Tuesday, September 29, 2020

Basketball: Keep Coaching Simple with Core Values and Openness to Ideas

"Winning isn't everything; winning is the only thing." - Vince Lombardi


Coaches take players where they can't go alone with structure, teaching, and discipline. 

"What" depends on our why. Professional sports are businesses, paid entertainment. Winning is part of the equation, but "successful" teams made money without full commitment to winning. That's an anathema for fans.

Be intentional. The sine qua non depends on the level. 
  • Don't sacrifice fifth graders on the altar of victory.
  • An elementary school player is not a failure because of non-conformance to your idea of athletic excellence. 
  • No coach has the right to judge a kid a loser. 
Teach and learn. Read, study, and share. Players see our example. 

Clarify philosophy, identity, and culture. This is how we play, who we are, and how we practice and work through shared sacrifice. 

Results have reasons. 

Model sportsmanship. Be humble in victory and gracious in defeat. 

Show compassion. Georgetown lost the 1982 NCAA basketball championship as Fred Brown inexplicably passed to James Worthy; Coach John Thompson consoled Brown. 

Build a legacy. Players take pride in learning the game from a favorite coach. And coaches relish seeing players succeed in sport and life. 

Stick to your principles. My task is developing young players. 
  • Winning is a byproduct of development, not the primary end state.
  • Emphasize your strengths.
  • Improve at what we do a lot.
  • It has to be about more than basketball. 
  • Stamp out mistakes. Bad possessions give games away. 


Converting a post player into a wing player takes time. But it's happening. 

Lagniappe: like chess, basketball sets up endless possibilities. Marcin Klozinski shares:

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