Coach: You Need To Know This Because Your Players Need To Hear This

I really had no intention of turning this video of Doc Rivers at Coaching U into a blog post. In fact, my plan was just to put it up on my Facebook page and call it a day.

Yet, as I watched it again, I thought: “This is a keeper!” [Disclosure: I don’t know if it’s a keeper for you or for me.] I just really appreciate Rivers’ ability to articulate what I think is the ‘art of coaching’.

Since attending Coach U in 2010, and listening to Doc Rivers speak, his success no longer comes as a surprise to me. It’s obvious that he has found the delicate balance between being a fierce competitor, an (instinctive) X’s and O’s coach, and an innate ability to connect with and get buy-in from his basketball players. If anyone ever doubted it, the Boston Celtics’ run in 2012 to the NBA Eastern Conference Finals is a testament to Coach Rivers ability to ignite performances in his players that are greater than the sum of his team’s individual parts. It’s remarkable to think that an aging team, without the help of Jeff Green, Avery Bradley, and Jermaine O’Neal, was a mere five minutes of solid basketball away from returning to the NBA Finals.

Watch the video to get a taste of why…

Doc Rivers: Getting Buy-In & Defining Roles

/sef.

[ READ THIS: My notes from listening to Doc Rivers at Coaching U. ]

Tweetables:

“Everybody… every player has a comfort zone. And once they’re in it, it’s hard to get them out of it.” —Doc Rivers

“Players need to hear how valuable they are… how important they are.” —Doc Rivers