WHAT IT TAKES TO BE AN ATHLETE

 Coach Bobby Kersee speaks to Allyson Felix during training

Originally posted on Hooptactics, I thought I would share this with y'all.  As the high school season is winding down, some are catching much needed rest.  Some of our student athletes go on to play for their club teams but might find a little solace in knowing they get a week or so off before they hit the grind again.  It's during this time that I encourage every athlete to reflect, assess and evaluate; not just this years performance but for the future ask yourself, "Do I Have What It Takes?"

->Are you coachable?

Do you have a burning desire to learn? Can you take constructive criticism or are you a &quotknow it all"? Will you always do your level best to improve? Do you want to improve?

->Are you competitive?

Are you possessed with the spirit of competition which fires an intense desire to achieve? Do you want to win, never taking "no" for an answer when there is a job to be done, a rebound to be grabbed, a shot to be stopped, or a basket to be made? Does it bother you to give less than your best effort?

->Are you willing to practice?

Not just reporting and putting in the necessary time, but working every day with the same speed and determination you use during a game? Great athletes give their best effort at all times. Too often the lessons that could be learned from the performance of a truly great athlete are overlooked. Too much attention to final records ignores the means by which these records were achieved. Too little is written or told of the years of grueling practice, of the tremendous will to succeed, or of the diligent concentration of fundamentals that lead to excellence.

->Are you willing to make sacrifices?

Are you willing to train or are you wasting your time in athletics? Superior conditioning does not just happen nor is acquired quickly. It is a result of a well planned and executed program of exercise, rest and diet. Training is exacting and the responsibility is heavy. It includes personal denials but the rewards are great. The best way to remain in great shape is never to get out of it. "A second rate person can never make a first-class ball player." It is going to be up to you to see that your maximum physical condition is achieved and maintained. Anything less is a violation of trust.

->Can you play through adversity?

Do you have the ability to bounce back? Never let bad plays or calls ruin your game? No matter how many times you get knock down, the only time that matters is the time you do not get back up. When you give it your best effort you may run out of time on the clock, but you will never lose a game.

->Do you have self control?

As an athlete you must realize that you are in the public spotlight at all times. Your conduct, what you say and do, makes news. This imposes a great need for self control. It is a cinch to find someone to lead you down the wrong path in life. It takes determination to resist the temptations that exist. Just as one works for years to become a top athlete, one should work to develop an image of a person, a pattern of conduct, and standards by which one is known and respected. Do not risk destroying a whole career because of an off the court mistake.

->Do you prepare every day to meet the best?

Do you have an ardent desire to improve? Are you willing to practice the things you cannot do more than the things you can do well? Are you willing to put in extra time necessary to perfect a skill or fundamental? Too many players spend their time doing what they already do well, and therefore, never improve.

One of the biggest contributions that basketball can provide you is the opportunity and motivation for an education. All too often athletes do not take advantage of this educational opportunity; and, therefore, they do not only waste an invaluable opportunity, they also waste their time. Do not be satisfied by merely meeting the eligibility requirements. Work for a high grade point average and a degree.

->Are you willing study?

Basketball was never meant to take the place of studies and the desire to learn. You are in school for an education. Keep that foremost in your thoughts, and place basketball second. Earn the respect of your teachers as well as your coach. If you can't "pass" you can't play. That is true "on" and "off" the court.

-->Study Demands:

1. Emphasis should be on quest and attainment of knowledge, not grades and credits.
2. Never miss or be late for any class or appointment.
3. Have regular study hours and keep them.
4. Get your work in on time and do not fall behind.
5. If you need extra help in your studies, let your coach know. Most instructors are willing and happy to help, but you must make the first contact.
6. Take advantage of all the available educational resources (library services, computer labs, reading labs, counseling center, etc.)
7. When you are to miss school because of basketball, please contact the instructors of the classes you will miss beforehand, and tell them that you will be absent, and request assignments for those dates.
8. Do not expect favors or special treatment. Do your part.

A carrot , an egg, and a cup of coffee... Which one are you???

Coach Billy Carson of shecanplay.org posted this today.  It's simple and to the point.  It's a must share. 

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying A word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl.

Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me what you see."  "Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.

Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled, as she tasted its rich aroma the daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?"

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its insides became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.

The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling.

Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.


May we all be COFFEE!!!!!! !!

Benifits of Massage Therapy

Are you doing all you can do?  The benefits for an athlete that can be derived from receiving regular sports massage therapy are numerous and very significant to the overall health of an athlete.  Massage has become an integral part of many elite athletes' conditioning program. 

