Back words up with meaning. "There is nothing cheaper than free advice" and "never give advice that you can't take."
1. "Don't miss twice." James Clear's best seller Atomic Habits includes the importance of sustaining good habits. In addition to making good habits easier (the exercise cycle is in the corner of the family room, perfect for watching sports while pedaling.
2. "Make every part of practice impact winning." Dr. Fergus Connolly is a Human Performance Expert who has worked with great teams and great coaches and programs such as Jim Harbaugh, Chip Kelly, and the US Special Operations Command. Simple warmup activities such as dribble tag inside the arc build skill and competition.
3. "Teams that can't shoot free throws last as long in the playoffs as dogs that chase cars." Each practice we shot four rounds of ten with a partner. The daily winner challenged the coach for the right not to run sprints. Success translated to a sectional championship in the top division in Massachusetts.
4. "Toughness is a skill." Brad Stevens says, "The game honors toughness." Reward toughness - setting screens, containing the ball, fighting through screens, taking charges - with minutes. Minutes are educators.
5. "Fouls negate hustle." Don't reward opponents with bad technique, retaliation fouls, fouling perimeter shots, or bail out late shot clock situations.
6. "No laps, no lines, no lectures." Sport rewards efficiency. Brian McCormick means that none of the above are efficient. A UCONN practice runs like Swiss watches under Geno Auriemma. Brad Stevens said that watching Bill Belichick's practices made his practices better. Squeeze every second possible out of practice.
7. "Shot quality scoring." Dean Smith's scrimmages sometimes used scoring based on shot quality - layups or jumpers two, contested shots less and turnovers negative. Coaches create our universe and make the rules. Carolina usually led the ACC in shooting percentage as Smith emphasized shot quality.
8. "Utilize strengths, attack weaknesses." - Sun Tzu Do more of what works and less of what doesn't. Be good at what you do a lot.
9. "Every battle is won before it is fought." - Sun Tzu It's harder to evaluate a team from the 'outside view'. When we have the privilege of seeing practice, the teaching and the priorities, it provides an analytical framework.
10."When conducting individual meetings it has become critically important that the head coach not be alone in the room with the player when the conversation happens." - Carl Pierson in The Politics of Coaching Coaching is hard and dissatisfaction will happen sometimes.
Lagniappe. "Don't be a blame guy."
👀👀👀 https://t.co/y9SqSAwRjf
— Mark Freeman (@coachmarkf) November 1, 2025
Lagniappe 2. Cream from Crean.
The higher the pressure, the higher the Ball screen.
— Tom Crean (@TomCrean) October 14, 2025
The more the pressure, the more you need to back cut.
The slower the Bigs, the more you run the floor.
The more physical the defense , the more you attack the closeouts.
The better the player , the more u change the D.
