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Friday, September 20, 2024

Basketball: Keep Learning

I know a fraction of what many here know about basketball, even after having written over 4,100 posts. 

Because there's a virtually infinite amount of basketball knowledge. This reminds me of chess and the AI summary below:

In conclusion, while there is no single definitive answer to the question “how many possible chess moves are there,” we can summarize the estimates as follows:

  • 10^120 (Shannon’s conservative lower bound)
  • 1972 (even games only)
  • 4164 (specific piece movements)
  • 2976 (including castling)
  • 6000 (maximum moves with 50-move rule)
  • 10^30 (reasonable games)
  • 3.7 × 10^43 (legal positions, excluding captures and promotions)

Coaches own a myriad of responsibilities:

Good coaches help players "see the game" and "put the team in the best position to succeed." That entails a lot of details including but not limited to:

  • Player relationships 
  • Program organization
  • Player development
  • Game planning (strategy and lineups)
  • Game management
  • Practice planning
  • Video study
  • Psychology and Motivation
  • Physical training
  • Connection with athletic department
  • Media interface
  • League meetings (coaches) and other area meetings
  • Fund raising (to variable degrees)

Yes, facts and information about skill growth, strategy, strength and conditioning, and psychology build our 'coaching portfolio'. 

Both our substance and style matter. At the end of the day, those closest to us judge our communication, relatability, kindness, resilience, teaching ability, and all the "soft skills" that stratify coaches. 

Lagniappe. Be great. 

Lagniappe 2. You're always selling moves.  

Lagniappe 3. Don Kelbick reminds you, "think shot first."  

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