Winning a Championship....What Does it Mean?

Recently we won the Springs Valley Tip Off tourney at SVHS.  Great tourney run by class individuals at SVHS.  Not only that, but the other teams there have class coaches who seem to be doing it, coaching, for the right reasons.  We have played there two years in a row and played in the championship game both years.  This year we defeated the host team and the players did a great job of doing what we wanted done. Many of the guys did things that were needed for us to win from scoring to timely defense and rebounding, it truly was a team win.

Jim Matthews, former coach at New Washington and Madison high schools and winner of over 400 basketball games often said that winning a championship reinforces what you are doing.  I can agree with that, but it is amazing to watch kids go out and do something that hasn't been done all too often where I coach.  It is 100% about what they accomplished, they made the plays, they showed the toughness.  Hopefully, we put them in positions to be successful and when you win a championship it helps to answer some of those questions.  Especially questions by you, maybe the players and definitely members of the community.

It is nice to win something this early in the year, but it is also more important that we stay focused.  It is a long season and winning a championship now is nice, but it will be even nicer at the end of the season.  We are in a nice place now, but we are only as good as our next game which is Tuesday.  We have a lot to work on and I can't wait to get into the gym to work on those things.  Enjoy this for tonight and tomorrow (Sunday) and Monday it is back to work for the rest of the season.

First Games are Good for Many Things...Not So Much for Other Things

Every year when we play our first game of the year, we have had 13 practices to prepare.  It is actually a disservice to the fans and players for this to occur, but the IHSAA changed the start date for practice a few years back to put football schools on the same start date as non football schools.  What you get, often, is not very good basketball until mid December.  With us, we start the year off against a bigger school, more athletic team who usually gets into us defensively.   Some say that we don't have to play that first Tuesday of the year, but it has become a Thanksgiving tradition and there is a lot of hype heading into it...good or bad that's how it is.  Also, we could have two a days, but I would rather our guys sleep in and come to practice fresh and ready to go than to practice at 6 AM, go to school, then practice after school.

No matter how much you work on anything when that game comes around it gets simplified greatly.  You hope that the shellshock of playing in front of 2400 people doesn't rear its ugly head and you hope you can get something going on offense other than one or two guys doing most of the movement (the noise level is so loud that they often can't hear me, but they need to be able to do things on their own, it comes just rarely after 13 practices).  Last night was no different.

Probably the hardest thing as a coach (and trust me...there are many) is that many people don't understand what's happening sometimes, mostly because they are not at practice.  They very well could have great basketball knowledge, but if they don't know what the staff is trying to get accomplished, they can be confused.  I have had a couple of people through the years come to practice and have a different appreciation for what we try to do after actually being at a practice (we have one open practice per year).  Believe it or not what happens on the court is not always what the coaches want done, but that is expected from kids, it is something I have come to accept as a coach. 

I can handle the criticisms, as I have gotten older and more experienced, it bothers me less (it would be like me showing up to a job and critiquing without really knowing what was going on, I have critisized basketball coaches in the past until I fully understand what they are trying to do)  The problem is that criticisms get generated at kids sometimes intentionally, often not. What we have to deal with as coaches is many things.  We have to get 7-9 guys to buy into what we are doing reinforcing that about two hours a day.  Meanwhile they are attending school, going home, and spending time on social network sites/message boards and we can only hope that positive reinforcment is going on there too (anonymous message boards are horrible at least with facebook the opinion is associated with a name).

Last night I was concerned about a few things.  Our free throw shooting.  We were 17-31, we hit more at key times and the game is closer.  We have worked on free throws many times and we even do a drill that I call "competitive FTs".  Players pair up and both "teams" shoot 20 free throws.  The other team tries to get into their heads by talking to them, waving their hands, etc.  This allows for our guys to shoot with pressure individually, but also by being part of a "team".  Our shot selection.  Not only some of the shots we took (I am going to let our best players shoot hopefully fewer and fewer bad shots as the year goes on, but they have to feel comfortable shooting, call that wrong, I am ok with it), but our not being able to get some flow on offense, again 13 practices, but I really thought any of our guards could drive their guards at any time and that allowed for more one on one action from all of our guards.  Our shot selection part 2.  Not getting the ball to open guys when they were open and not working smarter to get open all things we will emphasize in the next few practices.

