What I Learned this Summer, Part II

This was probably the area where it is most difficult to evaluate my progress. Largely because I have not had any specific feedback from students about my lesson plans. I enrolled in a OISE/UT Additional Qualifications course and was able to communicate and exchange ideas with a plethora of business teachers facing similar concerns.

Consequently, I have a much better idea of what I teach, why I teach, who I teach, and how I should teach. Even if I forget the entire Business Studies component of this course, I will remember to ask myself those questions.

Throughout the course, we discussed how to best put ourselves in the shoes of the students who are enrolled in the course. While completing a technology based assignment, we talked about how challenging it can be to try a new task with no prior experience. Sometimes it seems that as teachers and coaches, we have done the same thing so many times we forgot what it was like to do it the first time. I will be sure to help students adapt to their new environment as they enter Grade 9 and comprehend new technologies which may be unfamiliar.

I don’t want to be in class talking about the politics of marketing or on the court talking about the triangle offence if the teenagers to whom I am speaking don’t understand the concept. As a leader, it is my job to break these ideas down into smaller specific instructions. I really want to incorporate more scaffolding in the classroom and in my practice plans. I can’t tell an M.D.P. team that the timing of the camp offence is off without explaining why this is important and how it scoring opportunities for everyone can be increased if we tighten up the execution. As Lao-Tzu said, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

Even Mike Krzyzewski spoke about how the Redeem Team had an attention-span of fifteen minutes and that he needed to mix things up with different speakers, different media, and rhetorical techniques, especially humour. In the The Gold Standard, Coach K writes about how instructing major concepts at the beginning of practice seemed to sap everyone’s energy. The articles and books that I read - along with my assignments for OISE/UT and the National Coaching Institute - demonstrated how much my first two goals for the summer are very interconnected.

What I Learned this Summer, Part I

Earlier, I described a desire to become a more empathic leader. I hoped to become better at building relationships with other coaches, players, and people in general. I endeavoured to become more sensitive as to what others were feeling and discover how I can help student-athletes on and off the court and inside and outside the classroom. To do so, I read a couple of books which described examples of excellent relationships that resulted in personal development and basketball championships: Red and Me and The Gold Standard.

Bill Russell’s tribute to his mentor Red Auerbach was a quick read that contained several amusing anecdotes. The two worked well together was that Auerbach was tolerant of Russell’s idiosyncrasies because he performed on the court. Auerbach respected all of his players equally but treated them differently, according to their needs and wants. The coach may have a stern image, but he was always open to feedback from others and willing to take suggestions from players.

Russell did not fit the mold of a traditional Association centre but Auerbach did not try to change him; he adapted the Celtics’ systems to suit Russell’s strengths. Likewise, when Bob Cousy arrived in Boston, Auerbach did not curtail his extravagant ballhandling and fancy passes; so long as the ball got to the right person at the right time, Auerbach didn’t care how it got there. Throughout his career as a coach and a general manager, Auerbach never became set in his ways: he perceived how things were changing around him and adjusted his philosophy accordingly.

Mike Krzyzewski talks about taking the time to understand the situation and the people involved (whether it’s the superstars who comprised the Redeem Team, international basketball, or possible opponents). One of the reasons that he titled his book “The Gold Standard” is because he chose not to have “rules” for the basketball team but rather “standards” that the team would live up to, like playing hard every shift, being on time, and representing the United States with pride. He had spoke to some of the team leaders (LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and Jason Kidd) to get their suggestions and turned this support into buy-in for the entire team.

A lot of Krzyzewski’s coaching was done on a one-on-one basis. He didn’t hesitate to ask players what they wanted but at certain points during the two year quest for Olympic Gold, he put his foot down and told the team that they were not living up to their standards. Also, Krzyzewski relied on the entire team staff, ranging from assistant coaches to trainers to help sense the mood of the team.

A coaching strategy that I employed with Ontario Basketball’s Elite Development Program over the summer was to try and debrief players as soon as they came off the court. This became an opportunity to provide more personal feedback and also learn more about what each player was thinking and feeling at the time.

What I Hope to Learn this Summer, Part I

I hope to improve my ability to deal with people and egos, to better motivate student-athletes and demonstrate more empathic leadership. I recently read Competitive Fire by Michael Clarkson and learnt many facts that I hope to apply in the coming year. We often discuss how it seems that teenagers have a “fight or flight” mentality but there is a scientific basis to the argument. Under pressure, the brain releases hormones, such as adrenaline or noradrenaline, that can cause aggressiveness, increase feelings of fear, and inspire the body to perform faster, higher, or stronger.

All people, including athletes, need to manage these feelings. Teenagers at school or on the court may be sensing this stress for the first time. It is up to coaches to transform aggressiveness into confidence and fear and tension into increased focus. Some players need to be reminded of a comfort zone, such as the gym where they had fun as a child. Others need a combination of assurance and encouragement so that they channel their urge to defend their ego in a positive direction. It may be necessary to put the sport or evaluation into perspective so fear of failure is not catastrophic. Mental sets at the beginning of class or practice can help a group of student-athletes develop their ability to focus or one-on-one discussions afterwards can give an individual the boost they need to get through the day. Or it may be necessary to simulate game conditions in practice and help players visualize a successful performance.

The ideal of Tachypsychia is very intriguing. During a competitive situation, the brain releases hormones which allow the person to perceive more information. This creates the impression that time has slowed down, a player can see gaps in the defence, or that the ball has entered the net a moment before it actually does. Inducing that feeling - and handling it in a calm manner - is a challenge for a coach.

