Character & Christian Laettner

Great, But Disliked Christian Laettner. The name evokes an immediate reaction. For many people, it is a negative one. But, while Christian says he doesn’t care whether you like him or not, I believe he is hoping to change one thing about the way people perceive him. ESPN’s 30-for-30 special titled I Hate Christian Laettner…

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A Missed Opportunity

The Way You Win Matters It was a boys high school basketball game and I was sitting next to a father, whose son was playing for one of the teams. The father, who I’ll call “Jim”, was a former basketball coach at the high school and college levels. During the first half, a player on…

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Losing to Win Dishonors Youth Sports

A Corrosive Effect on Character Two basketball teams kicked out of the high school playoffs. Two coaches suspended for all of next season, their coaching future in doubt. $1,500 fines for each school, their programs on probation. All because adult egos got in the way of competing honorably. On Saturday, a Tennessee high school girls…

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Changing the Focus in Youth Sports

It was a typical cold, winter day in the northeast. Every available gym in the area featured youth basketball games, one game after another, from early morning into night. I watched as two 5th-grade boys rec league teams, one team in blue, the other in green, took to the court. Each team had 10-players. As…

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Father John Doyle School, Coventry, RI

On October 7, 2014 Chuck Wilson spoke to parents and kids participating in the youth basketball program at the Father John Doyle School in Coventry, Rhode Island. We enjoyed our visit with the parents and young athletes on basketball sign-up night, and came away from it with a good feeling. We talked about how to…

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