Month: July 2019

Pushing Players – Coach Cal Wisdom

Here is another excerpt from Coach John Calipari’s book, “Players First, Coaching from the inside out” that talks about what it means when a coach is “pushing players” to improve…

Players First by John Calipari

None of my players are as ready as they think they are for how we play at Kentucky – let alone ready for the pros – because they have rarely if ever been really pushed. They have gotten accustomed to dominating even while putting out three-quarters effort. In fact, they probably don’t even know they play at three-quarters speed. That’s one of the things I have to show them.

How do you push the players on your team? Are they challenged to reach their full potential?

Coach Cal’s book provides some stories about how he recruits star players by being radically truthful with them. He feels that by telling the truth, even when it might be uncomfortable, he is able to inspire trust.

Here is a link to the previous blog article about this book… click here.

How are you pushing players on your team? Please leave a note in the comments with your story!

Players First – Wisdom from Coach Cal

Players First by John CalipariBelow is an excerpt from a book that I just finished reading. The book is by Coach John Calipari and Michael Sololove and it is titled “Players First, Coaching from the Inside Out.” The excerpt explains Coach Cal’s “Players First” philosophy…

… There was a time I coached partly for myself – for status, respect, money, wins. I’m not immune to any of these things, but they’re not really the point anymore, either. … I coach for the names on the back of the jerseys – not just the front. My players. They are sent to me by their fathers, their mothers, their grandmothers and their aunts – whoever in this world raised them and loves them. Others look at their NBA bodies and consider them lucky. Future millionaires, just stopping through before they cash in. That’s not what I see. They’re kids, some of them as young as seventeen years old. They all need me in a different way. Some want my affection, others my approval. It’s a burden to be responsible for other people’s children, sometimes a heavy burden.

“Players First” sounds like a great way to think about coaching, even if you are not the head coach of the Kentucky Men’s Division 1 basketball program. Even if your players are not future NBA draft picks, it is good to think about the responsibility you, as a coach, have to them and the people who raised them.

Other Book Reviews

If you are looking for other books to help you build a winning mindset, check out these book reviews on the blog… 12 Rules For Life and The Undoing Project.

There are loads of great ideas in Coach Cal’s book and you can look forward to seeing a few more excerpts from the book on this blog. Please leave a comment below and tell us how this idea of “Players First” compares to your own coaching philosophy. I know there must be some coaches out there that coach their team to put the name on the front before the name on the back. That’s a Team-First focus and it is a good thing, right?