Steve Kerr, Warriors Tapped Into Pete Carroll's Fun

This is a great article talking about the importance of knowing who you are as a coach and a leader, finding your voice, and knowing what you want to get out of your team.  Steve Kerr, upon taking over as the head coach of the Golden State Warriors, watched the Seattle Seahawks and met with their head coach Pete Carroll.  He admired their energetic style and the way that they mixed having fun with making competition part of everything that they do.

Below are some of the highlights and takeaways.  You can find the article in its entirety here.

As The Article States, Only 20% Is X's And O's.  80% Is Relationship, Atmosphere And Culture.

PLAY HARD | HAVE FUN

BELOW ARE HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE ARTICLE:

Find Your Own Style

It's no secret around Seattle, and the NFL for that matter, that Pete Carroll's coaching style is unique in a lot of ways. Music plays over the loudspeakers at practice, there's a basketball free-throw competition amongst players and coaches every day, and Carroll encourages his players to not only work hard on every snap they take, but to enjoy doing it. Carroll tried to do things a traditional way early on in his career, but, as Peter King put it last year:

"Ultimately he formulated a blueprint that was heavy on fun and competition and taking advantage of the uniqueness of each individual."

Somehow, in his first year as a head coach, Kerr has managed to construct a coaching staff and an environment that's just about the most fun anyone involved has ever been around. And yet when they need to be serious, they can flip the switch instantly.

Be Loose, Be Gunslingers, But Be Disciplined.

"Guys are getting hit in the head with the basketball. It's a complete circus. And then it's right down to business. It really is. Kerr's always telling us, 'Be loose, be gunslingers, but be disciplined.'"

Fast, Loose, And Disciplined All At Once
"The reason I went up there is because I want my team to play like the Seahawks," Kerr says. "They're fast and loose and disciplined all at once. I wanted to know how you achieve that."

Everything Is A Competition

One thing he noticed is that Carroll turned everything into a competition. So you don't just swap basketballs for footballs and tell the guys to mess around, you turn it into a passing competition. You don't just cancel practice and go bowling, you turn it into a tournament as the Warriors did before a February game in Minnesota.

Fun, Entertaining, and Energetic

"I always loved Pete Carroll," Kerr said recently. "Hated USC (Carroll's former coaching stop) but loved Pete Carroll. And loved the way his teams played. "They just won the Super Bowl. They play this fun, entertaining, energetic style. That's exactly how I want my teams to play."

80% Relationship and Atmosphere | 20% X’s and O’s
"To me the X's and O's... they're an important part of coaching but a relatively small part. Eighty percent of it is just relationships and atmosphere, what your daily routine and culture is.

"Are players engaged, are they enjoying themselves, are they competing? All those principals he talked about and we talked about different ideas of ways to make those things come to life. To me that's his gift."

Find Your Own Voice

"It made sense to Steve on some levels," Carroll said of the Seahawks style. "And I was mostly just supporting him to be himself, find his voice and be the way he felt strongest and most confident, and that would be his best way. So whatever he's done, it's working out great."

How This Will Help Me Tomorrow:

Tomorrow, I will have music in the gym from the start of practice.  We have a sophomore with a lot of potential who doesn't realize it.  She was always asking if we could listen to music during our offseason workouts, and she is the one who comes up with our breakout chants.  I will let her play whatever music she wants during our practice to bring energy and enthusiasm.

While that will provide the fun, everything we will work on will be about playing fast and competing.  We will have 2 on 1 competitions, 3 on 2 competitions, 3 on 3 competitions, and shooting and ball-handling competitions.