What Do You Think Makes a Good Coach?

Via Eric Musselman's Twitter site, I came across this great article talking about what make's a good coach. Of course, this is all subjective and dependent on many different factors and opinions of how to judge success.

I like the following quote though:

Coaches are an extension of the classroom — to a degree an extension of a kid's family, someone who a student-athlete can rely on, believe in and TRUST.

Like it or not, coaches hold a tremendous amount of influence on the people they coach, regardless of the level of competition. How you coach, what you say, and how you act as a coach all inevitably make their way into the player's minds, consciously and subconsciously. There are players that I've coached many a year ago who I bump into on occasion, and when they recite word for word some of my "coaching idioms", it brings a smile to my face every time.

High school coaches have responsibilities that go beyond the typical classroom -- helping to shape and mold young bodies and young minds through the formative years of their development. That is an incredible responsibility if you think about it.

Success therefore, has to go beyond the wins and losses. For me, questions I ask myself after every season are: What 5 things did my players learn about this season, both tangible and intangible? Are my players better prepared to make the next step as both basketball players and contributing citizens in our civil society? What are the values that I hope to impart and are my players a reflection of those values? If the answers are negative or unknown, then my job has to be viewed as partially failed.