Basketball - Mantras

"The term mantra originates from ancient Sanskrit, derived from the root man ("to think") and the suffix -tra ("instrument"), literally translating to "instrument of thought." - Brave AI

Think of mantra as another form of "self-talk." We become what we think. 

In 10-Minute Toughness, Jason Selk promotes an "identity statement" and a "performance statement." This reduces to:

• "This is who we are."
• "That is what we do."

We were the second place team in a tough league that had won the lion's share of the State Championships over the prior twenty years. Before our first playoff game, Coach Ellis Lane told us, "These guys are good; they can give you a game." Players looked at each other in disbelief. We led 45-10 at halftime. 

"I'll make it" was rooted in practice. 

“Great moments are born from great opportunity.” - from Miracle (Coach Herb Brooks)

"Being perfect is not about the scoreboard." - from "Friday Night Lights"

"Own the possession." Games are a sum of individual possessions. Success in individual possessions creates a high probability of success. 

"Play through contact." Basketball is not a contact sport. It is a collision sport. 

"Scoreboard not scorebook" Commit to playing for the team not individual statistics. This restates playing for the name on the front of the uniform not the back. 

"The ball has energy." Sharing the ball energizes the team and creates opportunities for everyone. 

Players have the opportunity and obligation to put themselves and their team in a position to succeed. As Coach Wooden remarked, "Happiness begins where selfishness ends."

Lagniappe. The best players 1) make everyone around them better, 2) find solutions to complex problems, and 3) do so in the moment. 

Billy Donovan said, "Mistakes are going to happen."

"But it's how you collectively respond to overcome what it's in front of you."

Success is never mistake-free. It's about your response to those setbacks.
• Respond > React
• Accountability > Blame
• Growth > Shame pic.twitter.com/lhsEkwqIcG

— Coach AJ 🎯 Mental Fitness (@coachajkings) June 10, 2026

Basketball - The High Value Person

You may not know of Ernie Adams, the man called "Belichick's Belichick." Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett's partner, was "Buffett's Buffet."

Munger who recently passed at age 99, emphasized character and decision-making. Steve Burns wrote a lengthy piece on Munger which I've shortened.

Munger's principles work for basketball and life. 

1. You Focus on Deserving What You Want

Success is a choice and work is the entry fee on that path. You get what you earn. 

Basketball: Michael Jordan's and Kobe Bryant's practice work ethic... practice hard so games are easy. 

2. You Are a “Learning Machine”

Become a lifelong learner. Munger says that he has never seen anyone succeed who doesn't read. 

Readers: George Raveling, Gregg Popovich, Steve Kerr, Mike Neighbors, Brad Stevens 

3. You Actively Try to Destroy Your Own Ideas

Why am I wrong? What am I missing? Self-assessment of both our creative and critical selves can only help. 

Open to change: Steve Kerr in the 2015 NBA Finals going small with Andre Iguodala

4. You Prioritize “Not Being Stupid” Over Being Brilliant

“It is remarkable how much long-term advantage people like us have gotten by trying to be consistently not stupid, instead of trying to be very intelligent.” — Charlie Munger.

Avoiding stupidity - Jayson Tatum sat in Game 7 against Philadelphia. Tatum was hurt and perhaps the Celtics saw the writing on the wall. 

5. You Know the Exact Edge of Your Competence

Know our "Circle of Competence." Increase it. Leverage it. And avoid straying from it. In life, we need a plumber, an electrician, a "car guy" and other specialists for projects outside our circle. 

Basketball - find coaches that complement our skills

6. You Guard Your Integrity Above Everything Else

Buffett said that success intersects with energy, intelligence, and integrity. And without integrity, the other two are dangerous. 

Basketball - In the Donald Sterling affair in the NBA, Doc Rivers was a true professional and explained that his parents taught him not to be a victim. 

7. You Refuse to Work For or With People You Don’t Respect

Reputation is what people think we are. Character is who we are. If we work with people we don't respect, what could possibly go wrong? 

Basketball - When evaluating a new position, learn about the ecosystem, community, and existing leadership.

8. You Have a Long Attention Span

Part of success is the ability to sit in a chair and do the work. Flitting from project to project never works well. Focus is a superpower. 

