There is nothing cheaper than free advice. I have a patient who's an older attorney who lamented, "we turn gray and lose some hair. We know more of the answers. But nobody wants to ask us questions anymore."
The rare young player who wants mentoring...what can we share?
1. "Be easy to play with and hard to play against." I didn't dream about becoming Oscar Robertson or Jerry West. Ridiculous. I wanted to become Jerry Sloan...played smart, played hard, good teammate. Sloan and Norm Van Lier made a good backcourt. Not the world's friendliest man...or the nicest.
2. "Be on time." If you want to get attention, the wrong kind, be habitually late. Phil Ford spoke of "Dean Smith time...ten minutes early."
3. "Be coachable." There's the old saying about God giving you two ears and one mouth...listen twice as much as you speak. Do what your current coach wants. It's great to ask why, in the context of learning the game. Your coach doesn't want to hear, "but my other team plays all zone" or "my other team wants me to be the primary scorer."
4. "Be dependable." Coaches want to players who come ready to practice, ready to play, want to learn, know their assignments, make good decisions on and off the court. Respect the game; play the right way.
5. "Be a good teammate." Respect your parents, teammates and coaches. "Never criticize a teammate," reminded John Wooden. Alan Williams wrote a terrific book, Teammates Matter about his experience as a walk-on at Wake. I've never known a great player whom I considered a bad teammate.
Bonus: a couple of old Spurs actions. So at least you leave with something...
