Basketball: Make Friends with the Dead

Go big. About five percent of everyone ever born is still alive. Make friends with the dead - Dean Smith, Pete Newell, John Wooden, Pete Carril, Pat Summitt. 

Great thinker Charlie Munger made friends with Benjamin Franklin, so much that he named his book, "Poor Charlie's Almanack." 

This reminds me of what Lincoln was alleged to say, "I learn something from everyone I meet, usually what not to do."

My "dead friends" left indelible marks. 

Dean Smith. Where to start? Smith shared that he never felt like a loser, even before he won two National Championships. 

• Charlie Scott and Smith broke the color barrier.
• Shot-quality scoring during scrimmaging helped build habits that tended to make UNC the best 'percentage shooters' in the ACC.
• Coming from behind eight points in 18 seconds to tie Duke and beat them in overtime. Never give up.
• Humility. "A lion never roars after the kill." 
• "Four corners" with Phil Ford. It still works. Ford set his watch ten minutes fast to be on Dean Smith Time. 

Pete Newell. Criminally underrated. 

• His teams beat Wooden's in their final eight meetings. 
• A coach's primary task was teaching players to "see the game." 
• "Footwork, balance, maneuvering speed."
• Big man moves. Teach 'em in the post and translate to the perimeter.
• Scorer, facilitator, screener. You have to have a skill. 

John Wooden. Every truly great coach is a great leader. 

• "Make every day your masterpiece."
• The Pyramid of Success. Coach Sonny Lane introduced it to us in our 'team room' over fifty years ago. The room reeked of sweat, Tuf-Skin, and orange peels.
• "Little things make big things happen."
• "Never confuse activity with achievement." 
• Wooden said that Walton was great because "he never tired of the attention to detail in doing the small things." Watch the win over Memphis State.

Pete Carril. Anyone who knows me can relate to the Carril sense of style. 

• "The Smart Take from the Strong." Do the mental work. 
• "Lightbulbs." Get players who light up the court. 
• "The quality of the shot relates to the quality of the pass." 
• Condition within drills. 
• Beating UCLA 1996. The video never gets old.

Pat Summitt. The pioneering 'dynastic' coach. 

• People forget that like Wooden, she was a great player. 
• Her "Four Corners" was something entirely different. 
• Emphasis that playing was a privilege not an entitlement. 
• Filming the bench. You had better be in the game. 
• The "Definite Dozen" 

I hope someday when I'm gone that people will 'make friends' with me. 

Lagniappe. Dr. and Phil?