What Must Be Done

“Knowing what must be done does away with fear.” - Rosa Parks

A great quote from one of the strongest people our country has ever known, it almost seems silly to think about it in a basketball context. But if you want a fearless team they have to know what must be done. And if you want to be fearless as a coach, same thing.

The challenge obviously is that you never know how the game is going to play out, and strategy can change in a matter of seconds. But the more you prepare for those situations, the more fearless you will be. Chip Kelly used to say “Make your most important decisions in air conditioned rooms.” Go through the scenarios your team may face, and come up with the way you are going to play it before the game. Write it down, keep it in your pocket. Put together the line-ups and match-ups you think will be most effective. Have a plan, albeit a flexible one, as to what must be done.

But more importantly prepare your players to do the same. You want them to be problem solvers and decision makers, not hoop jumpers waiting for your command. The decisions need to be made in the heat of the action, with a split-seconds notice. The more you prepare them to make decisions, the more fearless your team will play.