Here are some thoughts from some very successful Basketball Coaches. I hope you can use them to help your program at some time.
“A Loser says, “Well at least I tried!” When in reality, at most he tried; A Winner doesn’t have to say it, he just does it…be a doer, not a trier..”–Randy E. Johnson
“To encourage the taking of good shots, we sometimes scrimmaged without keeping score on the board. I secretly gave the score to a manager, and all the scoring was based on shot selection. A great shot (layup), even if it didn’t go in, was worth three points; a good shot, even if it didn’t fall, was two points; for a shot that was merely acceptable because of the shot clock winding down, one point. If a player made a tough three-point shot that shouldn’t have been taken, zero points. Loss of ball without getting a shot was minus two points. We defined a good shot as one the shooter could make most of the time that was taken with our rebounders in position, unless it was an open layup.”–Dean Smith
“Defense doesn’t break down on the help, it breaks down on the recovery.” — Chuck Daly
“We clearly define “roles” that help players play to their strengths and away from their weaknesses. I specifically tell each individual what we need from him, where his shots should be taken from, and where he stands at that particularly point in the year. Before the first game, I call a team meeting and define each player’s role as it stands at the moment. Each player must know exactly where he stands with the team. I have found that players would rather know where they are than to guess and be disappointed after the first game.”–John Calipari
“It is as big a mistake to turn down a good shot as it is to take a bad one.”–Ed Murphy
“You are always teaching your players something. When you scream at them, what are you teaching them? Before every practice or game, you need to decide, “WHAT WILL YOU TEACH YOUR KIDS TODAY, AND HOW WILL YOU TEACH IT?”–Unknown
“We Must OUTLAST the offense on every possession! Great defense takes consistent effort and commitment to excellence, every second of every practice and every game. It is not good enough to just go through the motions, to give the impression that you are trying, that you care. You must take PRIDE in your defense, in your effort, and be committed to OUTLASTING your opponent. You have to believe that! Anything less gives our opponents the edge. Gentlemen, we must OUTLAST the offense on every possession. That must be our foundation.”–Dick Bennett
“The coach should be the absolute boss, but he still should maintain an open mind.”–Red Auerbach
“We all want to be important. However the person who thinks I am the most important part of the team should remember this. Life is like a buck of water. We are a part of the whole. But how big is the hole that is left when we take away a large cup of water? The hole suddenly fills up and…so life goes. The nature of life is that there is always someone who can and will take your place, when you think you are irreplaceable.” –Unknown
“The more your players have to think on the basketball court, the slower their feet get.” — Jerry Tarkanian
“A successful team is like an iceberg, everyone sees the star, but underneath it all is that big, wide, strong base: the rest of the team. Without that base, the star sinks too.”–Unknown
B ball is the game.
And my boss is the coach