My Philosophy Of Coaching

As a coach, I am constantly asking myself, "Why do I do what I do," and recently, as our season ended and we shifted into off-season, I thought again about what I want to give to my athletes every day this spring.  Right now, this is what I have come up with.  These are the things that are important to me.  I tell my kids every day, 'It's bigger than basketball.'

1 – Make Players Better Every Day.
- This is why they are here.  This is how we grow as a program.  We want to HELP every player become the best player that they can be for themselves, their team, and the program.

2 – Make Our Athletes Better People.
This is why we are here.  To help them grow to become the best version of themselves.  We just use basketball to teach the life lessons necessary to help them grow into their best self.

3 – Send Them Home With The Confidence That We Believe In Them And Their Abilities.
Their confidence is necessary for them to continue to come in with energy and enthusiasm, WANTING to get better.  Our confidence in them, and the way they perceive our confidence in them, affects this greatly.

4 – Send Them Home Energized Every Day, Ready For More, Not Drained, Dreading Coming Back.
Nothing great is done without energy and enthusiasm, and we need to make sure that we are giving our kids life and energy, not draining it.  If nothing else, tell that kid you yelled at today, "I love you" and give them a 'fist-bump' on their way out.  This might make their day, week, or season.

Now, I believe in hard work, learning through adversity, and making kids tougher, critical thinkers by scaffolding their growth every day, but I believe that we want to do this the right way with pure intentions.  Take care of the kids throughout the process.  Make sure that they understand ‘why.’  Make sure that we give them the skills and tools necessary to succeed, and teaching them how to handle adversity and how to work, live, and play with confidence is just as important as teaching them out to beat their man one on one.