Undefeated!

Sorry this is late - I had every intention to post yesterday after work.  I promise!  I got home, walked the dog, fed him, booted up the computer, and made myself some dinner.  Next thing I know, food is all over my floor and it's 9:57 pm.  Apparently, I fell asleep while eating.  Fortunately, not while chewing - the last time was kinda scary and my 9 pound min pin is not about to save my life if I do end up choking next time.  So rather than risk falling asleep in a chair mid post, I opted to go to bed and post today.

Good news - I'm pretty close to making a decision on which team I want to coach in the winter.  Not quite 100 percent decided, but a solid 90 for now.  I'm also pretty sold on my coaching philosophy.  So hopefully, I will be back in a championship game or two and actually win.   Looking forward to that.

In other good news, I was able to coach a couple of the games for the Freshman squad - and we won both!!  So I guess technically I'm undefeated in high school.  Granted, I'll admit that the competition in the first game was a little suspect, but the most recent one I'd call decent.  It was a team from Maryland, who I'd seen play a little in a game earlier in the day that was decent.  And with only 5 guys for the whole game in a hot gym that could make a sauna feel like an ice box (okay so maybe that was an exaggeration, but it was pretty hot) you can't really afford too many mistakes.    I even had some parents wondering how we would manage in the heat with five aggressive players without our head coach.   Surprisingly, I wasn't nervous.  I almost had to coach the 7th grade team for a game and it made me really nervous.  But I went in, the guys asked me how we were going to play this.  No fear, no stutter, no uncertainty.

Before I answer that, lets get all the sentimental mumbo jumbo out of the way.  I appreciate you guys coming back.  Some of your teammates didn't feel the same way and aren't here.  Because of tournament rules and a ref with a short fuse, Coach Kevin couldn't be here either.  But you are, and I thank you.  Now that that's out of the way - we're going to play our game, our way.  Yes, we only have 5 guys and most coaches would look to zone up to protect you.  Screw that.  We are going to play the normal man-to-man like always.  Only thing I'm going to ask you to do is be smart.  Don't tone down the physicality or the aggression.  Tone down the gambling.  No crazy reaching in, no showtime blocks.  If you have a good look at forcing a turnover, go.  If you have to think more than a second, just play him even.  Let's go get this W.

We came out and just took our time.  Zone defense from the opposition, no problem.  Pass, pass, drive, pass, open 3-pointer, swish.  Man to man?  Even better.  Blow by, pull up jumper. Find a mismatch, entry pass, low post move, swish.  The opposition tried to make a run, but I called timeout.  Just said, "Ok sit, drink, and back to work.  I know you are tired and I know that's where the mistakes are happening."  Half time rolls around and we just relax a little, talk about some minor adjustments and emphasize closing out strong.  Second half was more of the same.  I almost felt bad for the other team, but such is life in the game of basketball.  I will say, that the boys pretty much handled the game on their own, but I did throw out some things that instantly turned into points or a forced turnover, so I can take a little credit.  The referee who had seen our games from the day before even said he felt like the guys played better.  Not sure how much of that was really my doing, but it was nice to hear.  Parents that doubted us, came and admitted that they were wrong.  Also good to hear.  It's kinda cool being 2-0 in high school.

I will say though, that tournament was so poorly run.  The 15U pool started with 6 teams on day 1 of the tournament.  Cool - that's two pools of 3.  Winner of each pool goes to the championship game.  Great.  Only problem is that in the second pool, only one team showed up.  Rather than do the obvious and redo the set up and qualifying conditions, the director gave that team an automatic slot in the championship game.   Needless to say the one game they did play, they lost by 25+.  And you let them play in a championship?  Every other team played 3 games, they played one and got to go to the championship.  Talk about undeserving!!  Maybe I'm just mad because had the pools been adjusted as logic would dictate, we should have been in the championship game and maybe more of the players would have shown up for the second day of the tournament.  And it's not like this was a new tournament making rookie mistakes.  It's been going on for years, and from the sound of it, it has been trash for years.  Hanging out in Atlantic City for the weekend was cool, but not to play in a crap tournament.