Things I saw positive were many.  We competed.  We didn't turn the ball over many times against full court man to man.  We got to the free throw line 31 times.  We rebounded well (lost some key defensive rebounds though...has to be all the time), and we had a group of guys, at least superficially who were cheering and supporting each other.  Hopefully that stays the same as we get positively reinforced.

We have worked on these things many times in the previous 13 practices and will continue to do so.  At some point what we are trying to convey has got to get through to the players.   We look at stats and watch tape so they can see what we are talking about and have a better appreciation for what we are doing.  I don't get too worked up by what happens or doesn't happen after Game #1 because we find out a lot more to work on from that game than we do any given day of practice. 

I Love My Children, But....

I spoke recently to someone about our roles as fathers, teachers, coaches, husbands, mentors, counselors, etc...and probably the biggest fear we have is not being good enough dads.  His quote "I am just worn out by the time I get home and my kids are good, I just don't want to deal with them being 6 and 3".  I understand exactly what he is saying.

Our jobs (I am talking about men right now, I understand that women deal with some of the same issues) keep us from being home especially in the winter.  When we get home the last thing I want to do is deal with a spoiled rotten kid.  We see so many negatives during the day from "bad" kids to kids who are spoiled and do "bad" things.  When I get home the last thing I want is to see any of the same type of behavior in my own children.  So what I end up doing in the 2 hours I have for them in the day is punishing them....or not.

If I punish them I am afraid that I will be reinforced as angry, mean daddy who punishes us all the time.  If I let them get away with stuff then I become the father that allows their children to be spoiled.  To be real honest, I don't mind too many things unless my wife gets upset over their behavior (she teaches and deals with the same issues I do) or they throw an absolute fit.

I have always made them my top priority and I rarely take anything from work home.  From grading to basketball, it gets done at school so when I get home I am able to mess with the kiddos and then get some decent sleep...or watch game tapes.  But as hard as I try, I sometimes wonder if it is crazy for me to want to put them up for adoption (purely a joke, I would never do that).

It is amazing how much you can love someone and yet get so frustrated and yet never want them to be gone.  They are the greatest love I have ever had.  Nobody's hugs, kisses, or attention is the same.  One day....one day they will be grown and gone and I will wish for this time back.  One day they will be gone and I will long for this time.  One day they will be gone and I will feel guilty for not having read to them that one time I was tired, guilt for not listening to that story one more time, guilt for not dancing with them in the living room, guilt for not lying down with them when they are going to bed, guilt for not doing many of these things that one time when I could have and now I have them no longer.

The Words We Use

I have read often about motivation, what can I do to motivate someone whether it be a basketball player or a person?  Even myself...what words can I use or say to motivate myself?  I have found that words are powerful.  When coaching the words you use can pump a kid up or break them down (sometimes they both are necessary).  The words you use can leave an indelible mark on someone when you don't even realize it and I think that is why we need to be careful and think about this.  We need to make a concentrated effort because we not only are tearing a kid up, but we offend others when we don't even realize it.

With the advent of social network sites, now the written word can have as much motivation as the spoken word.  I know I have been questioned about what I have written about in the past, and I am fine with that.  A little accountability is nice and you can rest assure if I have written or spoken it, I have thought about it...a little.  It is amazing to me how many people personalize what I write about.  Not everything I write about is over an issue with myself.  Often it is, but many times it is over issues other people are dealing with and that I can relate to.

However, I am starting to understand in a little more depth the words I use in any forum and how they affect others.  It is good because I often feel that I am being held to a higher standard for what I say or write than what others are, but that is an incorrect way of looking at things.  I should only be looking from an individual perspective.   What am I saying or writing and should I be doing it?  Am I not being clear enough in what I say and write?  And should I care about some of the words I use as I am writing to be honest.  Obviously I am not intentionally trying to hurt anyone as I am sure many times when I hear what has been said about me....they aren't intentionally trying to hurt me or even wanting me to hear about it, but it happens.

Yes, other coaches have said derogatory things about me and my program, about me and my town, and that may upset me at times, but it has never caused me to forget that we all make mistakes.  It hasn't caused me to forget that I have said things I shouldn't have in the past (I am trying to be better).  Yes, other coaches have called me out on my behavior, and I think in the past I was angered by it, but now I understand that it isn't about the person pointing out the flaw, but it is the flaw...in myself. 