According to SportsInjuryClinic.net, the physical benefits of sports massage therapy include the following:

• Improved blood flow and nutrient delivery to your muscles
• Efficient clearing of harmful metabolic byproducts
• Tension reduction in your fascia
• Reduction of your scar tissue,
• Improved tissue elasticity
• Improvements in your tissue's ability to absorb nutrients, also known as micro-circulation.

Read more: LiveStrong Article

 

Besides the above aforementioned I also believe there is a psychological benefit that comes from massage therapy; the benefit of feeling better, stress relief, and confidence.  Also important during this time of year is to stay healthy.  Massage therapy boosts the immune system.  There are many methods, forms and ways massage therapy can be used.  Here is another article about the benefits of massage therapy for the sport athlete.

 

Read more: Holistic benefits

THE I HAVE TO SYNDROME

There is an unfortunate common theme in youth basketball these days. I refer to it as the "I Have To Syndrome". It's divisive and tears at the very fabric of a team concept. Not only is it detrimental to a teams performance, it discourages personal skill development, puts an overwhelming amount of stress on the individual, which exudes itself in performance anxiety and poor play. Many coaches can't or don't identify it. If they do, they are at a loss on how to dissolve it.

The "Syndrome" is bred in several ways, a players conception or miss-conception of their role, parents, peers, press telling players what they think the player needs to do. What is the "I Have To Syndrome"? Players no longer play, they aren't taught to think for themselves or feel the game. They don't allow the game to come to them. Instead they enter competition with the mindset of "I Have To" score, "I Have To" shoot, "I Have To" dribble, "I Have To" beat my player off the dribble, "I Have To" get to the basket on the drive. All this "I Have To" creates a tunnel vision and players lose sight of the bigger picture, being competitive.  They start forcing bad shots and bad decisions.  In light of this fixture, I have been telling players, "all you have to do is PLAY!, play hard, hustle, rebound, play defense, move the ball (length of the court, width of the court, in & out), and sprint from one end of the court to the other end of the court (every possession), play together, have fun. Players would score so much more effectively and efficiently if they adhered to a set of principles. Instead players are guided by sources outside the game. The most common of which are the the 3P's (Parents, Peers, Press), as I have heard it coined by ASU Womens' head basketball coach Charli Turner Thorne. Players are told they have to shoot (x) amount shots, or play (x) amount minutes. I've seen too many 2-1, 3-2 fast breaks foiled by a player not passing because they are trying to reach a lofty scoring goal, how selfish and misguided.
 
To a player I would advise, instead of setting a bunch of individual goals, start by setting more team oriented bench marks; TO/Ast ratio, team assists, team scoring, points allowed, rebounds, deflections, consecutive stops. When setting individual bench marks keep in mind just that, they are bench marks, not "I Have To's". Scoring bench marks are not achieved on the floor, they are achieved through hard work and preparation. A player needs to work on their shot in a variety of ways. They need to work on their ball handling, their moves, counters, and finishes. They need to condition their bodies; sport specific speed and agility, strengthening, flexibility, explosiveness, recovery and nutrition.  So that when the opportunities arrive in game situations a player can score effectively, efficiently, at a high percentage rate.
 
Finally a player needs to condition the mind. They need to be able to deal with pressure, understand and read the defender and defense. They need to communicate, learn to work together, understand each other. A player needs to know how to lead and follow.  They need to know the difference between a good shot, bad shot, high percentage shot, low percentage shot, and how to find THEIR shot.

Players quit stressing about the game. Elevate your desire and level of play by being secure in your ability. Work on the intangibles, don't get caught up in the "I HAVE TO SYNDROME". Remember a small amount of leaven leavens the whole loaf. A culture of selfishness is easily created by just one player. It starts with you. Take account for your actions and in-actions. "Play hard, play smart, play together, and have fun." That is the only "Have to's", everything else is icing on the cake and will come as long as you work hard.

