CONTROL WHAT YOU CAN CONTROL

The following comes from "Designing Effective Practices for Team Sports" written by Kevin Sivils:

Competitive sports can sometimes be described as controlled chaos, and the team that is able to bring the most order out of the chaos has the best chance of winning the game.  That might be overstating things a bit, but at times, it certainly seems like an accurate statement.  What is certain is that there are many elements that neither coaches nor players have control over.

No coach is able to control how tall the opponent's center is, how quick the opponent's point guard is, or how far the range of the opponent's shooter is.  Nor can any player control an official's calls, the physical condition of the court and building the game is being played in, or the speed of the clock.

In fact, there are really only three things coaches and players really have control over.  God gave each of us total control over the choices we make, our attitude, and our effort.  It is a waste of time and emotional energy to try and control anything else.  In fact, it can reduce a great deal of negative behavior, thinking, action, and mistakes made on the court.

STEPHEN COVEY ON "TOTAL QUALITY"

The following comes from Stephen Covey's "Principle-Centered Leadership:"

Total quality is an expression of the need for continuous improvement in four areas:

1. Personal and professional development

2. Interpersonal relations

3. Managerial effectiveness

4. Organizational productivity

• Personal and professional development. I’ve always liked the expression “If it’s going to be, it’s up to me.” In reality you and me are the keys to total quality. W. Edwards Deming, the economic Isaiah of our time, has said that about 90 percent of the problems in organizations are general problems (bad systems)—only about 10 percent are specific problems with people. W. Edwards Deming’s principle, constancy of purpose, implies that we first have a purpose or mission—a statement of what we are about, a vision of what we can become.

• Interpersonal relations. Total quality on an interpersonal level means making constant deposits into the emotional bank accounts of others. It is continually building goodwill and negotiating in good faith, not in fear. If you create an expectation of continuous product or service improvement but fail to deliver on that expectation, you will see a buildup of fear and negative forecasting.

• Managerial effectiveness. Managerial quality is basically nurturing win-win performance and partnership agreements—making sure they are “in sync” with what is happening inside that person and what is happening inside the business. These win-win agreements are subject to renegotiation at any time—ideally on a synergistic basis, not a positional bargaining basis, and open to all the dynamics and vicissitudes of the market. So there is a sense of two-way openness.

• Organizational productivity. Proactive leadership springs from an awareness that we are not a product of our systems, that we are not a product of our environments, that those things powerfully influence us, but we can choose our responses to them. Proactivity is the essence of real leadership. Every great leader has a high level of proactive energy and vision—a sense that “I am not a product of my culture, my conditioning, and the conditions of my life; rather, I am a product of my value system, attitudes, and behavior—and those things I control.”

Total quality is a total philosophy, a total paradigm of continuous improvement in all four dimensions. And it is sequential; if you don’t have it personally, you won’t get it organizationally. You can’t expect organizations to improve when the people don’t improve. You might improve systems, but how do you get a commitment inside the culture to improve systems? People have to grow and mature to where they can communicate to solve the problems to improve those systems.

Total quality is a principle-centered approach that has come out of the best the world has produced. In our training we emphasize the human side more than the technical side because we believe that the origin and the essence of total quality is empathy with customers, empathy with their motives and buying habits.

• First, we are not yet hurting enough.

• Second, we don’t want to change our life-styles.

• Third, even the best U.S. companies tend to regard quality as a program, a department. It’s not integrated in their structure, systems, style, and so forth.

Total quality is rooted in timeless principles:

• Faith, hope, humility

• Works, industry, research, testing

• Constancy, consistency, predictability

• Continuous improvement and progression

• Feedback based on both measurement and discernment

• Virtue and truth in human relations

HOOP BOOST BLOG FOR PLAYERS

For those that are relatively new to my blog, we wanted to make sure that you knew we had a second blog titles Hoop Boost.  We post on this blog about once a week or every ten days.  They are generally very short posts that are designed for student-athletes.  We bring your attention to it because it can be a nice resource of material to share with your team.

THE CULTURE OF RESPONSIBILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY

"You've got to be responsible and accountable and be able to do your job.  There's a way you have to do it in terms of the effort, the toughness and the intangibles and dependability you have and the discipline you have in carrying out your responsibility.  And I quite frankly think when you have a critical mass of players on your team that think like that, they don't really want other guys that don't think that way to be out there with them."

-Nick Saban

KEVIN EASTMAN'S 5 W's OF PICK AND ROLL DEFENSE

The following comes from Kevin Eastman, assistant coach of the Boston Celtics:

Where is the screen being set
Who is involved
What is the alignment
What is our communication
What is our coverage

COACH KNIGHT ON CONCENTRATION

"The most important thing in coaching is getting kids to concentrate."

-Bob Knight

Concentration leads to...
   ...Anticipation, which leads to
      ...Recognition, which leads to
         ...Execution, which leads to
            ...Completion

ONE MINUTE ASSESSMENTS

This is something we got from Coach Don Meyer and it should be developed by all coaches.  It is a simple yet incredibly effective way to correct and improve a player/team in a positive fashion.  Coach Meyer refers to it as "One Minute Assessments."  During this short duration, you should...

