We all manage expectations - at a minimum, our own. Moreover, we manage external expectations with individual players, teams, and media. For some coaches, employment requires meeting or exceeding expectations. How do we balance setting expectations?
Some choose to raise the bar. 1967 Red Sox manager Dick Williams opined, "we'll win more than we lose."
This was a bold prediction after years of mediocrity. And the Red Sox won 92 regular season games, captured the pennant on the final day, and lost to the Cardinals in seven games in the World Series.
A Red Sox employee shared a player quote after a mega-deal, "Nothing matters now. I got paid." A Wheaties box cover was a poor substitute for an overflowing bank account. Fan expectations diverged mightily from player expectations. His final five years in baseball yielded thirty-two pitching victories. I doubt his conversations with management expressed the same indifference.
Setting the bar low favors self-preservation.
But it isn't always so. Kent Sterling wrote of Indiana basketball in December 2015, "Coaching 101 demands a leader undersell your team to the media. Setting the bar low is always good business when trying to predict the behavior of 18-22 year-olds, but Crean is so covetous of positive media coverage that he and his emissaries present only the positive."
“How’s your team?” opens Pandora’s box. When asked about the execution of his Tampa Bay Buccaneers, John McKay replied, "I'm in favor of it." Off the record, I've found most coaches' candor refreshing. Some share comments like "it's the most talented and least fun to coach" or "great group that shows up to work every day." The former will never get attribution.
Where we set the bar depends on individual preference and goals. In our program, success means personal and athletic growth. As a middle school program, we're not held hostage by wins or championships.
When asked about his team, Coach Amos Alonzo Stagg reportedly said, "ask me in twenty years and I'll be able to give you a better answer." I think that's right.
Lagniappe: "Expectation doesn't guarantee you a thing." Humor and pathos about expectations...
Lagniappe 2: Do you have a backdoor play off of a BOB? Chris Oliver shares one.
This baseline inbound play is a designed backdoor. Do you have a designed backdoor built into your inbound alignments? The play works with the Maga Convergence inbound play series I posted a compilation of on YouTube here https://t.co/8ryI35xE83 pic.twitter.com/InJhcjKTYo— Chris Oliver (@BBallImmersion) August 10, 2019
Another simple 'slip' set up from previous backscreens.
