, the accumulation becomes massive. 

Sarah Blakely says, "Obsess the product." Serious people schedule what matters.

Players often tell us they want more playing time, starting, all-League recognition, championships. "Show your work."

Nobody stays perfectly focused. Great players feel frustration, distraction, or disappointment. They reset their better. 

Lagniappe. Excel in your role, while working to expand it. 

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Basketball - What Is Your Superpower as a Coach?

What is your superpower as a coach?

A Dick Bennett acolyte might offer a combination of:

• Passion
• Unity
• Servant Leadership
• Thankfulness (Gratitude)
• Humility

Any discussion of humility would require mention of Benjamin Franklin's thirteen virtues. 

And Franklin realized his limitations. Paraphrasing about humility, he offered, "If I should ever achieve it, then surely I would be proud." 

Intangibles can only take you so far. 

The most successful coaches master combinations of: 

• Recruiting (nobody wins without talent)
• Resources (The compensation arms race is a battleground)
• Player development/Teaching (surround yourself with good people) 
• Leadership and Culture
• Attitude (Jay Wright as a paradigm)
• Organizational skills 

I think it was Danny Hurley who said that the process is streamlined because coaches can eliminate some recruits by asking, "What's your number?"

Teddy Roosevelt understood that "Comparison is the thief of joy." Any discussion of 'the greatest' becomes tainted by "Yeah, but" with qualifiers like, "If not for Sam Gilbert" or "If not for Michael Jordan" or "I never got the endless stream of first round talent." 

So what does an aspiring coach need to do?

1. Decide what she needs to do and what sacrifices are doable?

2. If (1) is a go, commit to your process.

3. Learn every day. 

4. Accept an 'apprenticeship', ideally with a good teacher. If you don't surround yourself with good people, success is unlikely. 

5. Find a mentor or mentors.

6. Study the game (video, books, clinics, websites, blogs)

7. Make player development a high priority.

8. Study great coaches but be authentic to yourself. 

9. Work on resilience. Mindfulness can help. Mira Nair said, "You need the soul of a poet and the hide of an elephant." 

10.Maintain perspective. If you have to be the smartest guy in the room, then you will need to find smaller rooms.

In her MasterClass, Helen Mirren was asked what it takes to be successful. Her answer was brief. "First, always be on time. Second, never be an a*hole." In the infinite universe, I'm a nobody without a superpower. I can live with that. 

Lagniappe. "First above all to thine own self be true." 

Joe Mazulla says he got rejected for the Utah Jazz head coaching job because he tried too hard to win the interview, and says he’ll never wear a suit again on an interview

“The first thing I learned? I’m never wearing a suit again. I wore one there, and I felt too uncomfortable.… pic.twitter.com/JRWCi3Vgl3

— Josh Chambers (@JoshChambers) September 26, 2026

Coaching Truths*

*Adapted from my volleyball blog

Every coach develops a philosophy, intentionally, habitually. Mine is imperfect and still evolving, but these are the principles I work on. 

1. Coaches are truth tellers.
Tell players what they need to hear, not simply what they want to hear. Growth begins with honest feedback delivered with respect. The truth does not always land smoothly. 

2. Coaches and players succeed together.
A coach depends on the performance of individual players and the team. The notion that a coach wants a player to fail rarely survives a moment of honest reflection. When players improve, everyone wins.

3. Coaching is a privilege.
Brad Stevens said, "Coaches get more than we give." The opportunity to teach, challenge, and encourage young people is an honor. The greatest rewards often come years later when former players return with gratitude and stories about lessons that lasted. Players craft the memories. 

4. Speak greatness.
There is a profound difference between saying, "You did well, but..." and "You did well, and..." One language closes the conversation. The other builds on success while inviting continued improvement.

5. Correct without discouraging.
John Wooden often placed correction between genuine praise - a "sandwich" of encouragement, instruction, and confidence. Players should leave a conversation believing they can become better.

6. Build with positives.
Research consistently shows that healthy relationships require many more positive interactions than negative ones. Coaching should challenge players and create confidence, hope, and belief.

7. Coach with conviction.
Bob Knight famously observed, "If you listen to the fans in the stands, soon you will be up there sitting next to them." Coaches should listen thoughtfully to others. Decisions ultimately rest on principle, preparation, and judgment.

8. Coaches do have favorites.
Not favorite people - favorite habits. We naturally value players who arrive early, work hard, compete relentlessly, accept coaching, and put the team first. Those behaviors are available to everyone.

9. Never underestimate encouragement.
Few moments are more satisfying than honestly telling a player, "Good job," "Thank you," or, on rare occasions, "You're one of the best I've ever coached." Authentic praise endures.

10. Trust determines opportunity.
Talent matters, but trust determines who is on the floor when the game matters most. Reliability, discipline, and good decisions earn opportunities.

