A Tale of Two Meetings
Last Thursday was a lot of fun for me. I was on the go all day and I spent most of it around coaches. I had a coaches meeting in Chatham in the early morning and then I rushed off to Toronto for Gatorade Training Centre. Needless to say I had extra coffees and did a little speeding, but in the end it was well worth it.
Coach’s meeting
I felt this meeting reinforced a lot of the problems I have with organized sport. Between the motions and the announcements, it moved very slowly and seemed to drag. I blame none of this on the organizers; instead it is the coaches who are at fault. So many coaches only worry about wins and being number one that they forget the goal of high school sports is to get kids involved. I love to compete and win
, but not at the expense of the integrity of the game or my opponent. If less coaches had a win at all cost attitude, these types of meetings would be a lot shorter. Instead, every rule and regulation must be examined with a fine toothed comb to insure there are no loop holes.
As your seasons begin with the new school year, take the integrity approach. Don’t assume every referee is out to screw you over and spend your downtime searching for excuses why your team lost. Instead, enjoy the experience and try to make every practice and game a positive one. If more coaches cared about helping to mold people more and winning titles less, these meetings would take 30 minutes or less.
Meeting adjourned!
Gatorade Training Center
Here is how I felt about the experience:
Serious, it was a lot of fun. Gatorade and the NBA really know what they are doing!
Hosted by Paul Jones and Sherman Hamilton, the event was divided into three presentations.
The first was a talk by Dr. Lawrence Spriet on sport nutrition and hydration. After a long drive, I initially felt this was just an infomercial for Gatorade. Dr. Spriet quickly changed that; he discussed nutrition and the elite athlete like very few can. He gave a tone of ideas that I will definitely be employing this year. These include:
• Keeping track of intake leading up to the games.
• Reducing the fear of carbohydrates in elite athletes.
• Intake of carbohydrates at halftime.
• After game snacks.
I really like the idea that as dehydration and hunger set in, it not only affects physical performance but it also affects mental capabilities as well. These were ideas we all learned years ago, but it’s good to have them reinforced.
http://www.uoguelph.ca/hhns/People/LSpriet.html
The second speaker was Alex Mckechnie. Alex is the Director of Sport Science with the Raptors. He worked with the Lakers in the 2000s and has a great philosophy of movement. Alex challenged coaches to understand the statements they make to players and to examine proper movement techniques. He used specific instructions in his drills to demonstrate the effectiveness of his techniques. The next day, I employed several of his core training ideas and my students really enjoyed them. His ideas are worth a read.
http://www.corexrehab.com/t_MeetAlex.html
Finally, Coach Casey talked about the Raptors defensive principles. Casey seems like the type of guy you want to just hang out with in a pub and listen to him. He was warm and was very welcoming of questions throughout the presentation. I was impressed with how quickly he connected with the player volunteers. He shared a lot of his experiences and emphasized the importance in believing in the specific strategy you are coaching. After several demonstrations, he ended his talk with the 7 fundamentals he teaches to his teams:
1. Stance 5. See
2. Communication 6. Attention to Details
3. Enjoy contact 7. Finish Everything
4. Use Your Fakes
Afterwards, we were treated to a meet and greet. On top of the fine spread, the presenters chatted with the coaches and we had a photo opp with the Larry O’Brian Trophy. I was even interviewed by NBA TV.
As I was leaving, I was given a SWAG bag which included an NBA game ball signed by the coach himself. All in all, it was a great day. My KIA ended up with a few extra kilometers and I lost a little sleep but it was well worth the efforts to attend both.
