We Talk'in About Practice!

Allen Iverson, probably a future Hall of Famer, may be best known for that famous sound byte in which he goes off about the suggestion that his lack of practice habits and overall discipline was having a bad effect on his team.

"Practice?! We talk'in 'bout practice man! Practice!"

Those words have been replayed over and over on sports radio programs across the nation. But alas, now that age and injuries have caused his career to nose dive, I have to wonder if he has any regrets. I wonder if he realizes that you can't cheat mother time.

And you can't cheat the game.

I wonder how much better A.I. could have been if he had a better attitude and work ethic. I wonder if he would have had a longer career. But instead, while only in his early 30's, his career has nose dived. Injuries and age are a big part of it. But professional athletes today are coming back from injuries like never before. Drew Brees has a Super Bowl ring and he wasn't supposed to be able to throw a 20 yard out ever again.

No, Iverson's attitude has always been a cancer. Recent teams he has left have all shown improvement once he was gone. The great Larry Brown was able to take a group of role players and make a championship run with A.I. in his prime. But even that magical season was marred by incidents with A.I.'s misbehavior.

Practice? Yes, Allen, we're talking about practice. And we're talking about lifting weights. We're talking about training rules and staying off the booze. You can't cheat the game Allen.

Good luck in your retirement.

Giving feedback

Players want feedback. The worst thing you can do as a leader is give no feedback. Team morale deteriorates on teams that have coaches who give very little feedback until they’ve finally “had enough” and explode on their players. Players want to have their efforts recognized, and most want to become better players. Any advice that would help in that regard in a plus.

Athletes are people too. They want attention, but too many negative comments from a coach will usually wear on an athlete. Try to use the 80/20 rule. Eighty percent of what you say should positive. Recognize things that you like in their play and hope that those things become habits. When you do make a positive remark try to focus on encouraging a player rather than complimenting them. Encouraging players is more effective than complementing players because it will inspire them to continue working rather than think that they’ve “arrived”.

Remember too that mistakes are part of the game. Be careful not to punish players for making performance mistakes. This can lead to tentative play and the fear of failure.

Enthusiasm

The best teams have a cooperative spirit that brings out the best in everyone. Some people call this team work. But how do you cultivate team work? One way is through enthusiasm!

Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. Even difficult drills can be fun if an enthusiastic attitude is created toward them. Enthusiastic people are natural motivators. And remember, enthusiasm is contagious.

Goal setting

The best single motivational tool is goal setting. You must set long-term and short-term goals. We want to stress process goals as well as product goals. Process goals are defined as the steps that you take on your way to achieving a product (outcome) goal. Winning a game, for instance, is an outcome goal. When coaches focus solely on winning, team morale will deteriorate much more easily if the team does not win.

Process goals are oriented toward improvement and, as long as it is measurable, these goals can be set for any aspect of our team objectives. You may compare our progress to where you were at a certain time last year. This could be as easy as setting a goal for a drill and measuring how well your team does in a certain drill (use a stop watch or count made shots). Improvement can be measured easily that way. Process goals can be individual as well as team oriented.

Another idea for outcome goal setting is to divide the season into four or five sections. Establish a definite five game goal, or a goal of where we want to be at the end of the month or after a home stand. Focus on three game stretch or a tournament. Give kids a chance to look forward and not dwell on past failures.

The bottom line is that winning matters. But by giving kids more to focus on than wins and losses, personal stats, and playing time, you are giving your team more avenues to increase motivation. Don't put all of your eggs in one basket.

Make your season about more than just Friday night's final score.