Stop reaching. Going over to someone's house and beating them up is completely different from beating a team in basketball. And I'm 20.
Use this analogy. If a normal 12 year old wanted to play you in a game of one-on-one, I assume you could probably shut him out if you really wanted to. Are you going to do that? If so, would you feel like you accomplished something? Or, are you going to take it somewhat easy on him and not pressure him on defense?
This is an excellent point that I think a lot of you are missing. As a coach and an athlete I've noticed that often times people who do things like run up the score or showboat on a weaker opponent often are sore losers who as soon as they lose or even are in a tough game / match can't handle the pressure. Bad sportsmanship whether on the winning or losing side affects how you view the game as a whole. These players aren't pros getting paid to do a job, although any self-respecting pro coach wouldn't do something like that either, these are students and its the coach's job to not only teach them the physical skills but the character skills.
Team USA are better basketball players but I bet that most of Team Korea are black belts in Taekwondo.
Yeah I would take it easy on him because I'm 20 and he's 12. 8 year difference. If a 20 year old challenges me to a 1 on 1 contest and he sucks I'm not going to ease up on him because he sucks. I assume all the people on the court during the game were the same age. My whole rant wasn't really about this game, it was about sports at the college and professional level. Even at those levels coaches complain when they get blownout and the other team is still running the score up.
Change the age to your own. Shortly into the game you recognize that he totally sucks and you could steal the ball and score at will. Are you going to do so? Are you going to pressure defense him the vast majority of the game?
Still think it's ridiculous for someone to be fired over this...well, probably for his comments and his view, but still...I know a lady whose daughter is on the team that won...they can only substitute so much...they other team just sucked...hell, the same school got beat something like 86-12 years ago according to a tv report up here...
I would not press the team. I'm not saying I would do what the coach did. I'm just saying I don't have a problem with what he did. But would I had pressed them up by 50? No I would not.
unforgivable.. here, in this very same sub-forum, where this news has been shared.. we have a thread of a member of this board who faces the immensely difficult ordeal of coping with the unfortunate, and highly untimely loss of his child.. which I'm sure.. if he had the chance.. would do and give anything to have back.. and out there.. exists such actual persons.. that willingly take the lives of their own children.. some people are just simply not worth it......
Something similar in Ohio. 108-1. No remorse though (yet). http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...om&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial
Where was I in 2009 to miss this topic. Well, I just finished up another season coaching freshmen boys basketball. We ended the season 19-2 and went 14-0 in district. I ran two defenses....full court man, and half court man. Sure we had zones and traps in the bag, but we played to our strength defensively. We averaged over 30 ppg margin of victory through district play. I would pull my starters when we were in control of the game, but I would not tell my second and third group to go easy on the other team. I expected them to work hard and work as a team. One year, I asked my Athletic Director if he had a problem with the lopsided wins we would get...his response was "It's not my job to make the other team look or feel good" Even with that endorsement, I wouldn't let my kids try to run up the score to 100. I believe that they need to learn to win and lose with dignity. However, the two teams that did beat us in preseason did get circled on the schedule and we went on to beat them by 50 and 60 points...and yes, I did call off the dogs on them too. One team had a post player that threw one of my guards to the ground. He got called on a technical, but his coach thought it was a good idea to let him continue playing. We didn't pull up until the end of the 3rd quarter, and beat them 72-17, but we did it clean. Before every game, I will cross the table to go shake the other coaches hand and wish them luck. I've done that for years. No other coach has extended that to me, but that's ok. I want to show the athletes what sportsmanship is about. I don't buy in to the whole thing that UIL sports should be "fun". It's an athletic competition. I was hired to make these kids better athletes and people. I tell my players that if they expect to have fun, they should go to the playground and play for fun, but in practice, everything we do will be planned around making them better basketball players and champions. I also tell them that winning is a lot of fun, but learn to be gracious about it.
