Assistant Coaches: Our Role and How to Implement Change

I'm frequently asked when talking about coaching what I do as an assistant coach during the game. One casual observer asked me "So, do you like to keep stats?" The answer to this question is yes, that is sometimes one of our responsibilities but hopefully that's not only how you view your role. Any head coach will tell you that a huge piece to having a successful program is having assistant coaches that engage themselves in the details that could one night make the difference between winning and losing. You were probably selected to be an assistant coach because your knowledge and experience of the game has afforded you some type of past success. Capitalize on that success and experience by bringing a fresh look to your program and identifying the gaps that could keep your team from achieving their goals.

I quickly realized this season as an assistant that it isn't always the concept of your idea that is most critical, but that the delivery and timing of your concept is most important to get it to implementation. You should ask yourself a few things before pulling the coach aside to pitch your idea, like, can we execute this? Does the time, score, and personnel allow us to make this change and be successful? What is the risk/reward for making this change? Is this a game changer? Or is this something that doesn't carry enough reward to waste a timeout on, etc? Before pitching your idea these are just three questions that are important to consider. In fact, a good coach should have a visual of what is going to occur when the change happens so you aren't just throwing dust to the wind to make you feel involved or that your ideas are appreciated. Frequently when things go south assistant coaches will start throwing out ideas without thinking them through completely. They feel that since things aren't going right on the court that they have the magic potion to fix it with one golden idea and if they don't have the answer then they are not a good coach. Quality coaches in these situations will not jump to panic but will quickly take a step back and analyze what is happening. Are the mistakes being made an X's and O's issue or is it an execution issue? Is our weak side post not coming all the way to the ball? Or are we putting them in a situation where they are not going to be successful? Quickly identifying this information is critical to game management and whether or not you can ride out the wave or if it's time to burn a timeout, implement change, etc.

As an assistant coach you have a responsibility to your program to be a sponge for new information. This is probably true of all coaches but it's important as an assistant to internally challenge your team's concepts and ideas to better understand your strengths and weaknesses. For example, if you were coaching against your team how would you attack them? Would you run zone defense, man defense, or a combination of both? I sometimes find it easiest when preparing for a game to identify how the game might play out by putting myself in that other coach's shoes and recognizing what I would do in the flow of the game based on our strengths and weaknesses. Then, when that opposing coach makes the adjustment, you have already visualized it and will be one step ahead of them and prepared to react accordingly.

As you become more integrated within your staff one of the biggest challenges you will face as an assistant coach is to trust your instincts but maybe even more importantly to trust your head coach when presenting an idea. It's important to know that not every one of your ideas will be implemented. Don't take this personally! The head coach is ultimately in charge of the final outcome and is going to do what they feel is best for the team. This doesn't mean they don't value your opinion and want to hear your next idea but only that it wasn't the right idea this time. If you feel strongly enough about your concept and the reason it wasn't used you can speak to your head coach at the next appropriate time and venue (practice, etc.) to get their perspective on the situation and why they felt to go a different direction. You may learn more about your coach's philosophy and what he/she will be looking for in the future under those circumstances.

Last, try and remember that as a staff you are going to have disagreements and not all of your ideas are going to come to fruition. If all of your coaches had the same ideas or always agreed on the proper way to run your team then you would undoubtedly fail at some point. Constructively disagreeing with each others ideas, while being respectful, will bring to the surface new perspectives you may not have recognized that will ultimately make you a better coach. Remember, it's in the timing and delivery of your information as an assistant that makes your contributions successful.....