Oh well - I got my second win in high school games, and I feel super excited about the upcoming Fall season.  Not to mention the trip to Orlando in a few weeks to participate in the AAU National Tournament.  Let's go!!!

Have A Little Pride

It's been a pretty nice week and a half for me, and being that today is a day where Americans put on their red, white, and blue, throw some good ol' American hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill, and bubble over with pride for our great nation, I decided to delay my own proud post for such an occasion. 

If you didn't know already, I love my Baylor Bears.  I love it even more when we do great things that even ESPN and the other sports networks, who loved to bash and hate for years, have to give us props for.  Like putting 3 players in the NBA this year.    Sure North Carolina, Duke, Kentucky, and the other big "powerhouses" do that year after year.  But for Baylor this is big.  And I love that Quincy Acy got drafted.  He's a guy with tons of heart and a motor that doesn't stop.  A blue collar baller in an age where it's cool to where shirts that say, "Lazy But Talented." I wish Curtis Jerrels would get picked up already, but we'll just keep waiting for that and wish him the best in Spain.  Still, BaylorNation is proud when we see things like this.

And of course, with the latest edition of EA Sports' NCAA Football hitting shelves next week (July 10th to be exact), I'm very proud that Baylor University has a "cover athlete."  Even more exciting is that he is sharing the cover with Barry Sanders, a legendary figure in the running back community, and collegiate dominance.  It's good stuff.  Not quite ready to jump on the Redskin bandwagon, but RG III is going to be a household name.

But of course, I'm not just going to talk about how great my Bears are doing without throwing in my two cents on the matter.  These guys, and those who had success before them, had such pride that helped drive them.  It wasn't all just natural talent and gifts.  They were driven.  Driven by wanting to uplift the community that gave them the platform to showcase their talents and cherished them as family.  Respect for the hard work of the people who wore the uniforms before them that went unnoticed yet continued to strive for excellence among the haters and nay-sayers.  Moved by the understanding that every game was bigger than themselves.  For too many kids, its about the name on the back of the jersey, rather than the people they represent on the front.  I guess we have the likes of Chad Ochocinco, Terrel Owens, to thank for that.  Too many times have I seen kids get upset that they didn't score any points in a win, but be ecstatic that they dropped 10 in a game we'd lose.  You have to play with pride when you compete.  Talent can only take you so far, but pride will get you through those hostile arenas, help fight back from what most would call insurmountable odds.  Pride is what keeps you from being complacent and being stagnant.  Talent brings championships, but legacies are built on pride.  The old school teams that would win champions back to back to back wouldn't get lazy in the off season.  Nope they'd be looking at where they could grow because they knew everyone would be gunning for their spot.  When was the last time an NBA team won back to back titles?  In most cases, the champion got eliminated from the playoffs really early, if they made them at all.

It's something you have to have every time you put on the gear.  Every time you touch the ball, every time you break a sweat.  All the things I've been talking about this season - commitment, team identity, toughness - comes from that sense of pride.  If you don't have it, your just wasting time.

Happy Fourth of July, everyone!  And of course, SIC 'EM BEARS!  :)     

Loyalty...

I miss the days where people were loyal.  Guys like Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Steve Nash, wouldn't leave their teams for anything.  Now, people just go where ever for money, or whatever reason.

But it's not just happening in the pros.  I've seen it happen to two teams, and it makes no sense to me. Two players that coaches have invested their time with.  Two players that were welcomed into the program and afforded an opportunity that many don't get (you should see how many people show up to some of these tryouts).  The teams spend enough time to be a small family, and to see these guys just say forget family and go play in other places, that compete in some of the same circles no less, is just astonishing.

One player had been in the program for years.  Back then, he was not much.  Just an average kid who wanted to play.  They gave him a shot, worked with him and developed his game some, got him some looks from college coaches.  All of a sudden, he's playing on another team.  Why would you think that is a good idea?   That's nothing short of a slap in the face.  "Hey thanks for making me good and by the way I'm going to play against you now." 

