Some thoughts on Society and Hoops.
The fact that you're a total failure as a program unless you win a HS, NCAA Championship has driven basketball to a very dangerous and slippery slope. The graduation rate, winning %, and the way a program is run is secondary to winning. Bloated Alumni with $, TV, and Athletic Directors have become the Architechs, the example setters of what Basketball is and that hurts the game. The Coaches/Pillars of Basketball have become 2nd class citizens. They're told the game has passed them by. It's hard enough to adjust to college, yet kids are playing so many games a week on a TV game almost every night.
Don't talk about entitlement, talk about youth teams playing 100 games a year and not learning/working on fundamentals. Basketball mimics society. The fact you can get free shoes, free this, free that has corrupted a lot of players/coaches. The divide between halves and halve not's is wider then ever. Basically any Weasel can run travel basketball, coach High School or move up in basketball if they simply win. Forget about knowledge, credibility, etc. How can we have let this happen? Years ago you would've been "bowed and slammed to the floor". We wouldn't allow that to destroy this great game. I remember hearing a coach say about his friend (who had a great HS coaching record), He really envies coaches that have to coach, basically they had so much talent he didn't have to coach as hard as the rest of us. I said, "then stop cheating", that would even it up and get him back to the rest of us. Again, there is no penalty for acting a fool, cheating, playing older players against kids 4 years younger simply to win. I still do not understand why winning trumps integrity in our sport. How someone like Tubby Smith can be let go at Minnesota infuriates me!
Parents/Administrators/Coaches/Officials/Players we have come to a cross roads. What else will take place or could take place that would make you want to fix some of the issues hurting Basketball? I encourage your feedback.
The fact that you're a total failure as a program unless you win a HS, NCAA Championship has driven basketball to a very dangerous and slippery slope. The graduation rate, winning %, and the way a program is run is secondary to winning. Bloated Alumni with $, TV, and Athletic Directors have become the Architechs, the example setters of what Basketball is and that hurts the game. The Coaches/Pillars of Basketball have become 2nd class citizens. They're told the game has passed them by. It's hard enough to adjust to college, yet kids are playing so many games a week on a TV game almost every night.
Don't talk about entitlement, talk about youth teams playing 100 games a year and not learning/working on fundamentals. Basketball mimics society. The fact you can get free shoes, free this, free that has corrupted a lot of players/coaches. The divide between halves and halve not's is wider then ever. Basically any Weasel can run travel basketball, coach High School or move up in basketball if they simply win. Forget about knowledge, credibility, etc. How can we have let this happen? Years ago you would've been "bowed and slammed to the floor". We wouldn't allow that to destroy this great game. I remember hearing a coach say about his friend (who had a great HS coaching record), He really envies coaches that have to coach, basically they had so much talent he didn't have to coach as hard as the rest of us. I said, "then stop cheating", that would even it up and get him back to the rest of us. Again, there is no penalty for acting a fool, cheating, playing older players against kids 4 years younger simply to win. I still do not understand why winning trumps integrity in our sport. How someone like Tubby Smith can be let go at Minnesota infuriates me!
Parents/Administrators/Coaches/Officials/Players we have come to a cross roads. What else will take place or could take place that would make you want to fix some of the issues hurting Basketball? I encourage your feedback.
