This morning I was reading about how the New York Knicks organization want their center Eddie Curry to be in Las Vegas with their team participating in the Summer League so they can monitor his off-season diet and conditioning. Seems like they want him to get into (better) shape. He missed a lot of action last season due to a weight issue.
All week long I have been asking basketball people why do talented players throw it all away? How come guys don’t improve? Why don’t they use their talent to have a successful career. They were blessed with extraordinary skills but they let distractions hurt their chances of progress.
Some of the answers I received (Twitter and Facebook included) were lack of work ethic, undiscipline, poor attitude, falling with the wrong crowd, lack of responsibility, and then this nugget from a long-time basketball coach “There is nothing as common as unsuccessful people with potential. Too often, young players are being overcoached and under taught. Many NBA players lack basic fundamentals such as footwork, shooting, passing, moving without the ball, etc.”
All very good examples for the fall of a promising basketball player.
I scratch my head and often wonder why are players falling into these traps? Why do they engage in irrational behavior?
They have a talent, a God-given talent, why not do something to nurture it instead of doing something to destroy it?
This is nothing new, you can go all the way back to the 1970’s and read about players who threw it all away. These days it seems popular because of the internet, 24 hour news, sports talk and social networks.
As a coach, I wanted to reach out to all basketball players and send them a message; please don’t do anything deviant to stop you from becoming the best athlete you can be. Please always do the right thing, there is a great prize waiting for you at the end of the tunnel. Work on your game as much as possible, do well in school, act appropriate in public, take pride in the team you play for, don’t disrespect your coach, teammates, officials or parents. If you are a professional (and a couple of pro’s read this blog) be smart about the choices you make, keep striving to do your best, and always lend a helping hand. You make money playing basketball, you have a family to support and a name to live up to, don’t blow it.
Eddie Curry has a chance of a lifetime to be a success. He has all the resources to be the best he can be; to help a great organization climb the ladder and make a lot of people very proud to be a New York Knicks fan. (Curry’s trainer reports he has lost 50 pounds to date.) Many may not realize this but there are thousands of basketball players out there all over the country wishing they had another chance to do it all over again. I’m sure they think twice about some of the choices they made; but hey, we all make bad choices in our quest for success, the difference is the athletes that do throw it all away, have the guidance and support that usually goes unused.
Schoolyards and street corners across America are filled with basketball players who once had a talent, who could’ve made something of their life.
PLAY THE RIGHT WAY!
-Coach Finamore
Hoops135@hotmail.com
Tags: basketball, Coach, Diet, Facebook, Las Vegas, NBA, New York Knicks, Sports, Summer League, Twitter