11. Never be a child's last coach.
Every athlete should leave your program believing that sports enriched their life, regardless of playing time or wins and losses.

12. Accept that criticism is inevitable.
No coach earns universal admiration. Leadership demands difficult decisions that cannot satisfy everyone. If you need unconditional approval, you're in the wrong profession.

13. Remember the Prime Directive.
Parents naturally place the well-being, role, recognition, and playing time of their own child ahead of the needs of the team. Coaches must respectfully acknowledge that reality (The Prime Directive) while committing to giving the entire team the best chance to succeed.

14. Protect everyone.
When difficult conversations are necessary, have another adult present whenever possible. Document important discussions and decisions. Keep them private to avoid shame or embarrassment. Transparency protects players, families, and coaches alike.

15. Ask the hard question.
"What does it feel like to be coached by me?"

Players deserve honesty, accountability, respect, and hope. Seek feedback, reflect on methods, and strive to become better teachers and better people. 

Coaching is ultimately about relationships. Wins matter. Championships matter. But years later, players rarely remember every score. They remember how sports challenged them, how coaches treated them, and whether their coach cared about helping them improve as a player and person.

Learn every day. Teach what you know. Leave every player better than you found them.

Lagniappe. Overcome adversity. Women need to be seen and heard. 

 

Basketball - The Daily Laws

Robert Greene is the best selling author of "Mastery" and the "48 Laws of Power." His "Daily Laws" also has adherents. How can we apply them to coaching? What are our "daily laws?"

Here are ten paraphrased recurring ideas from The Daily Laws: 

Extracted and edited

Master your emotions. 

Reacting on impulse hands control to other people, so detachment is a source of power. Note: we can't control much of what happens to us, although we control how we respond. Few good things happen when we lose emotional regulation. Books like "Moby Dick" share the destructive power of emotion. What's the first thing you think of about Woody Hayes? 

Study people, not just their words. 

Motives and insecurities explain behavior better than what people say about themselves. Note: Some say the biggest personalities have the greatest insecurities. Seek contribution not validation. The "never enough" person can lose boundaries when interacting with others. 

Treat learning as an apprenticeship. 

Deep skill comes from years of patient, deliberate practice, not shortcuts. Note: "Mentoring is the only shortcut to excellence." When we've received mentorship, pay it forward. "10,000 hours" might not be correct, but overnight expertise doesn't happen. 

Find your life's task. 

Your calling shows up in what you were drawn to early. Note: Confucius said, "Do what you love and you don't work a day in your life." That may be an exaggeration. 

Think long-term. 

Strategy means anticipating moves ahead instead of reacting to each. Note: Most of the time, chess is a poor metaphor for basketball. My high school coach, Ellis Lane, assumed a 3-17 program with poor infrastructure and won a top division sectional title in three years. 

 However, with experience we may anticipate actions such as backdoor cuts or Iverson action.

Keep a journal or "commonplace book" about what the game has taught. 

Guard your image. 

Mystery maintains curiosity. Overexposure can dampen influence. Note: Great coaches like Don Meyer, Wooden, and Dean Smith shared lessons freely. Reputation takes years to develop and minutes to destroy. Brand is not the same as character. 

Expect envy and hidden aggression. 

Society loves to watch the mighty fall. Deserve success based upon work ethic and how you treat others. Remember Nassim Taleb's Silver Rule, "Do not do to others what you would not want them to do to you." Note: Being an a*hole plays into the desires of others.

 
Stay adaptable. 

Rigid plans break under pressure. Remain flexible and stay open to change tactics. Note: Stay constant with values and standards but open to new ideas.

 
Win with actions, not arguments. 

Demonstration changes minds far more than debating it. Note: for example, a Galton Board shows the spectrum of possibilities from 'random' events.

 
Confront your own shadow. 

Blind spots and self-deception cause the most damage when ignored. Note: "Life is about the management of risk."  

What are our daily laws? Consider to making a bigger list and whittling it to something manageable. 

1. Learn every day. (Kevin Eastman's advice to read for two hours daily is rational for developing expertise.) Basketball is public domain and only constrained by imagination. 

2. Share something great. (Every missive won't be life-changing.)

3. Be a credit giver not a credit taker. (Adam Grant's "Give and Take" provides many examples.) 

4. Consider the first order consequences and beyond. "I wonder..."

5. Seek balance. (Extremes create special, unanticipated risks.)

Lagniappe. "Eyes sell lies." 

Eyes Sell Lies.

Most guards look right where they're about to pass. That's not court vision — that's a gift to the defense. You don't even have to guess what a guard like that is doing. Just watch his eyes.

Great guards do the opposite. They stare one way and go another. They… pic.twitter.com/bOSlYXYtsE

— PGC Basketball - Point Guard College (@PGCbasketball) September 23, 2026