Michael Douglas Super Bowl Segment

8 Ways To "Get" Into Defense by Eastman. "GET IT!"

Can't say enough good stuff about Kevin Eastman and what he shares with his colleagues. Here is a recent article. More can always be found @ Kevin Eastman Basketball

We’re all looking for ways to “GET” our teams to understand and appreciate defense and how important it is to winning. So often we talk to our team about having to GET things done in order to be a good defensive team. Our “GET” game is the following:
1. GET a good shot – harder for opponent to run after a made basket
2. GET back – it’s a sprint to the other end; we want more defenders back before they get more offensive players back
3. GET set – being back is one thing; being set and ready to defend is the key thing
4. GET through screens and over pick/rolls – do not melt on either
5. GET matched up as best we can– we are guarding their team; not necessarily our match up when in transition defense
6. GET into bodies – we cannot allow free cuts, free passes, free shots; make them feel us each possession
7. GET the rebound – the start of our defense is a good shot and GETTING back; the end of our defense is a contested shot and GETTING the rebound
8. GET ready to start this process all over again on the next possession

In His 1000th Win Coach Hurley Might Be The Games Greatest Ambassador At The Grass Roots Level

Nice article by Steve Politi for CNN.com on Coach Bob Hurley:

Bob Hurley Sr. is about to hit a milestone few basketball coaches on any level have reached: 1,000 victories.

He has won them the hard way at St. Anthony High in Jersey City, New Jersey, sweeping the hardwood floor before home games and riding yellow buses to cramped gymnasiums up and down the East Coast.

The victories helped make him just the third boys high school coach to earn enshrinement in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts. They earned him the respect of some of the highest-profile coaches in the sport, including Mike Krzyzewski at Duke.

But his true legacy is much deeper than the lights on the scoreboard. Hurley said he would trade in those wins -- every last one of them -- for a chance to help more inner-city kids.

"You know what? I would give them up for one more chance with some of the kids I didn't reach over the years," Hurley said. "If I could have a second chance with some of those, it would be worth all the adulation."

Hurley doesn't coach for the attention. If he wanted that, he long ago would have left St. Anthony, a tiny Catholic school a few blocks from the Holland Tunnel, for the arenas and riches of the college game.

He chose to stay in Jersey City, becoming one of the coaching legends in the high school game. Hurley, whose current team is ranked second in the country in an ESPN poll, will likely win his 1,000th game late next week. No one is sure exactly how many losses that includes -- 109 or 110 is the best guess -- but they rarely happen more than once or twice a season.

Still, even with 25 state parochial titles, the victories are a small part of what he has accomplished. Hurley, 63, has been a father figure for hundreds of inner-city teenagers over the past four decades. He has placed nearly all of them in four-year colleges, most on scholarships.

Some are doctors and businessmen now. Others are lawyers and police captains. One owns a popular restaurant in Jersey City and once held a seat on the city's board of education.

Terry Dehere, who went on to play at Seton Hall and in the NBA, could have moved on from his roots. Instead, he moved back to Jersey City, twice renovating his boyhood playground, restoring an abandoned building for low-income housing and hands out 500 turkeys annually each Thanksgiving.

"(Hurley) had a direct effect on a lot of young men's lives growing up in Jersey City," Dehere said. "To have a coach who was dedicated and a taskmaster helped a lot of kids -- and I'm a living testament to it."

Dehere played for Hurley in the late '80s. Two decades later, Mike Rosario was the star of the team, a hot-tempered kid who used basketball as a refuge from the life in a housing project.

"He started disciplining me like I was one of his sons," Rosario said. "It was to the point where I was like, 'Wow, I had never been pushed like this in my life.' I learned how to be a man and not a boy." Rosario now plays college ball at the University of Florida.

Coaching at a place like St. Anthony isn't always a glamorous life, but Hurley has always recognized its importance in the city where he grew up. The school, with just 250 students, boasts a 100% college acceptance rate over the past 18 years, according to its Web site.

Hurley has helped keep the doors open through his fundraising efforts, never making more than a $6,500 stipend for coaching. He worked as a probation officer and then a parks department official before retiring from his day jobs to focus on his team and his grandchildren.

His first victory came on December 8, 1972. It was an impressive debut, a 64-43 win over a team whose coach was ejected in frustration, but there were few signs of a dynasty in the making.

"I remember that like it was yesterday," Hurley said. "You think, 'Wow. It would be nice to do that again.' "

St. Anthony kept winning and winning, and producing college-ready players along the way. That attracted attention from the next level. Finally, in the spring of 1985, he received a phone call from then Xavier coach Pete Gillen with a simple message.

"It's time."

He accepted an offer to become Gillen's top assistant. But then he arrived home to find his three children waiting. Bobby, his oldest son, had written a list of reasons why he had to stay at St. Anthony that left the old man in tears.

"Who's going to be my coach? You're going to be on the road all the time. Are you ever going to see me play?"

So Hurley stayed put. His team with his son at point guard is regarded as one of the best in state history, and when he graduated from St. Anthony, Bobby Hurley helped turn another coach into a legend, too.

