Competing

"Competing is like wrestling a gorilla. You don't quit when you're tired, you quit when the gorilla is tired."
Alan Stein

Jimmy Butler- "I Want to Be Guy Who Is Coachable"

The following from Jimmy Butler (Bull's draft pick) in the Chicago Tribune--

Butler said he felt his workout for the Bulls went pretty well but that he could've done better. He did say he looked forward to playing for coach Tom Thibodeau.

"I'm going to take what he has to say and put it in effect, no questions asked," Butler said. "Whatever he wants me to do, whatever any of my teammates want me to do, that's what I'll do. I want to be that guy who is coachable and will listen.

"I think I will be able to play (shooting guard) because you don't know how much time I'm going to spend in the gym to stay at this level for a long time. In order to do that, I have to get better at every aspect of my game, not just shooting. I'll be in the gym working on everything because no part of my game is perfect."

Tennessee Camp- 2010

Ken & Sue Massey

Today- living in Middleton.

This is a story in the Madison paper about my cousin Ken Massey and his family. Ken & Sue were in the center of the farm foreclosures in the 1980's. The picture of them with their baby being taken out of their farmhouse by the county sheriff was in all of the national papers. This is a story of them 25 years later. To say they are inspiring is an understatement.

My Motivation- Andie Allison

We start basketball camp this week. I started the "My Motivation" articles back this spring. My hope was that they would be writings that our players could read, think about, and reflect on their own sources of motivation. I have tried to have about one per week.

Andie Allison- "Coach Allison"- should be a source of motivation for all of our players. She has worked with our Streaks teams every summer since getting out of high school. The combination of her determination, commitment, loyalty, and enthusiasm made her so valuable. After seeing the positive impact the volunteer coaches had in our boys program, I knew Andie would be so valuable for us as an assistant year round on the varsity. Our seniors especially realized Coach Allison's value.

One day last fall I was talking to Coach Reynolds about adding another coach. His comment,"You are coaching girls basketball. Let's see, you are old and male. Andie and Jaque are young and female. Might be a good move." Sometimes Coach Reynolds doesn't sugar coat things (he never does).

Guide to Galesburg HS

I am finishing my 37th year at Galesburg High School. So I think I have a pretty good idea about how GHS operates. But as my son was looking at classes for his freshmen year, I realized that I had a lot to learn about GHS. So the last several weeks I have talked to lots of the seniors in my classes. And then I decided I wanted more education. So I decided who better to ask questions about GHS than the seven graduating seniors in the basketball program.

All seven were good students and most of them were very active as leaders. So I thought it would be good to get their perspective on GHS. So here are the responses of Mickey Rodriguez, Tai Peachey, Megan Young, Jessica Howard, Lauren Riggs, Sarah Main, and Jamie Johnson. Thanks for the education!

I would highly recommend this for parents of GHS students- especially entering freshmen. And I would recommend it for GHS students.

Kareem Abdul Jabbar's Letter to Scottie Pippen

As you may be aware, Scottie Pippen claimed that LeBron James "may be the greatest player to ever play.". This letter is Kareem's response to Pippen's evaluation.

Dear Scottie,

I have nothing but respect for you my friend as an athlete and knowledgeable basketball mind. But you are way off in your assessment of who is the greatest player of all time and the greatest scorer of all time.