...tell a player 1 thing YOU did well and WHY

then

...tell that player 1 thing WE can do better and HOW

Q&A WITH STEPHANIE ZONARS (AND SOME OF MY FAVORITE BOOKS)

In case you missed it, I did a Q&A with Stephanie Zonars for her outstanding website "Life Beyond Sport." Here is what it looked like:

After 25 seasons at LSU (13 as part of the women’s basketball coaching staff) and a season at UCF, Bob Starkey begins his first season with the Texas A&M Aggies. Bob helped guide LSU to four SEC Championships, 12 straight NCAA Tournament appearances, eight Sweet 16s, seven Elite Eights and five consecutive trips to the Final Four. He was a key component in the Lady Tigers’ outstanding record of 326-105 (.756) from 1998-2011. Bob passionately serves and resources the coaching community through his blog. You can also follow him on Twitter.

You’ve worked under coaching legends like Dale Brown, Sue Gunter, Van Chancellor and now Gary Blair. What are a few of the qualities that set successful coaches like them apart?

The one common denominator was the importance of the relationships that we develop—putting the student-athlete first, even beyond winning and losing—makes the difference in a long-term successful program. The other thing that was consistent among them was the ability to not just handle adversity but to enthusiastically look upon setbacks as great challenges that ultimately test us. The coaches that I’ve been fortunate enough to work for have stood the test of time and I believe a big reason has been they care about people and love challenges.

As an avid reader, what books do you recommend to coaches as “must reads”?

•The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey (I think this is a life changing book and I recommend it at every clinic that I speak)

•The Art of War by Sun Tzu (James Clavell edit is my favorite)

•360 Degree Leadership by John C. Maxwell (one of the best leadership books for assistant coaches)

•The Art of Living by Wilferd Peterson (my first gift from Dale Brown)

•Goals! by Brian Tracy (one of the best on this subject)

•Finding A Way To Win by Bill Parcells (great blueprint to his success)

•The Carolina Way by Dean Smith (The Carolina value system)

•Finding The Winning Edge by Bill Walsh (love this one – but it’s hard to find)

•The Gold Standard by Mike Krzyzewski (great look into how he molded the Olympic Team)

•The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon (also loved "Training Camp" by Jon)

•Today Matters by John C. Maxwell (great book to understanding the importance of today)

•Time Power by Brian Tracy (the best organizational book I’ve read)

•First Things First by Stephen Covey (another great organization book)

•How Lucky Can You Be: The Story of Don Meyer by Buster Olney (great book about a great coach)

What’s the best advice you received from a coaching mentor that impacts how you coach today?

Dale Brown taught me early and often that coaching basketball was simply a means to develop young people and make an impact on your community and society. Certainly we have to win enough games to keep our jobs to be part of this great process but Coach Brown believed that “winning” was molding the young people that we came in contact with—not just on the court, but in the classroom and in life as well.

BASKETBALL THOUGHTS FROM PETE GAUDET

Find good things to break down a defense.  Break the whole defense down, then find ways to allow an individual to break his defender down.

The "Five R's of Posting" --
Run (the floor)
Rebound (post players ticket into the game)
Rooting out (post up)
Rotate & Recover (defensive)
Relocate (with and without the ball)

You never need more than two dribbles unless you are a point guard.

The ability to back up with a dribble and change directions is a skill not many have.

Not many players can properly feed the post.

Push the ball up the floor then decide you don't want to fast break as opposed to walking the ball up and then wishing you would've have pushed the ball.

FALL CLINIC DATES

I'm both honored and excited to be speaking at a couple of clinics in Texas this fall.  Not only do I get to share some of our thoughts on basketball and growing this great game, but it allows me to continue to meet some of the outstanding coaches in our state and surrounding areas.

KINGWOOD PARK COACHES CLINIC
September 15, 2012

Speakers: Brendan Suhr, Kevin McHale, Dominic Amorosa and Bob Starkey

Besides being able to speak in the Houston area on this weekend, I look forward to spending some time with my friend Brendan Suhr.  Brendan was a long-time assistant coach under Chuck Daly during the dynasty years with the Detroit Pistons.  If you are looking to add or improve upon the pick and roll in your offense -- no one is better than Brendan.  Of course, Brendan also teams up with Kevin Eastman to put on Coaching U Live each summer -- so he certainly knows what goes into a great clinic.  As a life-long Celtic fan, I will also look forward to hearing Kevin McHale. My friend Justin Burleson puts the clinic on each year and does an incredible job.

Here is a link for more information:
 http://www.humbleisd.net/Page/24600


DALLAS BASKETBALL COACHING WORKSHOP
October 6, 2012

Speakers: Fran Fraschilla, Bob Hill, Danny Henderson, Jarred Samples, Matt Grahn, and Bob Starkey

Again, it's a great opportunity to talk basketball but I'm excited about getting up in the Dallas area to meet some of the great coaches of that area.  I can tell you I'm also excited about learning from the other speakers as well.  Coach Fraschilla has won at every level of the college game and now does such a great job on ESPN.  He's one of those guys on TV that coaches want to hear because he actually teaches as he does the broadcast.  Bob Hill's been successful on the collegiate and NBA level.  My friend Matt Grahn puts this clinic on and it is a passion of his to make sure it is an outstanding day.

Here is a link for more information:
http://coachgbasketball.blogspot.com/p/2012-dallas-basketball-coaching-workshop.html

Registration: http://coachgbasketball.blogspot.com/p/dallas-basketball-coaching-workshop.html