While the second player hadn't been in the program as long (I don't think so anyway) but I saw him over the weekend playing for another team.  I just didn't know what to say to him.  I didn't want to see him doing well.  Inside I hoped he played horribly as karma struck back.  I wanted to confront him and ask why he even bothered playing with that team rather than handle his responsibilities with our program.

I don't know how the other coaches can hold their tongues.   I wanted to just tell both those guys how I felt and that they aren't LeBron.  You don't have someone welcome you in, put their trust in you, back you, and help you grow and then just bail.  It's not cool.  I had the opportunity to chill with a couple of the players that came through the program and have a sense of loyalty.  It's fun to be around  those guys, hear the stories, and how much they remember about the teams and the battles they fought together.  You don't have those kinds of memories and all when you are team-hopping. 

Maybe I'm old school, but I wish loyalty was still important...

Oops...My Bad

Been working so many hours at work since my last post that days are running together.  Just realized that its Tuesday, and there's no post for you guys. I'll get around to it soon, if my job gives me time to breathe...

Flying High

Trust me when I tell you I'm still all giddy and whatnot from this weekend. I'm dead serious.  We had a great weekend as a program, and it was fun to be a part of.  I was probably the most excited I've ever been in a while.  I can tell you for sure I am never that excited about work.  EVER. The boys came out ballin' all weekend, and were determined to make the most of the weekend.   I  had a great time, and I would do it every weekend in a heartbeat. 

I have people that ask me how I manage and do it week in and week out, skipping out on hanging out with friends on the weekends or relaxing after work.  Truth is, I am hanging out with friends, and I'm relaxing.

Sorry this isn't a real post, but I don't really know what else to say other than to tell these boys from this weekend - Job well done.   And to Coach Halewicz, thanks for writing this recap for me.  The high will probably wear off by next Monday and I'll be back to my normal posts.

Zero Gravity National Finals Recap

Get Your Mind Right

As I've said numerous times this spring season, I learned something else to add to list of things to accomplish with my team.  You can have the best players and lose.  You can have mediocre players and win.  And you can sometimes predict the future outcome 10-20 minutes before tip-off. All you have to do is see what they do for pregame.

I've been on both ends and seen it coming in most cases.  How you prepare for a game doesn't end after the last practice.  It ends at tip-off.  The stretching before hand, pregame meeting, the five minute warm up, the huddle just before the starters take to the court - that's all part of the preparation.  And that part, when not done well, can easily put you in a really bad situation.  Before you know it, you are down 15 to a bunch of scrawny, goofy looking kids, that most probably thought wouldn't be able to catch a ball, let alone make you look like clowns on the court.  But you can't just go through the motions - the stretching has to actually loosen the muscles, the pregame meeting needs to have meaning, warm-ups need to be focused and purposeful, and the huddle should be encouraging.  You have to "get your mind right" before hand, because if you don't "come correct" you've probably just come to get wrecked.

As a coach, I will need to explain and drive all of this for the first few games and/or tournaments so it sinks in and becomes routine.  I have seen how important it is for myself.  I've heard from coaches I respect how damaging it was for their teams in games they struggled in.  I heard basketball greats emphasize how important preparation was to them and their teammates.  Being someone who wants to someday reach that level of success and respect, I would have to be a fool - idiot even - to not make that one of the things I add to my next season.  Not to mention that it is a little intimidating to your opponent if they walk into the gym all lackadaisical and see all of your players stretching together, focused and ready to rip them to shreds, have an intense warm up and storm the court with crazy amounts of energy.  Weaker men may just wet themselves. 

I have tournaments I haven't won, leagues that I've yet to earn the title of champion in - to bite off my Lady Bears, I have "Unfinished Business." To those coaches I'll be competing against: this spring may be your worst nightmare.  We may not win all of our games, but you are going to be in for one heck of a battle.  You better believe it'll be "Put up or Shut up" when my team takes the floor, so don't let me catch you sleeping.

Newsletter!

If I keep showing up in these newsletter, I may be able to claim 'D' list celebrity status lol.  Just a quick mention, no publications - this time.

Wayne PAL AAU Newsletter - June 6, 2012