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Friday, December 29, 2023

Basketball: Road Maps


Don Yaegar informs readers that great teams have a Road Map to success, a step-by-step design to pave the route to success.

When Coach Sonny Lane took over a stagnant Wakefield High School basketball program in 1970, he helped players rehab outdoor courts in town. Players painted a sign, "Tech Tourney 1973" and the team reached the State Tournament in his third season. 

Bill Walsh crafted the model for the 49ers, the Standard of Performance, winning a Super Bowl in his third season. And Nick Saban won a National Title in his third season at Alabama, installing The Process, a comprehensive plan to improve everything - players, coaching, academics, nutrition, and more. 

Bossidy and Charan wrote, "Execution, the Discipline of Getting Things Done" about their experience at Honeywell. They discussed:

1) People, who drive activities

2) Strategy, the big picture view of what gets done

3) Operations, day-to-day managing the details 

Sara Blakely, Founder and CEO of Spanx emphasized:

1) Make it

2) Sell it

3) Build brand awareness

New coaches need a blueprint to 'sell' to their parent organization and to get buy-in from players. 

  • Philosophy. "This is who we are and how we play." For example, PUSH-T, purpose, unity, servant leadership, humility, thankfulness
  • System (strategy) and implementation (teaching, practice) 
  • Player development. At lower levels, you have limited assistants.
  • Lexicon, playbook, and drill book
  • "Communication"- Community and media relations, boosters, and fundraising 
  • Self-assessment - where can I improve, where can we improve? 
Things go wrong. The late Charlie Munger had a saying, "It's easier to avoid being stupid than to be a genius." Avoid bad strategic and technical decisions (e.g. shot selection). 

Lagniappe. "Life is difficult." 
Lagniappe 2. Star in your role. 

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