Basketball - Coach Dave Smart says that strong teams play "harder for longer."

9. You Actively Filter Out Intense Ideology

Think about "inversion," the opposite of an idea. Intense ideology limits flexibility, critical thinking, and active questioning of alternatives. 

Basketball - The game evolves. "Never be the first to add or the last to delete." The Knicks ran "Flex" in the playoffs. 

10. You Reject Envy, Self-Pity, and the Victim Mindset

If being a high value person is about what we bring to a team or a group, how could envy, victimhood, or feeling sorry for ourselves benefit others? 

Basketball - Model excellence as a help to others. 

Lagniappe. Teach skills and decision-making. 

DECISION MAKING IN TRAINING 1v1+1

This drill works on 2 levels for the offense.
1. the offense has to read how their defender is navigating the screen (over or under)
2. on the attack they have to read the help defender and find space for their shot

We want quick decisions and… pic.twitter.com/D66vNhOW1o

— Steve Dagostino (@DagsBasketball) June 25, 2026

 

Equations for Basketball and Life

                                                                            

Part of education is "memorizing" equations and concepts like the Pythagorean Theorem. What equations might work for basketball and life? 

The Achievement Equation

Achievement = Performance x Time 

Great careers inform a "standard of performance" over an extended time. Sometimes a performance is so noteworthy, like Roger Bannister's eclipsing the four-minute mile barrier that a single event becomes iconic. The record evolved from years of performance and training. 

The Outcome Equation

E + R = O

The event plus the response equals the outcome. 

Urban Meyer promoted the Outcome Equation in his Above the Line. Whatever our opinion of Coach Meyer and his struggles, his book is excellent. Preparation drives response. 

The Compounding Equation

Here’s the expanded 365-day compounding graph with both curves.

What the math says

• 1% better each day:

  $${1.01}^{365}\approx 37.8$$

  → Nearly 38× improvement over a year.

Leverage the benefits of incremental gains. Tiny improvements over extended periods have powerful consequences. 

Gladwell's Achievement Equation

ACHIEVEMENT = TALENT + PREPARATION

"The magic is in the work." 

Thomas Keller's Cooking Equation

Cooking = Time + Temperature

Time is self-explanatory. Temperature is intensity. Have the discipline to bring intensity to our arena. As Coach Dave Smart says, "Excellent teams play harder for longer. There's also a "cook through" effect, as some 'cooking' continues after the dish is removed from the heat. 

Escape Velocity

Basketball coaches seldom come with a physics background. However, the "escape velocity" equation has basketball relevance.

Excellence requires attaining escape velocity from the distractions that defeat us. And escape requires direction and fuel. Think about MASS and DISTANCE. Mass increases escape velocity and DISTANCE reduces it. 

Examine three players who applied this formula to achieve greatness.

Michael Jordan told North Carolina assistant coach Roy Williams that he would work as hard as any player ever had to be the best Tarheel ever. Williams responded that he had to work HARDER than anyone had to become the best. 

Bill Walton was a free spirit at UCLA. But Coach John Wooden explained that Walton never tired of repeating what was necessary to achieve elite footwork that propelled him to a magnificent college career. 

A banker's son, Bill Bradley wasn't the most elite athlete. But at age twelve he embarked on full time training, three hours daily and eight hours on Saturday to hone his basketball skills. The Princeton phenom led his team to the Final Four, set a scoring record in the NCAA consolation game, won two NBA Championship with the Knicks, and became a Rhodes Scholar and US Senator. 

Lagniappe. Mastery

Lagniappe 2. Coaching analogies are everywhere. Coaches don't treat everyone equally and need to treat everyone fairly. Players see everything. 

The Miami Marlins had “Bring Your Pup to the Park” day and one dog got caught on TV casually enjoying a hot dog, while the dog behind him stared like he was witnessing the greatest injustice of his life pic.twitter.com/81nnVaWZBM

— Dudes Posting Their W’s (@DudespostingWs) June 23, 2026

Lagniappe 3. Pep talks. 

Favorite Horns Actions

Sets have a place to complement transition, motion offense, and zone offense. 

Including hard-to-defend actions creates defensive challenges. 