Visualizing that a big game is just another pick-up game back home is similar to thinking that the audience for a big PowerPoint presentation is comprised of friends and family. Focusing intently on a foul shot and ignoring distractions is similar to excelling on a final exam. That is why I want to help others handle stress better.

There are so many different strategies to maximize the affects of arousal that a coach may need to treat every player differently or a teacher may need to attempt multiple techniques with different groups of students. Sensing what is appropriate for each occasional is an aptitude that I wish to improve over the next two months. In addition to my own personal reflection, I hope to read Red and Me and The Gold Standard. The former is an account of the unique relationship between a superstar and an elite coach (Bill Russell and Red Auerbach) and the latter is the story of a team comprised of multiple egos under extreme pressure (the 2008 United States “Redeem Team.”

The Responsibility of the Coach

Evidently, it is the players play hard, play smart, and play together; the coach merely plays the role of the enabler and the modeler. If contributions were not made on the court when they were needed, contributions off the court were irrelevant. Players wear headbands and win games, coaches can only ban the former and observe the latter.

According to Bear Bryant, “After a victory the players deserve the credit; after a loss the coach deserves the blame.” Is Bryant’s dissection of the blame appropriate? If players merit praise for their physical and mental performance than they should receive criticism when warranted in a loss.

Except the opposite nature of victory and defeat create the possibility of dual judgment. Players seized the day and won the game. Winners performed up to their standards of quality under pressure. Losers didn’t perform. But why?

Usually because of a failure in the role of the coach. Did the coach model the way? Inspire a team vision? Challenge conventions? Enable and motivate others? Read enough Kouzes and Posner? The losing coach probably did not do enough or didn’t do it the right way for that group of players.

Fortunately, there is hope for the defeated coach. I’ve found that coaching is largely an exercise in self-actualization so everything that happens is a piece of information that can be used to climb higher so long as that information is thoroughly and accurately studied.

Self-evaluating after a loss I noted that the two major times that I intervened in the flow of the game resulted in positive outcomes for the team. There were no Isiah Thomas moments so I should be satisfied with my self-actualization, right?

In reality, my superficial analysis did no favours to either the team or me. The players deserve credit for working hard, overcoming adversity, and becoming closer together. For an early season game at this level, it was a sincere success. Reflecting critically, I realize that I deserve blame for countless acts that all contributed slightly to the defeat.

Thankfully, basketball wasn’t banned yesterday so there’s hope. Even if I can only fix one screen and roll sequence or speak slightly more concisely before the next game, it’s still a step forward and only one of many along a longer path.

Irrespective of my self-improvement, the players must still play the games. Becoming a better coach will provide the team with many more tools to do their job, win, and earn the credit they deserve.

Chris Bosh and Improvement

I updated the Post Moves of the Month for January and February 2006. February’s move was posted early because I saw Chris Bosh do it down the stretch vs. Portland and was fairly impressed. He came high ball side, drove the lane, and finished with his left hand. Bosh is continually in the process of improving himself and has become one of the top forwards in the league.

Bosh’s game isn’t perfect; he sets mediocre screens and needs to add range to his jump shot. In crunch time in the Trailblazers game, he committed two faux-pas: neglecting to box out Zach Randolph and failing to get open on the game’s final play.

(By the way, Sam Mitchell should have used a play with more options -- the Raptors almost committed a five second violation and settled for a low percentage shot. For example, if Bosh had down-screened for Mike James on the weak-side, Morris Peterson flashed to the corner, and Matt Bonner flared to a shooting spot, the Blazers would have needed to defend the entire court and could not have doubled Bosh inside. Secondly, Jalen Rose was shooting well and would have been a viable option for a return pass after he inbounded the ball and stepped on the court. Hindsight is 20/20 although at the time I was confident that Rose was going to take and make the shot.)

Chris Bosh’s name is floated in discussions about the Eastern Conference All-Star team, Team U.S.A., and possible Los Angeles Lakers free agent signings (and desevedl so). It won’t happen but four of the top 5 picks in the 2003 N.B.A. Draft may represent the United States at the Olympics. It was considered a weak pick at the time but the Detroit’s selection of Darko Milicic looks absolutely terrible now. I don’t think Toronto made a poor pick -- choosing Bosh over Dwyane Wade is reasonable due to what the team needed and position scarcity.

One can only assume that when he selected Darko as the second pick, Joe Dumars was taking the same bad acid that Rob Babcock dropped when he chose Rafael Araujo in 2004. Carmelo Anthony is better than Milicic (because he actually plays) but perhaps Dumars felt that Tayshaun Prince filled the 3-spot better for defensive and chemistry reasons. Maybe Dumars passed on Flash because he wanted Rip Hamilton to be the man. OK. But if Detroit had taken Bosh, they would be unstoppable (they may be unstoppable now). No team in the league could match up with a frontcourt of Bosh and Rasheed Wallace in the fourth quarter (San Antonio can match up with them now but would be unable to touch that lineup). Furthermore, the upcoming free agency of Ben Wallace would not be a problem. Truly, it was an atrocious selection that should go down next to choosing Sam Bowie instead of Michael Jordan among the worst draft picks of all-time.

In closing, I really appreciate how Chris Bosh rolls. It seems like the career of Alvin Williams has reached its conclusion so I need a new favourite player in the Association. Bosh hasn’t reached the level of Alvinsanity yet, but he has potential.