16 Rules for Basketball Parents

As both a coach and a father, I want to offer my 16 Rules for Basketball Parents: Parents… you must embrace the fact that this is your child’s journey – not yours. Do not live vicariously through them. Put your focus on being a supportive and encouraging Parents… it’s true. Coaches do play favorites. They […]

How are you measuring success?

In today’s ever competitive sports world, programs and more so coaches, are being measured only by their level of success on the court. Yet wins and losses should only be a very small part of how a program’s success is viewed. Recently I listened to Embry-Riddle’s head men’s basketball coach Steve Ridder speak on this topic. Ridder […]

The Complete Player Pyramid

You build a complete basketball player the way you build a pyramid. It doesn’t matter how athletic a player is, if they aren’t skilled, they won’t be very good. It doesn’t matter how athletic or skilled a player is, if they have a low I.Q., they won’t be very good. It doesn’t matter how athletic, […]

How to Deal with Energy Vampires

Courtesy of Jon Gordon. Over the years I’ve heard many stories from people who read The Energy Bus about how they dealt with Energy Vampires. Some successfully transformed them. Others let them go so they could no longer sabotage the team. And some unfortunately abused their power by labeling anyone who disagreed with them an Energy Vampire. […]

7 Ideas for the Pre-Season

The following article comes from Texas A&M men’s basketball Special Assistant, Mitch Cole. *Most of you already have a plan and have begun the pre-practice season, but below are some areas in which coaches can prepare players both physically and mentally for the start of practice: PRE-TEST MEASUREMENTS/ POST TEST GOALS Testing each athlete’s Speed, Quickness, Agility, Strength, […]

8 Steps to Reverse a Negative Culture

Courtesy of Inc.com. In football, when a new leader gets hired, it’s usually because his predecessor wasn’t successful. Here’s what Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells has learned about entering a losing situation, and turning it around. How can one new leader enter a losing culture and turn it around? The question cuts to the […]

3 Performance Insights from Russell Wilson

Last season prior to Super Bowl XLIX, Inc. magazine sat down and talked with Russell Wilson’s trainer Jonathan Brooks. Brooks shared three traits that help make Wilson a poised, resilient performer under duress. 1. He practices the art of getting out of his comfort zone. “I was amazed by how quickly he adapts to the different […]

Film Breakdown Part 3: Individual Player Meetings

In my 3rd and final segment of Film Breakdown, I am going to discuss my thoughts on the important aspect of watching film with your players individually. If you happened to miss Part 1 or Part 2, click over and check them out. Meeting with your players on an individual basis is just as, if not more important […]

61 Traits of Great Coaches

I am eternally thankful to have learned from (and continue to learn from) so many great coaches. I am honored to be a part of the coaching fraternity. Being a great coach takes the commitment to ‘work on your craft’ every day. Below is a list of the 61 traits that great coaches model every […]

The Power of Positive Coaching

Our friend Jon Gordon recently shared an article on the power of being a positive teacher. As basketball coaches, we must view ourselves as teachers on and off the court. When I look back to who has impacted me the most in my life, besides my parents, are my teachers and coaches. Coincidentally both of my […]