Why Horns? 

• Opens the lane 
• Fills corners
• No "natural weak side" 
• Puts pressure on corner 'help' defenders
• Simplicity

Elbow Get

Locate players to take advantage of strengths. Multiple options. 

Duke Elbow series...clear and attack 

Empty a side and create action from the elbow. Ideal for a big who can put the ball on the deck in an iso. 

Complex Screening 

Iverson action out of horns

Horns down

Favorite action, double downscreens sets up curls, flare lifts, or a drive for proficient point guards.

Take advantage of having a penetrating point guard or "iso big" who can attack the basket while both defensive sides are occupied. 

Off ball simple and complex screens

UCONN women ran some Horns sets. Simple works with urgent cutting and talent as UCONN hammered Duke.

Left, staggered screen. Right, I call this "Bucks action" because Jason Kidd ran it some coaching the Bucks. 

Horns is versatile but the setup is like lines on a sheet of paper. They work better with Hemingway writing than thirteen year-olds. Urgent cutting, solid screening, on-time and on-target passing, and finishing matter regardless of the offense. 

Lagniappe. Emphasize our key concepts to our players. For example, ball pressure, deny penetration, challenge shots without fouling, and rebound. 

Across every generation and level, great defensive teams have 4 universal traits:

1. Ball pressure/deflections

2. Blow up PNR a high % of the time vs using coverages

3. Stay out of rotation/offense is attacking small/neutral advantage vs big advantage spots

4. Collect…

— Chris Steed (@csteed) June 23, 2026

Basketball - Acronyms for Performance

"What has not been learned has not been taught."

As coaches, we don't always know what information "sticks." Everyone learns differently, so teaching with various methods might help. Regardless of how we teach, seek "performance-focused, feedback-rich" approaches.

Acronyms and equations always appealed to me. 

"An acronym is a type of abbreviation formed from the initial letters or syllables of a multi-word phrase, which is pronounced as a single word rather than as individual letters." - Brave AI

Here are some of my favorites, in search of a "Magnificent Seven"

1. SUCCESS 
2. OODA
3. EDIR x 5
4. WIN
5. PDCA
6. AAR
7. THINK

They span:

• Learning
• Decision-making
• Communication
• Leadership
• Improvement

SUCCESS from the Heath Brothers "Made to Stick" 

• Simple 
• Unexpected
• Concrete 
• Credible
• Emotional 
• Stories 

Spencer Haywood went to Detroit seeking a scholarship. The coach told him, "Make 15 free throws in a row and you got it." Haywood did and is the basketball Hall of Fame. 

Larry Bird shot 500 free throws before school. 

Kobe Bryant made 1,000 shots a day over the summer. 

OODA Loops 

Colonel John Boyd taught dogfighting using the OODA loop...

• Observe
• Orient
• Decide 
• Act 

Top players have a learned ability to 'see the game' and anticipate the next action. A LeBron example.

EDIRx5

A Wooden acronym EDIRx5 sequenced teaching 

• Explain
• Demonstrate
• Imitate
• Repeat x 5 

Wooden emphasized that the greatness of Bill Walton arose from his willingness never to tire of working on fundamentals (like footwork). 

WIN

"What's important now?" Brad Stevens asked a slightly longer version, "What does my team need now?

A parallel acronym comes from the NFL - "Not for long." Successful teams and players continually make adjustments. They build skill, athleticism, and basketball IQ. 

PDCA

• Plan
• Do
• Check 
• Act

This acronym is taught across sports, business, medicine. 2,500 years ago in The Art of War, Sun Tzu wrote that "every battle is won before it is fought." Bob Knight said that it's not about "the will to win but the will to prepare to win." 

AAR 

AAR represents "After Action Review." In basketball it's post-game video study, where Joe Mazzulla says to look for the 10-15 plays that 'on the margin' decide most wins and losses. In the NFL, it's Mondays where coaches break down what separated victory or defeat. In medicine, we have "postmortem examinations" and "morbidity and mortality" case review where doctors and trainees learn from bad outcome. Sometimes that means, "good judgment comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgment." 

THINK 

THINK informs a powerful communication acronym. It reminds us to "think" before we speak and "stop and take a breath."

