Every coach can be our mentor if we study their methods. Authoritarian, communicator, professor, or balanced. Let's examine Dale Brown, Shaq's coach at LSU. I'm no Dale Brown expert...the first three things I think of with Brown are "Shaq, the Freak, and Leadership."
Wikipedia provides an overview and highlights:
- Replaced Press Maravich in 1972
- 25 years at LSU, won 448 games, appeared in two Final Fours
- Great promoter of hoop in Louisiana
- Known as "The Master Motivator"
- Like Jerry Tarkanian, outspoken critic of the NCAA "The Gestapo"
- Developed "The Freak" defense
- SEC Coach of the Year or Runnerup nine times
Dale Brown quotes:
"Leadership is difficult. It is a lonely responsibility. The best leaders are servants. It is always about others." (Servant leadership)
"It’s not too late to become what you thought you should be or could be, you can do it." (Motivation and confidence)
"You must be determined to apply massive common sense in solving complex problems." (Leadership)
"You must be determined to apply massive common sense in solving complex problems." (Leadership)
"The masters all have the ability to discipline themselves to eliminate everything except what they are trying to accomplish." (Focus)
"The player who comes to LSU should be someone who believes that team goals are more important than individual goals." (Teamwork)
"In life, adversity only visits the strong. It stays forever with the weak. We have to decide whether we're going to be strong or weak." (Adversity)
"No leader is exempt from criticism, and his humility will nowhere be seen more clearly than in the manner in which he accepts and reacts to it." (Leadership)
"I've never taken a blow and not within a 24-hour period gotten back up with a more determined and a more positive attitude than before." (Adversity)
"Getting rich and famous has replaced the true meaning of life."
"Sooner or later the person who wins is the person who believes he can."
Readings on Leadership
"Always listen to your parents."
Motivational speaker:
The Freak Defense.
The "Freak Defense" is a concept of "shifting defenses" more than a specific defense. Depending on how the offense is started, the defense could be man-to-man, 2-3, or other defenses. I have never even considered playing that way...because I'm more likely to confuse my team than the opposition. But for a coach with a mature, intelligent team, mixing it into a defensive amalgam could work.