Announcement
Give the Coach the Benefit of the Doubt by Don W
Posted by Donald Wilkerson on
Jun 08 2004
at
05:00PM PDT
(by Don Wilkerson)
We as involved fans usually like to believe our basketball knowledge, combined with our willingness to share our opinions and our fervor for the game, allows us to effectively “out strategize” a coach’s decisions, especially during a closely contested game. My observations of high school basketball have caused me to conclude this is rarely true.
Fans and parents are usually not aware of some of what goes on in the practices, in the dressing room, in the huddles, and often even on the bench. The steps a coach takes toward a player or players which might be filed, for example, under the heading of “character building for a player or team,” often appear puzzling, confusing or short sighted even to the observant fans because the underlying reasons are unknown to us. We tend to think the coach just blew it by failing to do something we see as obvious. It does happen but it is rare especially among veteran coaches.
That is not to say that coaches do not make mistakes but, in most cases, given a more complete understanding of the situation, we would often take the same steps and make the same decisions as the coach (assuming we had the boys' best interests in mind). I am not saying that I do not find myself questioning why a coach does something from time to time or fails to do something at times. I am saying that we should all try to remember that perhaps we do not have all the facts and to remind ourselves that most coaches, especially veteran coaches in the big schools, really do know what they are doing. They may not all be super motivators or superlative strategists or best buddies with their players but they do know what they are doing. As in any profession or endeavor, coaching is a growth experience over time. Without any special insight or knowledge regarding any game events over the course of the season I recommend giving the coach the benefit of the doubt.
We should also remember when we watch these boys play basketball we tend to think they are more mature than they really are because of their size and their impressive athletic prowess. In fact the teenage brain is not yet physiologically fully developed and they are still growing emotionally and psychologically. People, especially people the age of these players, sometimes tend to exagerate for both positive and negative events so wise parents usually temper what they may hear with their wisdom.
Although this is less true for most coaches than it used to be back in the good ole days, being a high school basketball coach is about building character in young people, not just about winning games. I know that may sound naive in today's intense, highly competitive environment where parents are hopeful their player son can earn a college scholarship, but I still believe it.
We as involved fans usually like to believe our basketball knowledge, combined with our willingness to share our opinions and our fervor for the game, allows us to effectively “out strategize” a coach’s decisions, especially during a closely contested game. My observations of high school basketball have caused me to conclude this is rarely true.
Fans and parents are usually not aware of some of what goes on in the practices, in the dressing room, in the huddles, and often even on the bench. The steps a coach takes toward a player or players which might be filed, for example, under the heading of “character building for a player or team,” often appear puzzling, confusing or short sighted even to the observant fans because the underlying reasons are unknown to us. We tend to think the coach just blew it by failing to do something we see as obvious. It does happen but it is rare especially among veteran coaches.
That is not to say that coaches do not make mistakes but, in most cases, given a more complete understanding of the situation, we would often take the same steps and make the same decisions as the coach (assuming we had the boys' best interests in mind). I am not saying that I do not find myself questioning why a coach does something from time to time or fails to do something at times. I am saying that we should all try to remember that perhaps we do not have all the facts and to remind ourselves that most coaches, especially veteran coaches in the big schools, really do know what they are doing. They may not all be super motivators or superlative strategists or best buddies with their players but they do know what they are doing. As in any profession or endeavor, coaching is a growth experience over time. Without any special insight or knowledge regarding any game events over the course of the season I recommend giving the coach the benefit of the doubt.
We should also remember when we watch these boys play basketball we tend to think they are more mature than they really are because of their size and their impressive athletic prowess. In fact the teenage brain is not yet physiologically fully developed and they are still growing emotionally and psychologically. People, especially people the age of these players, sometimes tend to exagerate for both positive and negative events so wise parents usually temper what they may hear with their wisdom.
Although this is less true for most coaches than it used to be back in the good ole days, being a high school basketball coach is about building character in young people, not just about winning games. I know that may sound naive in today's intense, highly competitive environment where parents are hopeful their player son can earn a college scholarship, but I still believe it.
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