"If you want to go far, go together” – African proverb.
"Leave the jersey in a better place." - Legacy, by James Kerr
As a youth coach, I'm grateful for any help I get. But I've never had a manager, not do I expect one.
Plenty of managers have gone on to important positions. Bob Knight's manager, Lawrence Frank, became an NBA head coach and executive. Bruce Pearl, Buzz Williams, and Frank Vogel, among others have distinguished coaching careers. Vogel coached the Lakers to the pandemic-season championship.
We had student managers in high school, John Hunneman and Andy Johnson. They did far more than organizing towels, rounding up basketballs, and prepping half-time orange slices. They kept shot charts and statistics and organized the data for the coaches. It was the Papa Johns of basketball, "better shots, better basketball." John became a journalist and Andy an Actuarial Consultant. When our team was inducted into the school Hall of Fame, John came from California to be part of the ceremony.
If you have managers, what do they get, what do you give, and what do you expect from them? I can't speak for any manager. Some want to be part of the team, be part of the game, and get an "inside baseball" look. The ones who became elite coaches turned that inside, intimate experience into expertise.
If I had a motivated manager, my long-term goal for them would include partial development of the practice schedule and learning how to use and distribute video. Teach not only the what and how but why.
In his book, Practical Modern Basketball, John Wooden devotes three pages to managers. The players understand that the managers "are not their servants to run errands or to pick up after them...managers aid both them and the coaches."
Wooden, if possible, wanted a head manager, "three freshman managers, two sophomore managers, and one junior manager under his supervision."
In addition to equipment responsibilities, Wooden's managers had daily practice duties. Here are a few book excerpts during daily practice:
- Keep a daily free throw chart for the squad.
- Know the practice schedule
- Have charts and chart keepers
- Learn the needs of the coaches and players and be ready to supply them.
After Daily Practice
- Collect and store all equipment
- Turn over charts to coaches
- Check shower room, locker room, and lockers.
- Turn out the lights and lock up.
Wooden discusses duties for home and road games, including travel itinerary. He also informs the pre- and post-season duties with extreme ownership about the organization of team staff and player information including those of assistants, medical staff, trainers, and team parents.
Respect and trust belong to every successful relationship, regardless of the relative power between the parties. Having a successful experience for the manager benefits the team as well. Practice becomes more efficient. Efficiency translates.
People are our most valued resource. Cultivate them.
Lagniappe: Daily player development defines excellence. The devil is in the details.