This year I was blessed with the opportunity to coach at Lawton MacArthur High School. I coached under one the best coaches in 5A as he has led MacArthur to be one of the most winning programs in the last six years. This season didn't end the way we wanted it to as we lost in the first round of the playoffs, but with four of our five starters returning, along with the rest of the team, we expect to be a team people will have to respect for the next three years.
Being a former basketball player and understanding the game at a high level, I always thought I would get into coaching. Being around a game I played for 15 years, I knew I would miss it to much to not want to be a part of it; in any aspect. However, I never thought how different the game or the players would be. Do not misunderstand that statement. I love every single one of the players I had the opportunity to coach this year. I will never forget this team. But, that doesn't mean it was always easy.
You could say I was raised with a family that demanded your best at all times, whether you wanted to give it or not. This didn't mean I had to be perfect, but it did mean I had to go 100% in everything I did. Whether it was practice, a game, homework, church, etc., I was expected to give everything I had. This instilled in me a work ethic that I pride myself on. It instilled in me discipline that I am thankful for. It gave me leadership skills. It taught me how to expect that of others, and lead them to want the same for themselves.
The biggest thing I had to remind myself of this year was to think about what it was like when I was fourteen, fifteen and sixteen. The pressure you put on yourself playing at a high level, trying to do all you could to prepare for a varsity atmosphere and game, and learning how to work. I didn't do a good job of that at the beginning of the year. I expected a lot of my players, which is good, but when you lose sight of what they are dealing with on a daily basis, it can be a lot for them. I would catch myself not giving praise when I should, overreacting to things (if you know me, you know "overreacting is not in my DNA...😅), and being very critical at the worst times. Us as a staff had a lot of conversations about how to grow as an individual and as a collective group. I grew a lot, but know I still have a lot to learn.
"A good coach transfers the knowledge of the game in his head into one of his player's head. A great coach can do that with two or three. A legendary coach does it with five or more." - Unknown
My favorite parts of the year were seeing what we would say and do in practice carry over into a game. There was a moment where one of our bigs made a move we worked on in practice and did it in a game. He got the bucket and turned and looked at me and had the biggest smile on his face. Coolest moments by far is when the kids see what they do in practice ACTUALLY CAN translate to the games. It is beautiful to watch. There were several games early in the season where our opponent would make huge run and take a big lead. The momentum would completely shift and it was hard for our kids to respond. We wanted to see how they would react. It wasn't pretty. Later in the year, we are playing a city rival and got down early fast. I mean we went up five nothing to start, and next thing you know we are down thirteen with halfway through the first quarter. We would battle back and make it a fifteen point game by halftime. Our locker room wasn't down like the beginning of the year, they were mad. They knew they could play better. We came out in the second half and fought our tails off and cut it to one point twice in the second half. We ended up losing the game by six because of free throws, but it might have been one of the coolest moments of our season. Watching the boys relive that they could. Believe in each other. Really buy in to our culture see them take the game into their own hands.
That is what it's about. Trying to get them to see the game before it happens. See the pass before your teammate is there. Find a body on defense and rebound. Trust your teammate to do their job so that you can do yours. It was awesome to watch how these freshman and sophomores grew every week, every practice, and every game. It will never be exactly what you expect... but that is the beauty, right? Next year there will be different challenges, different things to improve on, and different moments that make it all worth it. I am truly thankful to be doing what I am doing. This team is such a joy to coach. The way the interact with each other. The way they play every single game as hard as they can. (We are still working on practices... but that comes with age and experience. At fourteen and fifteen you don't think it matters that much lol, nothing matters that much at that age. That is a good thing. Most important thing is to have fun. Yes, winning is great and losing sucks, but at the end of the day, it is just a game. The way you handle yourself in both victories and losses is more important to me than whether or not you won.
Excited for next year and the journey God has set before me, this staff, and this team.