• True - is it true? 
• Helpful - is it helpful?
• Inspiring - does it inspire?
• Necessary - is it important?
• Kind - is it kind? 

Everyone violates some of these. If a leader violates them much of the time, their leadership comes under more scrutiny. 

There are more. ROB shots (in range-open-balanced). SSPP - skill, strategy, physicality, psychology. TTP - trust the process. 

Find out what works for you? 

Lagniappe. Spurs shooting workout. 

“Spurs 100” shooting workout ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/OwrXfCQo0x

— Anthony Pugh (@Anthony_Pugh2) June 13, 2026

Lagniappe 2. For "Magnificent Seven" fans...the movie and its remake were inspired by Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa and his "Seven Samurai." 

Basketball - "Dopamine List"

Dopamine is a key bodily chemical, intimately involved in the reward and pleasure center. More accurately, "dopamine is the chemical of anticipation, motivation, and pursuit. It is the drive to get the reward, not the joy of experiencing it."

Analyzing our basketball experience, choose joy over grim, pedestrian existence. 

Positivity and optimism are force multipliers. "Nothing great is ever accomplished without enthusiasm. 

Lexington (after Rollie Massimino and Ron Lee) was the dragon that needed to be slain. Bottom left corner, the author is Peter Gammons. 

Winning as a team meant everything. 

As Brad Stevens said, "Coaches get more than we give." 

"Damning with faint praise." Never be a humorless dweeb. 

A tiny, legacy plaque endured...will it be found in the new Wakefield High School.

You only have to win once to etch an indelible memory (via Boston Globe, 1973) 

The last team I coached...Cecilia Kay will be a junior at St. Joseph's of Philadelphia and the A-10. 

Our twin daughters helped to create their own basketball legacy. 

Our daughters, like their old man, got to play in Boston Garden twice. 

My 'suppressed desire' in high school was to write a book. E-books didn't exist then. Maybe I should have followed the advice to Jose Canseco, "maybe you should read a book before you write one."

Basketball has given me a lot more than I have given it. These snapshots explain why it leaves marks. 

What's on your basketball "dopamine list?"

Lagniappe. Coach K reminds us, "Basketball is about making plays, not running plays."  

Offensive systems can act as rate limiters in their own right by preventing players from becoming more skillful. pic.twitter.com/rWHISyF27g

— Transforming Basketball (@transformbball) June 20, 2026

Lagniappe 2. I loved practice. Get every player 150 or more shots in a practice. "Repetitions make reputations." Yes, games are where "the rubber meets the road." And practice is where we build the cars. 

One of the biggest myths in youth basketball is that more games = more development.

The research on skill acquisition suggests otherwise. Learning happens through quality repetitions, immediate feedback, and solving game-like problems.

If a player touches the ball 15 times in a…

— Adam Barnes (@CoachBarnes1) June 16, 2026

 

Basketball - "Only Learn from Your Own Experience"

“Charlie Munger, once said, learn everything you possibly can from your own personal experience, minimizing what you learned vicariously from the good and bad experience of others, living in dead. This prescription is a sure-shot producer of misery and second rate achievement.“ - Rolf Dobelli in The What Not to Do List

Not confining our learning to our own experience might be an offshoot of "Make Friends with the Dead."

We make mistakes. Everyone 'screws up'. Coach Ellis Lane told us again and again, "When I correct someone's mistake, it applies to everyone." That included "$hit $hots" and "$hitbird defense." 

What are a few obvious examples? 

Sample size

You watch a player have an outstanding game. He has size, athleticism, and "unlimited potential." You sign him to a scholarship and it doesn't work out because of character or competence issue, bad luck or injury.

Ignoring History

"The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior." The athlete is troubled, but you know you can fix him. Sure, he had a tough upbringing, but the blend of talent and performance is irresistible...until he starts killing people...literally. The Aaron Hernandez story illustrates. 

The Bonus Baby

You fall in love with a player who comes from a good program, produced, and has his best years ahead of him. Except...he's more committed to "The Life" instead of "The Game." But he's still getting paid and after all he was your number one pick. So he gets more chances and more rope to fail until you've fished enough and cut bait. It's proven fact that scholarship players and high picks get more chances regardless of whether they deserve it. 

