New respect for Kobe Bryant

He may not be my favourite player in the NBA (right now its LBJ) and the Lakers are, far and away, not my favourite team ... but like LeBron, the more I read about Bryant the more I respect and understand why his game has improved so much.

If anyone knows anything about martial arts and Bruce Lee, then you'll know what Jeet Kune Do is. Who would have guessed Bryant was a student of JKD master, Jerry Poteet. Knowing the theory behind JKD, one could understand that if Kobe could apply those lessons on the court, he would be one formidable opponent. Check out this video and enjoy!

You know I could get to like the guy ...

From Hero to Zero: Why jumping ahead is not always the best option

Coaches are always on the lookout for talent especially those in the younger ranks who can make the step up to senior ball. I am no exception. However not every prospect can make that transition and it shouldn't be made without guidance, patience and some desire on the part of the player. Some players can take that step up however its not something Ive always encouraged because there are so many factors beside ball skills that needs to be considered like that players maturity, work ethic, moral and mental fortitude; these things happen over time and should not be rushed.

Now we know what can happen if all the right things comes together - LeBron James is a living example and was one of the first players to jump from high school to the NBA. But what about the others? The ones we don't hear about ... click the link below to read the story of Jeremy Tyler, a top NBA prospect out of San Diego, who through bad advice is all but squandering his chance at greatness.

From Hero to Zero - Jeremy Tyler : the story so far

I do hope it works out for him. It's a work in progress so I'll be keeping a watch to see how it turns out.

Learning so much

The moment you stop wanting to learn is the moment you know it's time to leave!

I'm glad I’ve had the experience that I’ve had this year. It helped me understand my shortcomings as a teacher, leader and role model. It helped me realise that there is more to coaching than teaching Players X's and O's. After our season finished, I went looking for answers why, a team of our quality could not deliver on the court. Going through the feedback from the players, I am starting to see why. As I’ve stated in previous articles, most of it has to do with discipline, commitment and providing a positive environment to grow in.

I've also started reading about gender differences in terms of motivation, praise and giving feedback. I must admit it was a bit of a wake up call but having read it, I now have a different outlook on what is required for next season. In fact, I’ve created a separate motivational plan to build team pride, raise morale and inject competition while staying focused on our main objectives.

I am also involved with a Coaches group where we openly discuss issues we face both in and outside of basketball such as players/parents with separate agendas, handling "practice" players, turning coal into diamonds, what it means to be a Captain etc. There are a lot of real life issues on the table but there is also a lot of inspiration and support as well. The advice and feedback is golden. Especially now, as I get to experience the pre-season/season with them, as they go through it.

In another group, I’m learning all about run and gun basketball. I believe based on our current team, and the projected team for next year, that this will be the best style for us. The Coaches in this group have been very helpful and I’ve made quite a few contacts in the US and Europe. The one thing that hits me is how willing coaches overseas are willing to help. Over here, its pretty much closed shop; secret squirrel stuff. Over there, I’ve had one US coach, not only offer me his playbook, but his first 15 practice plans from last season as a building block for our season next year. That’s awesome.

To close, as you can see, I’m still learning and planning and learning some more. I can’t wait until the rubber meets the road in February. I’ve gotta feeling, it’s going to be awesome.

Keep Moving Foward

BYE MADDIE ... SORRY TO HERE YOU'RE LEAVING US
Got some news that our PG of three years is transferring to another school next year. Although it sad and we will definitely miss her, we wish her all the best in her journey beyond St Mary's.

ATTACK BASKETBALL IS COMING!
In other news, ordered Attack Basketball from Coach Doug Porter of Olivet Nazarene University today. Coach Porter runs a modified version of the Grinnell System which has been designed for Girls. He is also active on the Yahoo Run and Gun Coaches Group which has been a huge help in answering many of the questions I had about it.

I believe Attack Basketball is a viable system for our girls given there skill and level of fitness. But making sure I can sell it to the right people may prove to be a challenge. Lets see how that pans out in Feb 2010.

ON GENDER AND COMPETITION
As you can tell, I've been away from the blog for a while but this doesn't mean my pursuit for awesome ended with the East game back in August! Part of what I been looking at is where I failed as Coach this year. I know I delivered the X and O's but on review, I fell over at the basic level - Not preparing the team mentally and not taking gender issues in to consideration.

I have been reading Kathie DeBoer and Anson Dorrance regarding the competitive nature of the female student athlete and it pretty much confirms that everything that you shouldn't do when coaching girls, I did! I assumed what works for boys would work for girls, how wrong I was! So I have created a seperate motivation plan and checklist to ensure that we will do our best to foster a positive team environment next year!

Nationals : Finals Day

Well as you all know by now, everything turned out predicated. Westlake won the boys and Rob Loe was the boys MVP. For the Girls, Church College "fulfilled the prophecy" (see what I did there, LOL) winning the final vs New Plymouth. Letava Whippy taking the MVP for the second year in a row.

ON MVP
Rob Loe getting the nod was a given IMHO. His unselfish play, especially during pool play when noone was looking, was a testament to Tall Blacks selection. Dominating in the later half of the tournament, he and teammate Shaquille Hohipa-Wilson were a combination to see. In my eyes, it was like watching a baby Malone and Stockton at work. A joy to watch!