Do I feel like I am being held to a higher standard sometimes, sure, but when I clear my head and understand that the standard is what everyone should be held to, it makes more sense.  I don't mind accountability....I do not want to be at worst a hypocrite, at least someone not trying to put his words and actions in line.

The worst thing I think we can do is point and say "you know, I may be wrong, but I am not as bad as that person".  We are too often focused on the actions of others when we should be focusing on the actions of ourselves.  I realize that I am not perfect, don't claim to be, but I am trying to improve.  I have made mistakes in the past, making them right now, (I am sure someone will think this blog entry is about them, it isn't, it's about me), and I can guarantee you that I will make them in the future.  Not because I am vindictive, but because I am a human being.  I can only hope those I offend will try to forgive as hard as I do.

Scrimmage with South Decatur

In Indiana, we are allowed to have a scrimmage before we play which is essentially a practice vs. another team.  We started with New Washington HS, but they are in our conference and were in our sectional, so it seemed silly to scrimmage them.  So we ventured to Decatur county and have scrimmaged South Decatur HS for the last 5 years, I think.

They are a small school, yet have football, so we get to see a physical and usually quick team before we play our first game of the year.  It's been good for us and a good thing to get our feet wet before the actual games begin.  With scrimmages, however, each year, I plan on sitting and watching.  I want our guys to see for themselves what they are doing right and wrong, but the competitive juices in me get going and I cannot stand to sit and watch some of the stuff we do....every year, this year was no exception.

Many of the negatives that we saw today, were things the coaching staff has been talking about for two weeks in practice and we have seen some progress on some days of practice.  But there are many things that kids won't believe until they actually play a game....and that's what the scrimmage is for.  Along with the negatives, you also get to see some positives.  As coaches, I think, we tend to see more negatives than positives, but they are there.  We had a couple of kids play pretty well for a long time and some that were on roller coasters....it happens especially early.

We talked after the practice with SD that we wanted Henryville basketball to be known for a lot of things, but the first two things that comes to mind is that we play hard and will compete.  You would think those things are givens, but they aren't.  To do so, you have to get out of your comfort zone sometimes.  To do so, you have to be aware of what is going on and where you are supposed to be all the time.  It takes time, too much it seems sometimes, but it happens.

We have pretty high expectations for ourselves each year, the players and the coaches but they are far from unattainable.  So much comes down to getting on the same page, playing through adversity and having each others backs whether on offense or defense.  Selfishness is a tough thing to overcome and it can show from taking bad shots (which is what everybody notices) to not helping on defense which we believe may be worse.  That "selfishness" comes from being comfortable on the court, it comes from being tired sometimes physically but definitely mentally and still helping each other out.

We open up in three days at home vs. our larger school rival and it will help us no matter the result for the reason of the season.

Butterflies

Butterflies....we've all experienced that nervous tingling in your stomach that we call butterflies.  I know I did when I played, in fact, it was something that I had to come to grips as a real young child.  I felt that nervousness and didn't know what it was and I didn't like it.  In fact, it probably kept me from competing in some things until I realized what it was that I was feeling.

Butterflies are that nervous feeling before you do anything that you aren't used to or that you feel when you are about to compete.  I kinda feel that you aren't a true competitor if you don't have those feelings of getting ready to compete.  If you don't have them it is usually for a bad reason (like you know you are going to get it handed to you, but I still got them even then because there was always that hope that we wouldn't). 

When I played, I would have them in pre game warmups.  All the way through when the first pitch or the jump ball went up....gone.  I think it's great if you have them because you are ready to go out and compete and hopefully win.  You might have them for another reason and it is because you don't think you are ready, but that hasn't been the case for me personally.  I know we aren't always completely ready for games because of turn around or because we coach kids and they aren't getting our game plan the way we want them to, but we do prepare.  Our kids should at least feel comfortable in knowing that the coaching staff has worked hard to do that...prepare them and allow them to use those butterflies in a competitive way.

For me, the butterflies start around June basketball, dissipates some until conditioning and stay until March and the tournament ends.  It's because I want us ready to compete every single game.  That's why when March comes around you will see a huge smile on my face and on spring break, I want to go have some fun.  Because not only are there butterflies with me, but I put so much pressure on myself to prepare our kids...to take pride in what we do....to prepare that when the season ends the butterflies go away. 

At least until June basketball starts.