Basketball: Finding Tools for Student Achievement Is Part of Our Job

"The difference between who we are today and whom we become in five years is the people we meet and the books we read." I encourage readers to read How to Remember What You Read. Coaches model behavior; education changes behavior. Encouraging high academic performance is part of our job. Share tools that students can use. 

Excerpts:

• Quality matters more than quantity. If you read just one book a week but fully appreciate and absorb it, you’ll be far better off than someone who skims through half the library without paying much attention.
• Don’t read stuff we find boring. 
• Finishing the book is optional. You should start a lot of books and only finish a few of them.

Reading an excellent book multiple times is better than reading many bad books. Sometimes we must abandon a read. 

Author Matt Haig wrote, "the plot of every book ever can be boiled down to ‘someone is looking for something’.” And remind players that how you play reflects how you live. Do you prepare, study, invest your time or spend it? 

Sport is a microcosm of life. Where in life or in basketball do you want to be in five years and what are you doing today to advance your chance to arrive there? 

Playwright David Mamet says storytellers ask, "Who wants what from whom, what happens if they don't get it, and why now?"  (This applies to the news, too.) 

Who wants what? As a player, when you "cross the red line" for practice or games, what is your level of commitment to your teammates? Don't play for the community, the school, or the coach. Play for your teammates, the group living shared sacrifice. When you have wants and desires, the magic is in the work. 

What happens if you don't get it? Sulking will not make you better, not endear you to coaches or teammates, or get you more minutes. Work harder, work smarter for more opportunity or go home. Never stand in a doorway with one foot in and one foot out. 

Why now?  Life is short. Your athletic career is shorter. NOW means playing present, having a sense of urgency, "making the next right play right now." Now because if not now, it may be never. 

What's the work product? A chosen few leave a legacy. Short-term leave an impression and impact the game. Longer-term make memories for teammates, coaches, and yourself. 

Lagniappe: Spurs SLOB with Flex-like action (multiple off-ball screens) into a DHO



Lagniappe 2: Dan Shaughnessy writes about the Celtics' historic role in seeking equality, from drafting Chuck Cooper, to starting the NBA's first all-Black five, and having the first African-American coach of the four major sports. It hasn't been perfect.