-Establish the culture of working hard, grinding, and high levels of intensity at all times
-Practice end of game situation that put pressure on the players
-Make everything you possibly can competitive with winners and losers
-Punishment for losers and rewards for winners
-You and your team have to hate to lose, it should not be an option or a thought that you will ever lose and it should make you sick everytime you do lose.
Getting More Out of Your Players
-Communicate constantly
-Be knowledgeable about what you are teaching and take the time to teach it to your players
-Make sure they have a full grasp of what you are teaching and offer to spend extra time teaching it to them if it is necessary
Making the Jump from Graduate Assitant to Staff
-GA spots are a 24/7 grind on you physically and financially, you have to be ready for it
-You must seperate yourself from the rest; constantly try to do something that will take a task off someone else's plate so they incorporate you in more and possibly depend on you more
-Be an everyday guy; you must be enthusiastic and positive at all times
-Build trust; relationships can be built through being that everyday guy. "people work harder for people they genuinely care about".
-Add value; do something everyday to make the team better.
-Always be the first one in and the last one out
-Communicate with coaches at other schools than just yours
-Letter; write 25-50 handwritten letters a week
-Text; text coaches as soon as they get wins and notify them that you are following up with them and care about their success
-Calling; rarely call head coaches, call other coaches and GA's every once in awhile, don't talk about yourself, no one cares about you yet get them talking about themselves
-Know your role; listen to learn
-Never miss a basketball opportunity; do whatever it takes to stand out, take time to go to clinics