The Problem Man-Child

He's the boy "with the Golden Arm." He's had success and he "has a few problems." Rookie of the Year, World Series champion...over his career, in another era, he's earned over 8.5 million dollars. "The guy can pitch..." so he gets chance after chance despite a litany of drug offenses and seven suspensions. When his arm finally goes, you let him go...and he ends up killing himself in a motor vehicle accident. 

Find the Piece That Fits

Champions are made of sterner stuff. He became the poster child for "Three and D." Over a thirteen-year NBA career he averaged six points and one assist. He led the NBA in three-point shoot (.441) one-year and was an eight-time All-Defensive selection. He helped SAS to three NBA titles and wound up earning over 30 million dollars. Not bad for a journeyman...Bruce Bowen. 

Break the Mold

He was a four-year player at Oregon. Analytics tell us that the best predictors of NBA success are program played at, success in college, and age when drafted (younger is better). Some guys don't inhabit that space. Payton Pritchard was a tireless worker with a handle and a shot that could space defenses. All he did was help win an NBA title and won NBA Sixth Man of the Year. 

Don't allow ourselves to be held back by conventional wisdom. Assess for competitive character in addition to "what's his NBA skill?" 

Lagniappe Fran Fraschilla echoes the opinion of Geno Auriemma and Danny Hurley. 

If you’ve coached a great offensive player who is athletic and competes, you can teach him to play defense. It’s a lot harder to teach a good defensive player to put the ball in the basket consistently. Criticism of some of these players’ defensive ability in college is vastly…— Fran Fraschilla (@franfraschilla) June 20, 2026

Lagniappe 2. It's a geometry problem? Brian Scalabrine approached Steven Adams who offered him half of an apple. Adams broke it in half with his bare hands. Scalabrine said, "you accept an offer from a guy who can do that."   

Steven Adams explains the science of rebounding

“You’re trying to occupy more degrees than the person boxing you out.”

(h/t @MrBuckBuckNBA)

https://t.co/w0swPmpdGl

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) June 18, 2026

 

Basketball Specifics - "Simple Is Hard"

As a coach, my philosophy is "share something great." For example:

• Books
• Philosophy
• Quotes
• Learning Strategies
• How not to repeat painful losses

Everyone decides:

- What we want

- What that will take

- Can we pay that price?

1. Surround yourself with great people.

Find mentors, your Personal Board of Directors. "You lie down with dogs you get fleas." 

2. Traffic in Specifics.

"Do the right things, the right way, every time." Young people don't know what that means. Explain this is what I'm going to tell you, explain it, and close the loop by asking them to explain it. And keep doing that process. 

3. "The Power of Negative Thinking"

Live "via negativa." Avoid traps - bad people, alcohol and substance abuse, risky behaviors - selfies on cliffs, free climbing, fast or distracted driving. "Physics is real."

4. "Do hard better." 

Focus. Plan. Write your plan. Build great habits like punctuality, preparation, reading, and gratitude. "The wind blows hardest at the top of the mountain."

5. Avoid complacency.

Chop wood, carry water. Don't go back to the fundamentals. Never leave. Do the work with attention to detail every day. Sweat. Persist. Inspire.

You might say, "that is all simple." Simple is hard.

Lagniappe. Rolf Dobelli's "The Not To Do List" has a multitude of wisdom. Chapter 13... "Don't get involved in other people's drama." Drama kills teamwork. Your teammates are your sisters. How do you treat your sisters? 

The Golden Rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

The Silver Rule: "Do NOT do unto others as you would not have them do unto you." 

 

Basketball - Under Pressure

"Pressure is playing a five dollar Nassau with two dollars in your pocket." - Golfer Lee Trevino

Everyone experiences pressure in their lives. Some cultivate the tools to manage it as well as possible. Pressure degrades performance.

Pressure forms in perception. Some people see pressure as opportunity and others see it as crisis.

Allistair McCaw described Olympic diver Greg Louganis' approach in Habits That Make a Champion. “When you walk into that arena, there’s an energy, it is palpable. If you interpret that energy as pressure, you’re more apt to implode. But if you interpret that pressure as energy and inspiration, it can catapult you to levels you never dreamed possible.”" 

