On the exciting day that ESPN kick-off their 2008 college basketball coverage, the legendary basketball coach Pete Newell passed away at the age of 93.  Pete is a basketball coaching legend being the first of three coaches to coach the winning teams of a NCAA championship (1959), NIT championship (1949), and Olympic Gold Medal (1960) (the other two are Bobby Knight and Dean Smith). 

After retiring from coaching in 1960 at the age of 44, Pete stayed involved with basketball by training young players the strategies of basketball.  After retiring, he initially was a scout before taking several executive positions with NBA teams.  In 1976, he retired from his general manager position with the Los Angeles Lakers and took a short leave from basketball to spend time with his wife, Florence.  Even though his personal life was his priority, his love for basketball continued to thrive as he established his "Big Man" camp in 1976 that has trained over 200 current and former NBA players.  Starting in 2000, the National Association of Basketball Coaches established the Pete Newell Big Man Award that is presented to the top collegiate post player every year.  In 2001, Pete expanded his influence to include collegiate and professional women basketball with the establishment of the "Tall Women's Basketball Camp."  To find out more about Coach Newell, read Bruce Jenkins' book, A Good Man, as he works his way through this coaching legends career and involvement with basketball.

Even though I never meet Coach Newell personally, he has influence my coaching career through his book:  Defensive Basketball: Winning Techniques and Strategies.  My player's affectionately refer to this book as "the why" book.  Everyone has heard the phrase: "defense wins championships", but seldomly is it mentioned why.  Defensive Basketball describes why a coach would play a specific defense and encourages coaches to tell their players why they are doing it.

In teaching basketball, the importance of describing the "why" has never changed.  The "why" is a fundamental in classroom teaching, and it certainly important in teaching the basics of defensive play of basketball.  While it is important to explain the "how" of performing a particular aspect of play, it is even more important for a basketball coach to explain the "why."  It has been my experience that the player who understands the "why" will consistently respond correctly to the situation.  Consistent response will usually result in a consistent defense. (1)

After the first reading, I made a commitment to always explain the "why" along with the "how" and then finish with re-emphasizing the "why".  (I have written about this before in the post: Summary of Learning Styles.)  Teams that I have coached have more won games, tournaments, and championships because the players know why they are being asked what to do.  The two main reasons are: 1) players more quickly adapt in game situations, and 2) they work harder in practice because they know how the activity will affect them personally as well as the team.

Today with the passing on Pete Newell, basketball lost an accomplished coach and trainer, but the influences of his life will impact young players for years to come.

(1)  Defensive Basketball: Winning Techniques and Strategies by Pete Newell, Chapter 1

If you've enjoyed reading this post then please subscribe to my full text RSS feed.