Coaching Is An Art

It is always interesting to me how the older players always believe I was tougher on them their freshmen year. Every year I hear the same tale--I'm getting softer. It is a story I've heard for the past 21 years. At this rate I should have been a marsh mellow by now.

So I listen to the upper class players and I get tougher for a few days, making them run for not hustling, perform frozen push-ups for not boxing out, jump on the heavy ropes for not using a screen. I yell louder, act tougher and everybody is happy thinking I'm back to my "normal" self. The truth of the matter is I'm a demanding coach year after year and sometimes I do get a little off kilter but never as much as the players claim. The thing is they don't put it in perspective. When they first arrive here, it feels tougher because they have never lived through the experience. First year players always feel targeted, feel they are getting the brunt of the criticism, and are certain I am on their case more than any other player. After the first year, the norm for players is the demanding practice so they don't believe I am being hard enough.

I often alternate between being extremely hard on players and giving them love. It is not uncommon for me to hug a player or slap them playfully on the back. I often tell them they are amazing or awesome or incredible. I believe all people need to hear this regardless of their age. Then there are days when I push and demand and ride them as if they have never done anything right on the court. There is a thin line which a coach must always walk; this line is between allowing a player to remain in her comfort zone and pushing her to a new awakening of her potential. It has to be done with tough love, giving praise and then demanding more.

I know they must feel as if my praise is real and valid so I give it only when they do well. I also know if they hear constant criticism even if it is meant to improve their skills they hear that they are not good enough preventing them from performing at a higher level. It is a thin rope to walk and I try to keep the balance but sometimes I fail and they falter because I haven't been positive enough.

About a week and a half ago I blasted two of my leaders in front of the team yelling at them for a lack of effort, taking them out of their leadership roles, making them run instead of doing drills. This was a calculated plan on my part. If I lost them for the season, we were not going to win a game, but I knew if they heard me and made an adjustment, it could mean success. Both of them were angry at me, refusing to look at me, wanting nothing to do with me believing I was being unfair to them and targeting them. I did target them as they were my leaders; they had to work at a different level.

Now they are playing better and being more vocal leading both through effort and voice. They will forget the practice where they were "targeted" as they play better and the team wins more. Eventually they will know I did this out of love as I wanted them to get to the next level, to be the players hidden inside of themselves.

Coaching is an art and sometimes I do well at it and sometimes I miscalculate. Hopefully, the players know my intentions are always the same--to make them the best possible players they can be.

PLAY HARD. PLAY TOGETHER.

Losing Is Only the First Step To Winning

After our third loss in a row and a loss to Bluefield State, I've had people calling me, consoling me as if a family member had died. It is interesting to me in the world of athletics how a loss or a losing season makes people get depressed and think less of themselves. I'm not angry or depressed or in a state where I have lost faith in the team or myself.

I know this group of players will figure it out. My teams historically start off slow because I teach so much. I have this philosophy about the game of basketball which includes breaking each part of the game down into a very small portion, teaching each skill exactly how it should be done, demanding the players execute everything correctly. This can result in a type of paralysis where players start to doubt their abilities and initially it hinders their talents, but when they get it, they become three times the player others thought they could be.

I have seen this occur so often that I don't panic over losing games or freshmen not playing to their potential. After all, I've witnessed players evolve from substitutes off the bench to All-Americans. I watched Jihan Williams grow from her freshmen year where I couldn't play her because she wouldn't adhere to our defensive principles to an All-American her senior year. I observed Tarenna Dixon expand from a player who couldn't score consistently to averaging a double-double her senior year. I witnessed Lisa Lee develop from high school where she barely averaged 10 points a game to becoming UC's career leading scorer.

I've watched so many freshmen struggle with our system and with their confidence that I am acutely aware of how we affect them. I've even had parents angry with me after watching their child in their freshmen year, telling me I was ruining their child only to later tell me after their child's senior year they were amazed at how good they had become.

Being a teacher means I have to have patience, to push the team when I think they ought to be pushed, but to love and hug them when they are distraught and in despair. I alternate between being incredibly demanding to being patient hopefully giving the players the feeling of confidence they need to be successful.

If I chose to put them in a system where they ran to spots and had the freedom of not having to think so much, we might be more successful earlier but I am in this for the long haul, wanting them to intimately know and understand the game. Every one of the players at UC will know why each play works, how to correctly defend it, how to read the defense and improve their individual skills. They will be smarter than many coaches and this added game intelligence will give them power; they will feel they can defeat anybody with their brains.

So when people call to console me, they must first know I am okay. I understand we are in the teaching mode and our young players are learning. What I am absolutely confident in is the faith we will discover a way to win and we will get better. We will win some games and defeat some very tough opponents before the season is over. Those who are laughing at us now and doubting us will soon become aware that we don't give up at the University of Charleston. Instead we use each game to get better, each loss as an opportunity for growth.

I am proud of how far we have come this year in only three games and I know with our hard workers and passion, we will continue to grow at an amazing rate.

PLAY HARD. PLAY TOGETHER.

Change is Good!

On Saturday night I dressed up as a good friend of mine putting on a dress with full accessories of matching earrings, bracelets, a necklace, five inch heels and then went the entire enchilada wearing make-up and pink nail polish. For those of you who don't know me that was a long stretch from who I normally am. My normal attire consists of sweats and t-shirts and occasional jeans. If I get really dressed up, I put on a nice pant suit and a shirt which I pray matches.

The only reason I mention the above is to illustrate how quickly change can occur if one has the desire. This is exactly what the Golden Eagles did on Sunday in our second scrimmage. In just a matter of five days, we shifted from a team who did not comprehend what help side defense was to a team who shut down an opponent. It was an amazing transformation--one that even I had did not expect.

On the very first team meeting, I told them there were two necessary ingredients to creating success. One was the willingness to learn and the other was the willingness to change. Many players want to keep doing the same thing and expect different results which is by the way the definition of insanity. This team, however, understands the need to change and to do it rapidly.

In order to prepare for our scrimmage on Sunday, we prepared differently. Coach Pike took the time to watch the game DVD with small groups of players, pointing out how they performed--the difference between what we wanted from them and what they were doing. We broke down the opponent's offense and worked on defending their pick on balls. We presented a scouting report depicting how to defend their plays and players. We walked through all of their out-of-bounds plays and offensive sets, taking the time to specifically coach the team on exactly how to defend each movement.

This was a lot of information in a short amount of time, yet the team swallowed it, let it digest and then spit it back it back out as if they had been doing these techniques for years. Oh, I know it was only a scrimmage but the implications of how quickly they learned and wanted to do better is the reason I'm so excited. If they are willing to change and grow, great things can happen.

When a victory occurs like that and I'm not simply talking about the scoreboard but the process of change, something goes off inside the team. It is a realization or recognition of potential, of the ability of greatness within themselves. This is what changes players--their belief systems. As much as we try to tell them they can do something, they have to internally believe it and once it becomes a belief, then they show their true talents.

In a matter of a five days we altered who we were. Granted we still have a long journey in front of us, but the future appears bright for players who are committed to learning.

PLAY HARD. PLAY TOGETHER.