Under pressure, we fall to the level of our training. Navy SEALs have "Hell Week" with severe physical challenges, sleep and calorie deprivation while trainers harass them, daring them to quit. "Ring the bell." 

Managing Pressure

Practice with constraints and using situational basketball. 

• Advantage-disadvantage - e.g. 4 versus 5 halfcourt or 5 versus 7 fullcourt
• Time pressure - e.g. trailing by four with two minutes left and your opponent with the ball; trailing by two with five seconds left executing a BOB, SLOB, or ATO
• Rules constraint - scrimmage with scoring allowed only in the paint

Practice under adversity

• Allow the opposition to play physical (not dirty) basketball 
• Practice against a better team (e.g. women vs skilled men)

Develop Mental Skills

Mindfulness, self-talk, and visualization (e.g. "highlight reel") all have a role in restructuring a trainee's physical (brain MRI) and chemical (circulating stress hormones) makeup. Mindfulness training takes time but aids focus, mood, and sleep. 

Ancillary Techniques

• Optimize 'arousal level' with music, either hype or relaxing depending on your baseline arousal level. 
• "Celebrate small wins." Compete in practice. 
• Mental practice has been shown to improve physical performance.

Figure created with ChatGPT Plus

Pressure is part of life. During severe stress caring for patients with life-threatening illness in the ICU, I used some of these techniques to reset. Visualizing another setting, a tropical beach or putting yourself in a calm picture (for 30-60 seconds), could change the world. 

"Portrait of the Artist's Mother" also known as "Whistler's Mother" 

Accept that pressure is unavoidable, that it degrades performance, and training with proven techniques can help us do better. Soft skills make tough competitors better. 

Lagniappe. Are we creating advantage? 

Why run the stuff you're running? It's worth a deep dive this offseason. https://t.co/xDyj9jt5yl

— WINK (@tristan_wink) June 18, 2026

Basketball - Products of Our Environment

"In life and in sports, I have always believed that one of the most important decisions you can make is: Choosing your surroundings in terms of people and environment." - "Habits That Make A Champion" by Allistair McCaw

Our environments shape us. In Freakonomics, readers learned that one of the prime educational factors was the number of books in the home. Exposure to books impacts childhood learning.

Our training environment matters...the culture and the people who surround us.

LeBron James invests over a million dollars annually in his training environment - nutrition, sleep, mindfulness, basketball.  

Coach Mike Krzyzewski's fingerprints are all over The Bear...and he didn't know it. “The other thing is that you’re not gonna get there alone. You know, be on a team. Surround yourself with good people and learn how to listen. You’re not gonna learn with you just talking. And when you do talk, converse, don’t make excuses. Figure out the solution, and you don’t have to figure it out yourself. I always wanted to be part of a team. And obviously, I wanted to lead that team. What an interesting life it is to be a leader.”

Environment includes where we train, with whom we train, how we train, and freedom from distractions. Excellence doesn't survive distractions. 

The "self-made man" remains a myth. Everyone gets help as "mentoring is the only shortcut to excellence." Recognize this and share credit. "Althea Gibson, one of the first black athletes to cross the color line of international Tennis and the first African American to win a Grand Slam title once said, “No matter what accomplishments you make, somebody helped you.”" - Allistair McCaw in Habits That Make a Champion

Paraphrasing Harry Bosch, the Michael Connelly hero, "Everything counts or nothing counts."

Improve Our Training Environment

• Surround ourselves with good people and listen.
• Find a mentor. 
• Invest in yourself. Excellence extracts a price. 
• Train without distractions. 
• Recognize people and things holding us back.

Lagniappe. Allistair McCaw shares environmental musts. His Habits That Make a Champion is a must read for coaches. 

10 Traits of a High Performing Training Environment: 

1. Involves people of high character 
2. Drives high standards and values 
3. There is psychological safety 
4. Has competent coaches and support personnel 
5. Is growth minded 
6. There is consistent feedback provided 
7. Includes other high performing athletes 
8. Provides the appropriate facilities and equipment 
9. Motivates the athlete to work harder 
10. Teaches life skills, not only athletic skills