Krzyzewski has won four national championships at Duke, including two when Bobby Hurley was his point guard. He was the presenter on August 13 when Hurley Sr. was inducted into the Hall of Fame, standing proudly over his shoulder as the high school lifer joined the most exclusive club.

"Bob has a passion to help young men get the opportunities they would never have gotten unless he and basketball entered their lives," Krzyzewski said. "He should be in the Hall of Fame not for the number of wins, but for the number of lives he's changed."

His induction was not just a victory for Hurley. It was a validation for thousands of high school coaches across the country.

Few will ever get the same recognition. Hurley has been the subject of a best-selling book, "The Miracle of St. Anthony," and an award-winning documentary, "The Street Stops Here."

But in a way, when he stood with NBA stars such as Scottie Pippen and Karl Malone at the induction ceremony, he stood for all the coaches who work at the grassroots level of the sport.

The men and women who not only shape the lives of young people, but sweep the floors before games.

"What we see is the finished product," Malone said before the induction ceremony. "But somewhere along the line, somebody looked at every one of us and said, 'I think I'll give that young man a chance.' Our high school coaches don't get nearly enough credit."
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WHAT IT TAKES TO BE NO. 1



Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all the time thing. You don't win once in a while; you don't do things right once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.



There is no room for second place. There is only one place in my game, and that's first place. I have finished second twice in my time at Green Bay, and I don't ever want to finish second again. There is a second place bowl game, but it is a game for losers played by losers. It is and always has been an American zeal to be first in anything we do, and to win, and to win, and to win.



Every time a football player goes to play his trade he's got to play from the ground up-from the soles of his feet right up to his head. Every inch of him has to play. Some guys play with their heads. That's O.K. You've got to be smart to be number one in any business. But more importantly, you've got to play with your heart, with every fiber of your body. If you're lucky enough to find a guy with a lot of head and a lot of heart, he's never going to come off the field second.



Running a football team is no different than running any other kind of organization-an army, a political party or a business. The principles are the same. The object is to win-to beat the other guy. Maybe that sounds hard or cruel. I don't think it is.



It is a reality of life that men are competitive and the most competitive games draw the most competitive men. That's why they are there-to compete. To know the rules and objectives when they get in the game. The object is to win fairly, squarely, by the rules-but to win.



And in truth, I've never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn't appreciate the grind, the discipline. There is something in good men that really yearns for discipline and the harsh reality of head to head combat.



I don't say these things because I believe in the "brute" nature of man or that men must be brutalized to be combative. I believe in God, and I believe in human decency. But I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious.



...Vince Lombardi

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20 Ways To Get Mentally Tough by Jon Gordon

1. When you face a setback, think of it as a defining moment that will lead to a future accomplishment.

2. When you encounter adversity, remember, the best don’t just face adversity; they embrace it, knowing it’s not a dead end but a detour to something greater and better.

3. When you face negative people, know that the key to life is to stay positive in the face of negativity, not in the absence of it. After all, everyone will have to overcome negativity to define themselves and create their success.

4. When you face the naysayer’s, remember the people who believed in you and spoke positive words to you.

5. When you face critics, remember to tune them out and focus only on being the best you can be.

6. When you wake up in the morning, take a morning walk of gratitude and prayer. It will create a fertile mind ready for success.

7. When you fear, trust. Let your faith be greater than your doubt.

8. When you fail, find the lesson in it, and then recall a time when you have succeeded.

9. When you head into battle, visualize success.

10. When you are thinking about the past or worrying about the future, instead focus your energy on the present moment. The now is where your power is the greatest.

11. When you want to complain, instead identify a solution.

12. When your own self-doubt crowds your mind, weed it and replace it with positive thoughts and positive self-talk.

13. When you feel distracted, focus on your breathing, observe your surroundings, clear your mind, and get into The Zone. The Zone is not a random event. It can be created.

14. When you feel all is impossible, know that with God all things are possible.

15. When you feel alone, think of all the people who have helped you along the way and who love and support you now.

16. When you feel lost, pray for guidance.

17. When you are tired and drained, remember to never, never, never give up. Finish Strong in everything you do.

18. When you feel like you can’t do it, know that you can do all things through Him who gives you strength.

19. When you feel like your situation is beyond your control, pray and surrender. Focus on what you can control and let go of what you can’t.

20. When you’re in a high-pressure situation and the game is on the line, and everyone is watching you, remember to smile, have fun, and enjoy it. Life is short; you only live once. You have nothing to lose. Seize the moment.


From "Training Camp" by Jon Gordon 
Jon Gordon's Blog