I've been listening and watching a lot of Jim Rome lately, because it's college basketball season and Jim has a good interview with a coach or player every single day. On Jim Rome is burning yesterday, Jim interviewed Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan. Here is the segment,



I really enjoyed Coach Ryan's comments about developing players. One thing that I constantly ask myself of is, are we improving? Have we improved from the beginning of the season? Have we improved after today's practice? If the answer is no, then I don't think I've done my job as a coach.

Enjoy the teaching. Coaching is teaching. As a coach, I enjoy the mentoring part. I like to think that I'm making an impact on my player's lives. That they're learning about something that's going to make them better people.

A lot of times, coaches are judged too much on their Win/Loss record, or how many Championships they've won. I've always felt, a better evaluation of success was what former players said about you as a coach. I respect my players and their opinions and their opinion of me as a coach means a lot to me, certainly more than a reporter, fan, or even other coaches.

I'd trade the feeling of hearing a player say he thought I was a great coach and that I treated him/her fairly than any Championship or win. The reverse is also true. If I hear that a player said I treated them unfairly, I take that hard, harder than the worst loss. If I have any regrets from coaching, it's the times where your players say you treated them unfairly. You think about what you could've done differently in that situation.

If you liked this interview, you may also like Bruce Pearl's Interview with Jim Rome a couple of months ago.

0 comments