Blog Posting #77, September 12, 2009

Coach Hank Part IV: Christmas in Encino

(See www.coachswen.com, April, for the first three Coach Hank postings.)

Hank Bias inherited an Ohio High School Boys basketball program. Like many novice coaches, he tried many things to turn it around but nothing made a difference in the win-loss column. After a run of bad years, there was some local talk about whether Hank was the right man for the job. One of his players, Brandon, candidly told him, the components of his practices were all good but little of it had direct connection with the system they were running. In other words, the drills didn’t improve the offense or defense to the point of making the team more competitive.

Hank seriously considered quitting and expressed his feelings to a college professor that taught classes Hank needed to maintain his teaching accreditation. Together, they surfed the web, looking for answers. There, they found a research paper on John Wooden’s teaching methodology, published by Roland Tharp and Ronald Gallimore. As a result, Hank paid Coach Wooden a visit and, in a little condominium in Encino, California, he found the answers he was looking for.

Remember that feeling you had Christmas morning just before opening presents? You didn’t know what was in that package but you knew it was something you were going to love. Well, that day in Encino was Christmas for Hank. For Coach Hank, the promise in the below quote was like an unopened Christmas present. Hank was about to hear the contents of that package: Coach Wooden’s explanations. The more Hank heard, the more it all began to make sense and the more he became like a little boy on Christmas morning. 

All the advice Coach Wooden gave Hank that day was centered around what he had already written in his book, Practical Modern Basketball.

“The coach who has the ability to properly plan the practice sessions from both the daily and the long-range point of view together with the ability to devise the necessary drills to meet his particular needs for maximum efficiency has tremendously increased his possibility of success.”

Let’s pursue the contents of that package. We will now do an inductive study of this quote and, when we do, we will learn what Hank learned when he opened that Christmas package and heard Coach Wooden begin to elaborate on its truths. We’re going back in time to that little Condo in Encino to eavesdrop on Wooden and Bias. Shhhhh. If you listen closely, you can almost hear Coach Wooden’s voice. 

The Promise

“… has tremendously increased his possibility of success.”

Coach Wooden is giving  Coach Hank a promise contingent on whether Hank meets the criteria. He is saying, if Hank does this and if Hank does that, his possibility of success will be “tremendously increased.” Now this is not your average promise that can be taken lightly; this is a promise from a coach who won 10 national championships. Hank moves his backside just a little closer to the edge of his seat and says to himself, ‘I’m in, Coach. Whatever it takes, I’ll do it.’

As Coach Hank listens he hears Coach Wooden explain the details of “whatever it takes.” Hank is wise enough to know, a “tall order” is coming and this isn’t going to be a quick fix. He isn’t disappointed. The “whatever it takes” is dispensed in two daunting doses: Planning and Devising.

Planning Properly

“The coach that has the ability…”

What does he mean by that? He can’t mean natural talent or available resources, so Coach has to be referring to developed skill—something a coach learns to do.

“…to properly plan the practice sessions…”

Here, Coach Wooden is talking about preparation. As Brandon pointed out, Hank’s practices were packed with good and taxing activities, but not enough of the work transferred to better game performance. When you go the beach, you prepare by bringing sun block, blankets, towels, umbrella, coolers with food and drinks, a change of clothes, jackets for when it begins to get cooler, sand-digging tools, a first aid kit, and water toys. When you prepare for a test, you practice what you think will be on that test. As Hank begins to understand Coach Wooden’s definition of practice, what Brandon had told him, becomes even clearer. A game is a test and the Firebirds were not preparing for what was on it. 

“…from both a daily and the long-range point of view…”

Preparation from a “daily” point of view is preparation for the next opponent. Preparation from the “long-range point of view” is referring to all of the opponents a team will face that season. Coach Wooden was a master at both. His players will testify, there were drills they did, which appeared to have absolutely no relevance to that weekend’s opponents. It was not until, perhaps two weeks later, when they became enlightened. Coach Wooden also explains, the “long-range” means a season-long teaching of the fundamentals of basketball.

Devising Drills

“…together with the ability to devise the necessary drills to meet his particular needs…”

This is a statement that is diametrically opposed to what most coaches do; most coaches, borrow drills from others. Coach Wooden is telling Hank, “Don’t borrow drills. Learn from them but devise your own.” Here’s why.

Most teachers agree, each student is unique and deserves teaching that is tailored specifically to him or her. The same is true for a team. The cross-town rival may have a quick but short team while you have a taller team. The drills they run in practice will focus on a completely different method of scoring and defense than you will have. Coach Wooden is telling Hank, learn from the drills you see, but devise your own to meet the particular needs of your own team. The result is stated in the next part of the quote.

“… for maximum efficiency…”

It may seem that, here, Coach Wooden is making reference to the drills but, in fact, he is referring to all that is written up to that point. He is saying, practice must be planned to be as efficient as possible and each drill must be as efficient as possible. By “efficiency,” he means, economical and productive. Practices must contain as little wasted time as possible and each activity must be devised so maximum production is accomplished.

Conclusion 
Coach Hank got his Christmas present all right, but this present was one like you get from IKEA; he was going to have to put it together himself. All the pieces were there but there was work to be done.

We know, from the blog postings (Coach Hank I, II, and III), Hank did put the pieces together. He properly planned practice and devised his own drills to meet the needs of his personnel. Practices became more like games. In the next few postings, we’re going to see exactly how Hank turned the program around. Are you thinking “wins?” Yes, but there was so much more.