Coaching Isn't Reality TV - It's Reality. Old News for Young Coaches

Hearing about a lot of coaching shortages across high school sports. There are many factors that play in, but at the end of the day coaching is still pretty damn awesome.

One challenge may rhyme with “barents” (I’ve been there😬), but I still think it’s worth it.

A thread 🧵..

— Kristen McDonnell (@CoachKristenMcD) October 24, 2022

I enjoyed coaching as either an assistant or a head coach. There's no power trip as a middle school coach. Enduring lessons? 

1. Make it fun for players and coaches. There shouldn't be any "boring drills" in a fun activity.

- "Dribble tag" inside the arc is always fun (both ends, everyone with a ball)

- "Frito Lay" layups and elbow jumpers, game to 21, competitive

2. "Never be a child's last coach." If kids dread coming to practice, we're doing it wrong. 

3. "Don't sacrifice young kids on the altar of victory." Everybody likes to win. Burying preadolescents on the bench to win violates 1 and 2 above. 

4. Be positive. Kids have ups and downs. It reminds me of George Carlin's "Baseball and Football" routine. Baseball has UPS and football has DOWNS. Be like baseball, with ups. 

5. Stay aware of the "12th Man Effect." If reserve players feel disrespected or unappreciated, then is it them or us? 

6. "It doesn't cost anything to be nice." Someone from fifty years ago sent me a note on Facebook. They thanked me as a varsity player for treating the kids on JV well. People remember how we make them feel...even fifty years later. This story about Bear Bryant is worth keeping in our toolbox. 

7. Players see everything. "You can't fool kids, dogs, and basketball players." Like it or not, we are role models. Remember Helen Mirren's advice on career success, 1) "Always be on time" and 2) "Don't be a jerk."

8. Find a mentor; be a mentor. "Mentoring is the only shortcut to success." Yes, I'm repetitive. I'm especially grateful to Coach Sonny Lane, my high school coach and to CAPT Thomas Walsh, my mentor as a Navy physician. 

9. "The game is for the players." It's not easy to be a child now. Don't make it harder. It's okay to remind ourselves, "are we building a program or a statue?" 

10."Speak greatness." Keep elevating players. Add value with "that was well done AND consider trying this" versus "that was well done BUT you could do this." AND and BUT make all the difference. 

Lagniappe. Model excellence. 

Love this

"My mom and my dad...a combined zero basketball knowledge. But they taught me more about the game than anyone else. " - Tim Duncan

This really applies to coaching as well. Coaches get lost in X and O’s but it will always be about the people

pic.twitter.com/YF7d5XYOJn

— Hoop Herald (@TheHoopHerald) October 24, 2022

Lagniappe 2. Stay focused on this. 

"There's a difference between playing and competing"

🗣️ @JayBilas pic.twitter.com/1jkA8SXFHJ

— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) October 25, 2022

Lagniappe 3. Develop a package of finishes. 

Young guards, especially slightly undersized, you NEED to have a wide finish package at the rim

It’s a big separator

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— Hoop Herald (@TheHoopHerald) October 24, 2022