On the hand, personally I'd like to question the choice of Letava Whippy. I will say straight up that I didn't get to see many Church College games (3 in all) because IMHO they were auto-wins and my time in Palmerston North was much better spent watching challengers like Fraser HS, Waimea or New Plymouth Girls. In those 3 games I did watch, Letava did exceptionally well but in a team of exceptional players, she did not stand out. To para-phrase the Incredibles - When everyones special then nobodys special! IMHO I would've like to see Moengaroa Subritzky take tournament MVP because she had been consistant all week. But I digress.

ON NATIONALS
What a great showcase for New Zealand basketball and inspiration for coachs and players alike. It was definitely a pleasure to get up there even if it was for three of the five days. Still, I lapped up and enjoyed every second of it. As a coach, seeing the quality of the teams here only inspired me to do more for our girls even if the season doesnt start until Feb 2010! Can't wait to go.

Nationals : Day Three and Four

Based on the game of the day, I decided to forego day three and stay home. The only real games of interest to me personally were the St Pats game vs. New Plymouth (NPBHS won) and the assortment of Girls game which, at this stage of the tournament, were almost self-evident.

Day Four - Good vs. Evil
Today was Quarterfinal day and for most teams it was the day to put up or shut up. On the cards were some great matches today including the much anticipated rematch between St Pats and Mana. In the Girls Quarters, there were several great games to watch:

• Waimea vs. Rangiora
• New Plymouth vs. Northcote
• Mt Albert Grammar vs. Fraser High

Based on what I had seen of Waimea, especially given their win against Fraser High the other day; this should've been an open-and-shut win for Waimea. But someone forgot to tell Rangiora, who blazed ahead in the early quarters, to put the fear into Waimea faithful. As it turned out, Rangiora pushed them right down to the wire but some very cool calls from Coach Zizic in the dying minutes saved the tournament for Waimea. (Waimea 57 Rangiora 55). They move on to face Church College, who easily sent Waikato Dio packing in the other quarter of the round (CCNZ 75 Waikato Dio 44).

The last two matches were classic in terms of polar opposites. The New Plymouth vs. Northcote game was Finesse (NPGHS) vs. Power (Northcote); the Fraser vs. Mt Albert Grammar (MAGS) game was the 'Group of Stars' (Fraser) vs. the 'Team of Players' (MAGS). Both were fantastic games to watch for their own unique reasons.

Northcote really took the game to New Plymouth but not in nice way. It was aggressive; as aggressive as a Girls game can get without calling it a fight. The New Plymouth team was really getting beat up physically and had to earn every point it scored. They were taking some tough knocks which affected them mentally and it showed in the number of turnovers that would plague them throughout the game. To Northcote’s credit, they were attacking the cup in a no-nonsense manner which was a testament to their aggressiveness but when one of their girls put an elbow to the eye of one of the NPGHS players, they crossed the line and provided the motivation that New Plymouth needed to win the game. Good triumphs. (NPGHS 76 Northcote 54)

The game of the day for me was the MAGS vs. Fraser High quarter. Though not as physical as the NP/Northcote game, the game featured aggressiveness on smarter level. Fraser ran the Jeff Green playbook to a tee - fast moving 1-2-2 three-quarter trap with a fast break on every change of possession. MAGS to their credit were very much up to the challenge but could not contain Fraser's early onslaught which allowed them to go into halftime with the lead. Despite being 15 points down, MAGS regathered themselves and behind an inspiring performance from Point guard, Morgan Hunter (22 points) bought the game back to a 2-point difference with 3 minutes to go in the fourth. What happened next was a blur however the pivotal moment in my mind was a ref’s call which awarded possession to Fraser after one of their players were clearly the last to touch the ball that headed out of bounds in the dying minute. IMHO this call sucked out all the confidence the MAGS team had left and allowed Fraser to run up some quick points before the buzzer sounded to end the game and MAGS bid for a National title. Evil triumphs (Fraser 83 MAGS 77)

Words of Wisdom from the GOAT

ON HIS MENTORS
"The process for me has always been pure. It's been about leading and staying true -- authentic -- to those fundamental values that flowed downstream from my parents and Coach (Dean) Smith."

ON BEING CUT AS A HIGH SCHOOL SOPHOMORE
"Whenever I was working out and got tired and figured I ought to stop, I'd close my eyes and see that list in the locker room without my name on it, and that usually got me going again."

ON PERCEPTIONS OF HIM
I"ve never been worried about anyone's perception, one way or another. I've never allowed anyone's opinion to define me. I'm comfortable with who I am, I trust myself."

ON TEAM FIRST
"One thing I believe to the fullest is that if you think and achieve as a team, the individual accolades will take care of themselves. Talent wins games but teamwork and intelligence wins championships."

ON FAILURE LEADING TO SUCCESS
"I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

ON OBSTACLES
"Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it or work around it."

ON FEAR
"I know fear is an obstacle for some people, but it is an illusion to me...failure always made me try harder next time."

ON WORK
"Anything can happen if you are willing to put in the work and remain open to the possibility. Dreams are realized by effort determination, passion and staying connected to that sense of who you are."